Vintage Tamiya Grasshopper Unboxing - The best value rc car of our childhood
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- čas přidán 2. 06. 2023
- Tamiya Grasshopper rc car vintage classic build
Tamiya Grasshopper Green - bit.ly/3CbBIf1
Tamiya Grasshopper - bit.ly/3WRUxNY
Tamiya Frog - bit.ly/3OP3SE8
Tamiya Hornet - bit.ly/3Ch2YZn
Tamiya RC Cars - bit.ly/3MLY9MJ - Sport
Tamiya is the Nintendo of the rc world. We all have a love hate relationship with them.
As a kid in the very early 80’s, my family didn’t have a lot of money. I listed over the Tamiya cars in the RC magazines. It wasn’t until after college that I could afford a hobby grade RC. I bought the HPI Savage .25 when it was first released. I didn’t have any Tamiya cars until about 2015. They are terrible and wonderful all at the same time.
That is such a great description of Tamiya RCs haha
I was born in 94 my first RC on my 10th birthday was a traxxas E-MAXX my dad had the T-MAXX and they were both so much fun! I still am very much into the hobby today! I love all brands and all size vehicles! Boats, planes, trucks, cars, buggies, it’s all great!
As a kid i built these cars for my friends but my parents couldn't afford one for me. Great videos.
My 1st was the Hornet back when I was 15 in 1985! I still have it. I bought the new version of the kit a year ago and compared the two - the kit's were pretty much identical right down to the instructions!
I can still remember walking into my local hobby stores and seeing all them taynia models. My first was the Cloghopper. Yay to us being old eh
My very first hobby grade rc was also a Grasshopper. In either 85 or 86.
That was my 1st hobby grade Rc back in 84. I worked so hard for that kit build I still remember the final cost. To this day I work so hard for everything and my Rc hobby. Nothings changed 🤷🏻♂️
I thought I was so cool when I added painted window screen cut to size for the open windows of buggy. I was way before my time lol
My first RC car too! My dad has one that is older than I am, and we would run it when I was a kid. It still runs great today! Love the videos, keep them coming! Thanks
Absolutely nostalgic watching you unbox this FC! You are correct, it did ruin my RC dreams and I could've been an RC'er. ☹I was 13-14 yo and scooped ice cream @ $2.00/hr to save up for this Grasshopper. And it's true, I couldn't afford the Frog! lol Anyways, as I mentioned to you on your FB post, I spent all my savings to buy this, built it up, painted it green, and on my 1st run out on my home street, I pulled out of the way for a car to pass and the car ended up pulling into the space and ran over my Grasshopper. 😞😭I yelled at him that he crushed my remote control car and he walked away and said "sorry kid, I didn't see it." 😡That was the beginning and end of my RC passion.
Why you didnt punched him?
My dad has this a rc from his childhood and still working!!!
This was my first RC car. I got it for Christmas when i was about 12. My father and i sat at the dining room table and built it over the course of a couple weeks. It's one of the best memories I have of my father and I spending time together. Twenty years later i bout an RC-10 off road car by Team Associated for my stepson. We recreated that same feeling by builing it together. Im sad that finding a kit car is so hard nowadays. I have a cool pickup truck RC that is super fast but came prebuilt.
My first was a Frog. My two closest friends had another Frog & a Hornet & a neighbor had a Grasshopper. I had a few Tamiya kits over the years, ranging from the Porsche 956 for street to a Supershot with 4WD to a Clodbuster with 4WD & 4WS. I also had an original gold chassis RC10. Since getting back in a few years back, it’s all been crawlers.
It didn’t take long before I upgraded the rear axle pivot and a 540 motor the same as the hornet 🐝 and the addiction of Rc took off from there.
I have my Candy Green Grasshopper running a Torque Tuned 540 motor, on a small 2200 mah lipo, it's to fast for the chassis to handle. haha
The Candy Green SE is the same as the normal kit, just painted body, not sure why it's cheaper. I bought mine years ago thinking it was limited, but as Tamiya does, it's released every couple years, so I run mine and don't worry about beating it up, it's too fun. It pairs well with the Comical Grasshopper (on brushless and lipo)
get bearings
My first hobby grade RC was a Tamiya Hornet. I got it from a hobby store in the Philippines where they built the kits for you for a little extra :)
RTR has it place…. But I wish the other big companies would offer more kits. Love the build!
My first was the "Hornet" wanted Grasshopper local hobby shop was out of stock...I earned the money for it from mowing neighbors lawns... :) Thanks for the memory.
Brings back so many memories. I recently just got back into the hobby and it is completely different now.
Same here I got back into the hobby 4 years ago and everything has changed i can’t believe the run time I get out of my RC’s now compared to back then the models i have now i can get an hour to hour and 15 minutes out of them compared to the 8-10 minutes I used to get out of the ones I had in the 80’s
Me, too!
I’ll try to make a long story short lol. I had always loved RC cars as any kid did. The first time I saw a Tamiya was from an episode of a show I watched as a kid called Punky Brewster. I saw that kit, with the amazing box art as mentioned and just wanted one so bad. I knew that was a real deal RC car and not the toys that I had growing up. They were out of our price range back then so I settled for my Nikki and Radio Shack haha. Years and years later, actually about 2 and 1/2 years ago now I finally got my first hobby grade RC car. A Traxxas Rustler XL-5. After buying that car just to drive and have fun with, I discovered from CZcams how many upgrades and stuff etc there are. So now like 20 RC’s in I’m fully addicted. Anyways back to Tamiya. I ended up searching up that episode of the show that featured all the Tamiyas, the Punky Brewster episode and found out the car that set my imagination wild 30 years ago was The Frog. So here I am today finally bought a reissue, and some old Futaba radio gear and just within the last couple weeks, driving my Tamiya Frog! You could not remove the smile from my face. Sorry that ended up being a long story! If anyone wants to see my Tamiya Frog check it out on my page. Happy rc’ing everyone.
Me and my Dad got a shared Redcat Volcano when I was 4-5 when the company was starting out. That truck had a reputation for bent dog bone driveshafts. I own a Redcat Tornado (very similar chassis) and it still bends the dog bones on hard hits.
My first rc was actually the Nikko version (looked identical but cheaper)I begged at toys r us in 1986 for that. I ended up with it for my birthday
My first rc car was the Tamiya Lamborghini Cheetah in 1979. Saved up after starting my first job and bought it new for £30. A few weeks later had enough for the radio set at £12. The radio came with a form that you had to send off in the UK and pay £2.50 for a radio license. Bought a Tamiya 6 volt hard case ni-cd for it and a 30 minute fast charger. Great car which felt like you were building part rc and part model kit.
That was my "first build your own" RC car back in High School. A little weekend work money will do wonders for hobbies. It was nice with the stock 380 but then I upgraded it to a RS540 and it started taking damage. (I would jump the heck out of it) After the body became not repairable, I replaced it with an Audi 5000 lexan body so it could last a little longer. Later I got a Mugen Bulldog.
My first rc was when I was 39-40 and it was a Gen8. I have love for the Tamiya kits, just built a TT02 and stuck some drift tires on it.
My first hobby type RC car was a Tamiya Holiday Buggy. Got it as a birthday present in the early 80ies, at my 12th or 13th birthday.
The Swedish manual provided by the toy store where we bought it was obviously meant for a totally different model, but I got by and built it myself using the original English/German manual.
The speed controller was crap. A metal plate sliding across a resistive coil, causing lots of arcing and oxidation. I had to grind it with sand paper every now and then to get any contact.
The gears are all plastic, except for the aluminium pinion, and the meshing is pretty loose, effectively preventing any sort of serious torque transfer.
No ball bearings, but nylon bushings all around.
The tires are pretty good with beadlock rims.
When it was new I thought it was going pretty fast, but when I resurrected it some ten years ago I found it to be pretty sluggish. Replacing the 380 motor with a basic 540 made the matter worse, since the gearbox couldn't handle the torque, so I got back to the original motor.
The "resurrection" meant doing some minor changes:
* Replacing the non functional speed controller with a cheap ESC, removing the separate 4AA battery pack for powering the receiver and servo(s) in the process.
* Using a 2S LiPo battery instead of the dead 6V NiCd.
* Replacing the rear wheels to preserve the remaining pattern on the original tires.
* Replacing the antenna tube. The original tube had been broken and shortened, resulting in a very short range for the radio. I replaced it with a 72cm metal rod (twice the length of the original tube), adapted to be 1/16th of a wave length. Now the range is beyond where I can see what the car is doing.
* Removing the roof. My parents had this car stuffed into the original box (where it didn't fit) and put it in the attic with other boxes on top. The bars holding the front of the car roof broke to the pressure. Removing the roof became the easy fix.
You can see my buggy here: czcams.com/video/FyIbO6xW0n0/video.html
I had a Tyco super turbo hopper 4x4, got it Christmas of like maybe 87. It had white body with stripes. Good times
I got the same exact one the same year!
My first childhood RC was the Red Arrow Buggy from Radio Shack my dad bought me when we lived in England in 1989...anyone remember that or had one? It was great for me as a 10 year old I learned to drive RC buggies with it and it had digital proportional throttle and steering. I saw Tamiya Thunder Dragons and Fire Dragons then but they were too advanced for me then.
I still have my dads golden arrow! Brings back a lot of good memories
My red arrow shock tower got broken with a collision with a grasshopper
Grasshopper was my first as well, late 80's. Mine had different tires and it came with a shock kit ( shafts, o rings, and several different shock valves).
My parents bought me the Grasshopper as a gift for Christmas in 87'. I still have it in the original box. Everything pretty much looks the same including all the box art.
I remember this type of rc back to my high school days.
The smile on your face while unboxing is what it's all about! Growing up my parents bought me nothing, I had to work for it and when I finally saved enough for my first hobbygrade rc I was ecstatic! It was the Tamiya grasshopper! My neighbor had the hornet and I was blown away and had to get get one but couldn't get the exact same so I got the grasshopper. It had the same fate as your friends unfortunately. I accidentally ran it into the back tire of the neighbors car as he got it. He was parked on the street and would normally pull forward. He noticed what I had done and intentionally backed up crushing it.. After all the hard work it was gone. My dad seen how upset I was and confronted the neighbor but he acted like he didn't know and we couldn't prove anything anyway. Ive had many many rcs since but not another Tamiya, but I have a tt02r showing up in the mail in the next two days and I'm crawling out of my skin waiting for it. I know I'll have that same smile when I do my unboxing
Not my first RC but is was my first brand new RC. I started with a second hand Tamiya Opel Ascona. Had so much fun with the Grasshopper many upgrades so but I finaly wrecked it.
What a cool vid Fran!!! Man these old tamyia's take me back. My first hobby grade RC was The Fox!!! I had a fun time building it with my dad and going to a local track to race on Sundays. Goos times!!!👍👍👍
I remember staring at these in the Sears wish book as a kid and wanting one so bad. We live in the country and there wasn’t a hobby shop or much of anything anywhere near us. I bought one of these a couple of years ago and it sits in the box, unopened. It makes me happy just to look at that box and reminisce about those old catalogs and a different time.
My first RC was a Clod Buster...still have it. My dad was smart and wrote the date I built it on the bottom of the body. I sits up on the top shelf over all my new cars trucks and boats. I am still in it and love it. Thanks for the great videos. oh yea I still cant make my wife understand they are not toys!
Im 41 and my first (almost hobby grade) RC was a Radio Shack Golden Arrow buggy. Thing was insanely fast and a blast to drive. My uncle gave it to me as a gift. He didn't buy it for me it was his but I think he realized Id have more fun with it. Before that I had gotten various Tyco and Nikko RCS as well.
Kyosho Optima Mid. I was 20. The year, 1987. First drive straight into a curb. Back then it took weeks to get parts. I still have the rolling chassis
So cool to see the Grasshopper again! My first RC was a Tamiya Fox. I mowed lots of lawns in the brutal summer heat & humidity of Florida to earn the $ to buy it. I've actually still got it in my parents attic. Doubtful I could get it to run again...but maybe!!!
Nikko Flashback was my first somewhat decent rc. Loved that thing.
The grasshopper was my first car as well.
Then the Frog and the Hotshot. Lol
I have a grasshopper again and actually just ran it today.
There's nothing like driving a grasshopper with a silver can 540. Lol
Oh hell ya. My brother had one when I was a kid. He wouldn’t let me near it. I had to use my radio shack rc cars.I finally got my myself a Tamiya Jeep Willy and here I am 40 years later still playing with rc.
I had “The Frog” as my first. I saved forever to get it. My friend “The Grasshopper”.
Of course short number of years later Team Associated took over.
So the upgrades on performance for The Frog were totally worth it, and I think I delayed my purchase for half a year to save the extra money towards the upgrade.
But I learned so much by building my car from the kit, verses how kits aren’t almost impossible to find these days.
Thanks for the stroll down memory lane!
I had the Blackfoot rc back in 1986 I drove the hell out of that ruck so much that i had bald tires I needed a new motor my body was all smashed up . I didn't have alot money I just keep driving it then I was interseted in clothes , girls and music so I sold it. I'm back in the hobby today bought back the BlackFoot and have about 15 rc cars and counting .
Never had one when I was a kid but got my first electric RC car about a week ago: the Tamiya Lunchbox and loved building it, beautiful little wheelie monster.
Now waiting on my Grasshopper for some after work racing and can't wait man, going to be fire! Great video as well mate, always loved the Tamiya box art, even for the models so boxes are staying and going on my wall.
Thanks for sharing
My first rc car was a tamiya Boomerang and and i filled fridges in a bar on saturday sunday to pay for it, loved that thing i was around 13 years old👍
Please note, it is JIS not Phillips.
I would appreciate to see more Tamiya, like cc02 or cr01, and see how you upgrade them in details, and test it step by step, until it becomes highly capable crawler.
Enjoy the Grasshopper
Just bought one of these today from my local shop.
I totally sniffed when you put the rubber up to the screen🤣
This brings back so many great memories!!!
About a year ago, I picked one of these up...the ONLY Tamiya kits in my current collection to be built stock. I partly got it because I wanted one so bad as a teenager when the original came out...but, more importantly, I have a micro Grasshopper-themed hydro boat, and I just HAD to have the original to 'pair' it up with.
One of the best features of the Grasshopper for people starting out is the 380 motor. The car will run for a very long time on one battery.
Epic!! My very first was the Hornet. 1985 as an 11 year old!!! 540 power!!! Had the Frog, Fox, and Wild One.
Nostalgia for days here.
Good thing you're putting bearings through it. Makes a big difference. From memory you can run a 540 sized motor you just need to delete the 380 adaptor. Plus finding a pinion that meshes, as the mesh can't be adjusted on those gearboxes.
Don't be fooled by the gears they'll handle a 540 easy!!
I want to buy a new Hornet but don't want to live with the dissapointment of a childhood hero being lame and slow compared to my current fleet lol.
My first RC was a Tamiya Rough Rider. I bought it when they first came out around 1980, I was able to pay for it because I was in the Navy at the time.
I got The Hornet in 1984 when I was 9. Warm fuzzies for this platform. It is terrible but I love it regardless. I ended up with a Grasshopper in a trade from a buddy. Still have both as well as a Lunchbox. I appreciate that Tamiya got me into the hobby all those years ago.
Nice!! My first rc was a grasshopper in maybe 84 then a frog then a hornet. Thank you for your videos.
My first RC was Tamiya Audi Quattro rally car. I get it as Christmas present from my parents. I was 9 years old then, 1986. That was whole World to me then. I build it with my Dad and when it was done I can drove it only under my Dad control. My first touch to RC world and here I still am.👍
Thats actually a really nice color an I never had a grasshopper I went for the monster trucks instead. Actually my first rc grade truck was a used HPI wheely king. That was when I was 13. Now I'm 30. I just sold it 2 years ago. I swapped the 2wd to 4wd on it. I used it a ton. It was so fun. I jumped it in the house😂 an set up some knarly courses inside
I actually started out with Team Associate RC10 buggy when I was 16 back in ‘86 but I would of went that Grass Hoper, Hornet or the which I can’t remember what the car was but it was I think Japanese buggy that was chain driven and heavy so the shop owner directed me away from everything except the RC10 cause I wanted to race it for competition which I did on Friday nights but the race scene only lasted in my area for a couple of years and places would close then another would open for a bit then that would close so it was pain to get some of those spots then I just thrashed around with till the early 90’s then I have it stored somewhere at my parents house still after almost 40 years!
FYI ; I bought that RC10 with my money when I just started working for the builders kit was around $380 + radio, batteries & charger. So a little over $500 bills got me going back then.
I just built the TT-02 SRX and blown away how nice it is, CZcamsrs don't give it enough credit, the whole thing is hex keys and you need a tap and die for most of it.
Grasshopper was my 1st rc back in 85 wanted to race at the local track I was laugh at. So I picked up an RC-10 to start my racing career. Not sure what happened to the Grasshopper. Cool review might have to pick one up.
Time travel moment for me… Wow!😎
I had a black foot and clod buster back then I’d love to have them now totally upgraded with electronics and drive system
My first RC was The Mutator by TYCO RC.
This was my first R/C as well :D I seem to recall I had an ACOMS ? radio set on it ?? we are talking about 1990 here. I completely agree about the art work btw.
I raced this a little in a local club, battery management killed me tho sadly, I upgraded to a Pro Cat after this , that was a machine as well !
My 1st R/C was a Blackfoot in 1986 or 87 around that time. I was about 14 or 15 years old. I chose the Blackfoot because it had the standard 550 motor. Wonderful truck but it did have weak points being the 1st addition. It had half shafts instead of dog bones so those stripped out just about instantly. They later came out with a kit to convert them to dog bones. Only other part I had break was the steering knuckles. Stock was a brittle plastic version that was so so but at the time I found aftermarket ones that was a solid chunk block of hard plastic. No way you going to break those. I used to race this truck at the local R/C track so it got major run time. I still always wanted the Grasshopper though just to have it.
Awesome! For under 100.00, I think I have to pick one up! Thanks!
First rc hobby grade was Kyosho Big Boss… it was awesome until I cracked the frame in half. I need to find a classic one for nostalgia
My first RC as well!
1st RC was a Kyosho Assault. It was a nitro. Ton of fun.
I have one of these still sealed in the box. One day it will be worth selling.
1986 I had a World Engines Rockbuster which was a Korean knockoff of a Hornet/Grasshopper with oil shocks and 540 motor. It has the hard body like the Grasshopper but the 540 and oil shocks like the Hornet
My first rc car was a kyosho outrage buggy. Told my parents that's the only thing I want for my birthday, and got it. Then the battery and charger for Christmas then the futaba attack radio for my birthday the next year.
My first RC was from radio shack. It was a twin motor buggy.
Frog was my first build, built friends cars in order to get Hornet then Blackfoot 😉
I had many Grasshoppers the problem was i kept breaking the front shock/spring tower in which was part of the TUB/frame/chassis, so had to change out everything. Other than that, I love the Grasshoppers'. Hope the new ones have fixed the problem as I would buy another one.
My 1st was a kyosho pegasus. My local roller rink sold rc. Used my paper route money to buy it. Would've been around 1985.
Lunchbox was my first than I had the frog or grasshopper I don't remember.
I saved b-day and Christmas money for it
Lunchbox got ran over by a semi that came through apartments, almost hit me also.
I can’t believe the kandy green is cheaper than the standard
My very first car was a Super G, came with the 540 motor and bright yellow, larger wheels! After that I got a Madcap which I tuned to heck and back, even put some Astute parts in it. That car drove beautifully.
I still have my dad's Super G with a neat VW Baja lexan body. I need a radio + ESC for it, though... Any recommendations?
Mine was the Brat. I think it was $69.00. I used the milk gallon red cap as hub caps to keep the wheels clean and the bushings fresh 😂
Always wanted the Hornet as a kid but didn't have the $$$. This green Grasshopper is tempting- can't wait to see what you think. Please consider running it stock before making upgrades. How does it compare to modern buggies out there today - would like to know what you think.
I’m late to the Tamiya part but just recently restored a barn find OG Frog. Might have to get that Grasshopper soon
Haha me to , I got it out of a bin at scrap yard had speed control meted and futaba servos , I put 12t and hw 1060 and that cheap arrma radio that was bad , it works fine for a free frog
Funny how we all have similar stories , I too finally got my dream Blackfoot after many RadioShack and toys r us rcs , to get in run over on my first drive soon as I jumped off the porch , I'm grabbing one these 90 bucks . Grasshopper probably the first hobby grade rc I seen in person . About 9 10 years old
The barn find came together well. Stock mechanical speed control even works !
@@randythercguy5447 cool
The first RC I bought (not that 💩 that only turns when you back up) was the Tamiya Blackfoot and I got it with money I earned from working (I started at 12)(it went - farms ,hardees, then at 15 Kmart which I drove to for 6 months before I got my license lol ah the 80s 🤣)
IT WAS FREAKING AWESOME!!! it started a LOOONG addiction that I still suffer from today 😂🤣
And yes they are still packaged about the same.
Also back then building it meant if it broke you had a clue as to how to fix it.
Same here lol lol & it went in a closet days later after losing its appeal like my 1st Rifle , a slow, puny bolt action rimfire .22 & thinking about it now, its prob why I became a Flyer that precently just got a couple of cars. JeJe
Can you review the element trailrunner
Tamiya makes good rc's
I just bought that car waiting for it to arrive
I need help finding a 1994 mrc mt-10m. My first hobby grade rc.
Just a kid in a candy store!!!! LOL
I first real rc I paid for it the traxxas srt it was a kit the manual esc was so funny I remember cleaning the contacts with a pencil ✏️ eraser lol
My 1st was a hitec kangaroo rtr. (Yea, I'm really 'THAT' old🤷♂️)
What happens? I never thought you wit a Grasshopper! I love this basic but wonderful car and I own 2 deeply modified trying to get them better (I made a video for the channel) but at the end of the day it's perfect standard. Ciao!
They used to make metal gears and housing back then
1984 I got my first rc a Tamiya grasshopper I was 19
😀The gears can take brushless
Was my first rc car
You are telling me you are in your mid 50s???
You Asians are amazing 👏
My dad had one when I was a kid
I have the vintage tamiya b2b motorcycle, p34 6 wheeler and grasshopper!!!$$$
Some one makes a metal counter gear for them and metal chassis.