3SPD Series' Future

[player]

I e-mailed Tamiya about the reproduction of the 3Spd Series. The person that responded seemed like they wanted to see it back too. I encourage you to send TamiyaUSA an email at us_support(aaattt)tamiya(doooot)com. This email address normally has to go thorugh a form, which is at http://www.tamiyausa.com/contact/email.php
I got a response that they would foward my sugguestion to the Japanese dept. where all the product dev. is done. Hopefully if we get alot of requests, Tamiya will bring back our beloved trucks.
So send in those e-mails!
Merry Christmas!
Trevor

Their response is as follows:
Dear Tamiya Customer,

Yes it would be nice to see some of these old kits as re-releases, however,
all of Tamiya's decisions regarding development and planning for new
releases and "re-releases" is done in Japan and are posted on their site
first. If you would like to see the products that Tamiya is planning to
release, please go to: http://www.tamiya.com/english/e-home.htm

And thank you for your product input, I'll forward your suggestions to the
appropriate department in Japan where all of Tamiya's decisions regarding
development and planning is done, and we'll see what happens.

Customer Service Dept.
Tamiya America, Inc.

[Rockinrockcrawler]

on rcmt some years ago they had apetition that a ton of people signed that was sent in and no response was ever given.

[1BadJeepBruiser]

I own 3 3-speeds right now and have had many others over the years, I would love to see these come back too...BUT I was one of the many people who signed that petetion that went no where , the truth is they probably wont re release it as I have heard rumors that they dont have the molds and every other excuse in the book. People have been trying for years, through emails and everything and its typically the same answers. Some have even talk to reps at trade shows and had the reps tell them there are no future plans for it. who know maybe itll come out ...some day

Mike

[Rockinrockcrawler]

I'd be happy if they re released a newer version only specs i'd want for sure are all metal 3 speeds and the realistic looking axles. Really i think we need to look to ourselves in this area i don't see why clods and other trucks have aluminum axles and twin motor gear boxes you can buy yet the bruiser doesn't even have one after market axle readily available. I think we should look into makeing new bruisers for ourself.

[flatfender]

OK, first of all, I would love to get my hands on a vintage 3 speed, but I would rather see Tamiya come out with something better. think about it , a scale truck with enough strength to withstand the abuse of a brushless system (killer desert truck or totally scale stadium truck to compete against the XXXT and T4s <dreaming>) just think about how much technology has progressed.
I'd say keep the Bruisers, Mountaineers and Hiluxs in the history books, just give us something better.

P.S. I signed that petition too.

[snakeman]

I got exactly the same reply to the letter when I asked if they were going to re-release the brusier series trucks.

[rbgerrish]

My boss has talked to one of the Tamiya Japan guys when he was over there a while ago. The man told him that the company that built and molded all the metal parts, such as the axles, the tranny, all that good stuff, has long since been out of business, and the molds and plans and other important stuff like that went with them.

Of course, you'd think that with enough encouragement from the community, Tamiya could create new molds if they thought there was enough market for it...

I guess we'll see!

[Highmark]

Yup, it's not like there arn't parts out there that can be used to make new molds

All that would be required is a little effort on Tamiya's part.

[player]

Dangit. Send e-mails. Send letters. Send Hitmen. Wait, no scratch the hitmen. But send everything else!

[Rockinrockcrawler]

I'd hate to see a bl setup in a bruiser style truck. Bruisers are cool because of scaleness and character. Not speed or performance. I'd just like to see some new trucks with more character and scaleness realeased. Juggernauts came close but they are discontinued. Other then that i can't think of any scale truck released in a very long time. And by scale i mean bruiser/hilux/mounty/blazer/sandscorcher/kyosho 4 runner style vehicles not cheap touring car with slightly bigger tires. (i love my hummer but come on they are not as cool as the before mentioned)

[BrandO]

Don't get me wrong. If I had the money, I would have a different bruiser for every day of the week. I think these trucks are the coolest. But I don't have one and don't have $700-$800 to spend on a basket case off Ebay. I am afraid if Tamiya did decide on a rerelease the price would be high. Think about the cost to produce the parts. All those cool metal parts would break the bank. I think this is why nobody has produced a clone axle or something close. My guess is a bruiser type axle would cost well over $200 to produce a piece. A business person would look at that cost and then the risk. I think this is why we won't see a rerelease from Tamiya.

[Rockinrockcrawler]

Originally Posted by BrandO

Don't get me wrong. If I had the money, I would have a different bruiser for every day of the week. I think these trucks are the coolest. But I don't have one and don't have $700-$800 to spend on a basket case off Ebay. I am afraid if Tamiya did decide on a rerelease the price would be high. Think about the cost to produce the parts. All those cool metal parts would break the bank. I think this is why nobody has produced a clone axle or something close. My guess is a bruiser type axle would cost well over $200 to produce a piece. A business person would look at that cost and then the risk. I think this is why we won't see a rerelease from Tamiya.

You breaka few cases and axles for that bruiser and you've spent more then 200 easily. This hobby is expensive if money is a worry then you shoulnd't buy a bruiser to begin with. I'd gladly pay 200 for a bomb proof axle.

[BrandO]

Originally Posted by Rockinrockcrawler

You breaka few cases and axles for that bruiser and you've spent more then 200 easily. This hobby is expensive if money is a worry then you shoulnd't buy a bruiser to begin with. I'd gladly pay 200 for a bomb proof axle.

I realize this hobby costs a lot of money. Just ask my wife. Problem is we are in the minority. Many many axles would need to be sold to recover the cost involved. Cad drawings, tooling, and machining just to name a few expenses. A business man has to worry if he will make enough to cover his costs. And in the end hope he makes a profit. That is a big risk for an aftermarket parts maker. Especially when they can go out and make Savage and Revo parts. They sell that stuff all day long to every yahoo out there. The basher niche is bigger than the scale/ crawler group. If that ever changes we may see more crawler type parts.

As with many things these days, It is all about the bottom line.

[1BadJeepBruiser]

Originally Posted by BrandO

I realize this hobby costs a lot of money. Just ask my wife. Problem is we are in the minority. Many many axles would need to be sold to recover the cost involved. Cad drawings, tooling, and machining just to name a few expenses. A business man has to worry if he will make enough to cover his costs. And in the end hope he makes a profit. That is a big risk for an aftermarket parts maker. Especially when they can go out and make Savage and Revo parts. They sell that stuff all day long to every yahoo out there. The basher niche is bigger than the scale/ crawler group. If that ever changes we may see more crawler type parts.

As with many things these days, It is all about the bottom line.

second that! Not to mention bruiser axles were made of sh!tty as$ pot metal so if they did come back out with it or something new it would be fairly exspensive like Brandon is saying. We are just a small portion of people who would want these. think about the majority of rc you see in magazines, it revolves around racing...your not exactly going to build a race truck out of bruiser type solid axles ya know? and if you did, they would be so much $$$ to get them to hold up to that kind of abuse.

Mike

[BCCrawler]

I have a friend that manages the local hobby town that said he has talked to tamiya and the told him that some of the molds were burnt up in a fire.

[player]

Dammmmit. This dosen't look too hopeful...
Maybe in the future Tamiya would sell me the rights to the 3spd series and I can produce my own... I'm thinking... STAINLESSSTEEL BABY!

Well, if I'm still around in 20 years...

[Plays_with_Toys]

I don't think it'd be that hard. The biggest step would be a hard ABS plastic axle. Something tough, but small (roughly the size of the metal bruiser axles). Plastic would be cheaper and easier. They still sell the tranny (I thought it came with semi's?) so take that tranny and swap it over. Metal frame, semi truck shocks, leaf springs would need to be sourced. Tires and wheels and such would be easy for them to come up with, or use the BFG's from the s-10's/hummers and come up with a new wheel design. The only next hard part is the body. But, release it with jugg, clod, and two other bodies (maybe FJ40 and a jeep?) and bam. Could sell them like crazy.

You have to remember that there are alot of older guys who owned a bruiser and sold them off that would surely buy another to bring the memories back. Advertisements would have to go into 4wheeling magazines and RC magazines.

The whole old-school market has started to expand with the older buggies. I imagine cost would be in the $250-350 range because of the frame, tranny, and body, but its definately do-able.

[player]

You mean the Tamiya semis have the 3 speed tranny?! OMG I NEED A SEMI! I always wanted one, now, even more reason to get one! But those semi arn't 4wd, so is there a transfer case or something on the 4x4s?
The prices on those semi-trailers are rediculous though. I wonder why they're so darn expensive...

PWT, thanks for the inspiration. When I get around to making these, I'll send a kit to you! If I ever get around... I'll make it a 3 speed tranny, with a real transfer case! So, 2H,2L,4H,4L just like meh FJ40! And I'll sell hop-up parts like the real thing! Like a low RPM nitro motor with gobs of torque for real action thats interchangeable with the welding magnet electronic motor, different Ring&Pinion gears for the diff, transfercase range doublers, different transmissions that arn't quite bolt in, just like the real thing, engine swaps, lift kits, new birfields, aircondition, high amp alternators, snorkle kits, air lockers, on-board air, pnumatic tools for the air, upgrade airfilters, oil coolers... maybe I'm getting ahead of myself...
I guess I'll have to start designing the axles... Whats the best way to do it, machined or molded?

[chaotic_life]

The semi's have A three-speed tranny, but they need a transfer case for 4wd- they dont shift from 2wd to 4wd.

[Plays_with_Toys]

Right. I remember rc4wd.com selling some kits around the semi's 3 speeds. I'm sure there is a german company with a 2wd-4wd transfer case already made. They are all about the scale realism. They might even have a cheaper 3speed tranny than tamiya offers.

Like I said, I really don't think it'd be all too hard.

Player, first you'd have to mill a set then create the mold for it if it works. Another easier option would be purchasing two pajero rear axles, and simply making the kit to convert those axles to steer. You'd need some bracing though as the one person I heard of who did such a thing broke the axle case.

Frames would be easy, make the frame out of a metal that is easy to bend, create the jig for bending the frames, and a jig to weld/braze them together.

So here's an idea. Lets start talking about what parts we could use to build our own hybrid 3speeds. With enough heads together, you can source the parts, come up with some of the ways for converting. Maybe a vendor would want to start selling a steering kit for pajero axles, or maybe there is another set of axles that'd be better.

If you're willing to go to 1:8 or 1:6 scale, grab a set of mad force axles, they are plenty stout, and the larger size would make transfer cases, leaf springs/etc... easier to make because you have more room.