Striker
Model Number: 58061
Released
21-Feb-87
Drive
2WD rear, gear differential
Suspension
Swingarm front , trailing arms rear , coilover friction shocks
Chassis Description
Plastic bathtub,
Body Type
Hardplastic injection molded
Motor
RS540
Original Price
8800 yen
Width
232mm
Length
435mm
Height
137mm
Wheel Base
265mm
Tread Front
190mm
Tread Rear
196mm
Ground Clearance
30mm
Weight
1460g
Scale
1/10
Tires
front:20/74mm
Rear:37/80mm
This is an economically priced high performance off road racer that offers super styling and performance.
Ideal for anyone just stepping into this exciting field of radio control buggy racing.
The light and sturdy bathtub type frame/chassis is injection molded allowing easy access to your R/C unit.
The front independent suspension is a swing axle type while the rear independent suspension is a semi trailing type.
The sealed gearbox houses differential gearing for smooth cornering.
The sturdy injection molded body has a sharp wind cheating, Formula One type silhouette that stands out at the track.
Designed for rugged use, low maintenance and lots of enjoyment in the wilds!.
[taken from the Tamiya guide book]
Ideal for anyone just stepping into this exciting field of radio control buggy racing.
The light and sturdy bathtub type frame/chassis is injection molded allowing easy access to your R/C unit.
The front independent suspension is a swing axle type while the rear independent suspension is a semi trailing type.
The sealed gearbox houses differential gearing for smooth cornering.
The sturdy injection molded body has a sharp wind cheating, Formula One type silhouette that stands out at the track.
Designed for rugged use, low maintenance and lots of enjoyment in the wilds!.
[taken from the Tamiya guide book]
Reviews
Grastens
My Striker arrived over the Internet. I had been excited about owning one despite the reputation it had among well-informed Tamiya enthusiasts. I got about to stripping it down and reassembling it (thus giving me the experience of 'building' one), and then ended up sourcing parts over a long period to complete it. The assembly was very simple, but did use plenty of screws and with the predominantly-plastic construction one had to be very cautious with tightening them.
Having now driven it, I can report on my thoughts about its performance.
I can see how over large spaces of uneven terrain the Striker can be a handful, but as a snow/ice racer on a small course it is something of a revelation. Even while using an ill-suited pinion gear for a short circuit and used tires, the car's mediocre suspension geometry allowed it to 'bank' off snow-covered barriers instead of getting hung up on them, and the large bevel-geared differential was excellent for the mixed conditions of ice crystals and brick.
Ingress of snow was minimal to negligible even with the openings for the steering system and the battery compartment in the lower chassis. I did waterproof my electronics as a precautionary measure, and rain may be very different. Still, it outperformed my modified Buggy Champ, which is not saying too much, but given that the Striker's design originated later it can be said that at least some progress was made.
The Striker will definitely not be a competition car without heavy modification, and as a basher there are still many better performers - including a wide variety from Tamiya's own stable - but try it out on ice and snow for something different and you may be surprised!
sunnyjai
To be frank I too hated this kit, but what made me realise just as some TC members would agree by just adding 2.2 wheels and add the Sonic Fighter 'F' parts to convert to oil shocks and add maybe some black CVA's would fix the looks department.
I am also noticing the interest in these kits in particular the Sonic Fighter has risen and reflected on auction prices of recent and I too predict the Striker will follow suite.
In saying that I have bit the bullet and started acquiring Sonic Fighters and Strikers while their prices are relatively low. It may not be Tamiya's highlight but it still falls within the 1st 100 kits!
rhenbelz
(FX-10 review)
Stock this car is no fun at all. Add 2.2 rims and tires to the rear (and preferably the front too) and its looks are transformed. Install a 550 7.2v motor and front oil shocks, do a little adjusting on it, and you've got a great basher. A car that will do wheelies easily and be wicked fast.
I've had five FX10s, and contrary to others' recommendations I have beat them very hard. They'll take it! The only times that I have had something break on these cars is when you do something incredibly stupid, like jump on top of it or run it under your foot, wedging the front down and breaking the shock tower. But if you're just thrashing it, nothing really breaks. 6 foot, 12 foot jumps? I haven't had any problems. Well, okay, I did bend a CVA Mini shock shaft on the front. It's true that the dogbones pop out sometimes but if you properly limit the rear suspension travel and use parts that aren't worn out they do pretty well. The front uprights can break if they are very old, but they're cheap and common. The rear shock mounts will break if you don't have the brace and wing installed. The final weak spot is the chassis, but like other parts its fragility is proportional to the miles on it.
These are cheap but not for long, I predict. Get one while you can, it's worth it just to see the look on your friend's face when you outperform his Traxxas Stampede in EVERY way.
Zericon
The Striker is the original F-1 body/chassis style, to paint the body any color than white, you would have to paint the chassis before you build, or take the chassis apart(for the e-bay vintage shopper.) The outdrives are plastic, the dogbones are plastic, and the axle cups are plastic also(like falcon, sonic fighter, futaba fx10) These are very prone to falling out, jumping out (ya get the point) Crp made some after market dogbones, that solved this problem, or thorp made metal (normal looking parts, however hard to find) with these upgrades, this car runs great for me, although not the fastest buggy in the world, it's alot of fun.
With a little care in your driving style, and not running a 6 turn motor this car will last almost forever(don't do and 6' jumps either)
Tamiya King
This was my very first REAL RC car back when I was 16. I am now 31 and had to have it for old times sake. As mentioned below, it is a beginner's car, so keep that in mind, but it is still fun. I upgraded mine with Full Ball Bearings and I dropped a 17T motor in it too. I added a Tamiya Blue Aluminum Heat Sink to keep the temp. down. Even with the 17T motor, I have never lost a dog bone. As for the chassis, yes....it is easy to break, but if you don't go around jumping it too high and ramming it into everything (Some driving skills) Then it will do okay. The back end does bounce allot with stock dampers. I recommend adding Oil shocks for better performance, as I will do to mine in future. The looks of this car I think are fine. Of course, I may be Bias as this was my first car. Alll in all, it is fun and cheap for a beginner. You can pick them up on eBay for about $100 NIB before shipping costs. You can still find parts for them on eBay too. (Tamiya King)
miramar
I hate it! Well, to be more balanced, even as a fanatic Tamiya enthusiast, I just can't make myself say anything nice about this model, except that it was cheap in its days. I built two of this model straight from the box (except all ball bearings) to let two young friends of mine attend the Norwegian 1/10 Stock Buggy Championship with them in fall 1987. Yes, it was for fun as a look into the box made us realize this wouldn't be a good performer. After a few minutes of driving, we decided to mount CVA-dampers in the rear. It did help a little.
Like all Tamiya-models, even the Striker was/is fun to build, but its looks, according to Tamiya "Formula 1 style" (for a buggy!?), aren't really to die for. The chassis broke easily, the plastic drive shafts (from the Falcon) wore out quickly (if they weren't lost!) and the suspension and hard tires (especially front) made for incurable understeering. Being easy to assemble, this could have been a good beginner's car, but all its faults (did Tamiya care?) made it totally hopeless. Tamiya manufactured a very similar car for Futaba to be sold as the Futaba FX10. With its lexan body it looked a little better, but otherwise it was the same sh,.....let's say imperfect model! Later, The Sonic Fighter was based on many of the same parts, and dampers all around and jet fighter style body made it a little better, but this series of cars (including the vaguely similar Falcon) remain undesirable to me in anything but MIB form. If you like it, I'm happy for you though!