Is The Kyosho Turbo Optima RC Buggy Really That Stunning? Unboxing | GOLD!

[@philmoffett366]

The turbo optima is up there as the best rc I've built to date (and I've had 30+ years of building) the quality of the kit is superb! I've had my one for a couple of months and originally had a brushless set up in it but changed it for an original kyosho le mans SPA 240 brushed! Trust me your going to love building it👍

[@RCKickschannel]

Hi, what ESC and motor would you recommend?

[@Mini-z1994]

@@RCKickschannel For a modern esc I'd go hobbywing 1060 maybe the kyosho g20 20t 540 motor for this re-release geared fairly low on a 2s lipo should make this scoot along fairly well despite the weight of the aluminium parts it comes with, its a fairly reliable chassis & will probably give the tamiya awd's at the time a run for its money for sure. When it comes too vintage stuff im not quite sure what I'd pick. Maybe just a older novak or lrp you got laying around that's an early esc & claims unlimited motor turns (but is more like 15t on 7.2v nimh or it fries at anything lower or shuts off from overheating protection kicking in.) Then maybe a 19x2 motor of some sort from ebay, maybe a used lemans 240st double wound motors works pretty good in this chassis. Or the kyosho lemans 490 which i think is a 30t motor actually might be interesting too run on a 8.4v pack or a 2s lipo. Can order these new as kyosho decided too reproduce them if you don't want too use a generic 27t they did send with the original optima. same as tamiyas 540 motors & are still produced today, they are everywhere essentially & you probably have a bunch of them laying around I'd bet haha. Chain drive was included & used with the first few. Did get beltdrive i believe as a optionhouse hop up though a bit later before becoming standard. Really rare too find originals of ofc at this point that belt drive kit. Until the optima mid came out i believe so they kept it for quite some time as chaindrive, but they are fairly reliable as either chaindrive or beltdrive if you keep them out of sand and dirt (chaindrive doesn't like dirt or sand particularly well & ofc didn't have a chain guard originally in the kits & no one really made a chain guard for it. So people bought the belt drive kits.) So I'd go belt drive as its smoother & less resistance in the drivetrain letting the motor work a bit better & ofc no need too worry about the chain catching dirt & grime running it Copied from the optimahouse blog that is all about these buggies & a bit more. 1. The Optima: the original chain drive 4WD buggy. Aluminium ladder type chassis. Polycarbonate body. 2. The Javelin: Optima with a flashy orange roll cage body. New shock mounts allows optional Gold shocks. 3. The Celebration Gold Optima: essentially a standard Optima with a gold anodised chassis. celebrates the 100.000th unit sold, limited edition 10.000 units. 4. Turbo Optima: reinforced Optima for 8.4V power. Le Mans 240S motor included, Option House gold shocks, under guard, full ball raced. 5. Salute: Turbo Optima with a more futuristic body, without motor. 2 versions (red and blue) 6. Optima Pro 4WD: last chain driven Optima, ESC (Electronic Speed Controller) ready, without motor. undercowled body. 7. Optima Mid: belt drive model, midship motor (previously rear overhung) to improve weight balance, duralumin chassis. Le Mans 240ST motor. 8. Turbo Optima Mid: Optima Mid with full options (stabilizers, ball bearings, 2mm duralumin bronze anodised flatpan chassis, ESC ready) 9. Turbo Optima Mid SE: Turbo Optima Mid with Option House Platinum Shocks instead of Gold Shocks. 10. Turbo Optima Mid Special: long wheelbase version of the Mid, with saddle pack battery, carbon fiber chassis, limited edition (4 units sold per shop). Undercowled body. 11. Optima Mid Custom: long wheelbase, cheaper version (black dampers, duralumin chassis). Undercowled body. 12. Optima Mid Custom Special: long wheelbase, gold shocks, duralumin chassis, undercowled body, bullet type futuristic body. Last Optima. Image that shows off the lineage. 2.bp.blogspot.com/-7_WvDyqOpy8/RXdFOPkiwjI/AAAAAAAAAAk/EWaY_EfeoJE3L-2wyxaaZvRHYHVExNH_ACPcBGAYYCw/s1600/historique%2Bcopy.jpg Marwanrc you might know of already but he has plenty of reproduction parts for a whole bunch of these rc's & some other hard too find stuff. marwanrc.com/shop?olsPage=products

[@powderriver2424]

Marcus60661 some great knowledge there since I haven’t built since 1991 I bought an Optima mid in Korea in 1989 I purchased at a little hobby shop owned by a Korean school teacher. My kit wasn’t available in the US it was different however it came with belt drive no chain. The Kits sold on the military bases were the US versions.

[@philmoffett366]

@@RCKickschannel I've just put the stock tamiya esc that comes with kit today simply because it's very reliable and it's brushed/brushless👍

[@stringfly1]

I raced one back in the day. won the state championship four will drive. Great memories. Thank you Gavin!

[@bill8791]

I'm a Tamiya fan but those re-re Kyoshos are something else. I have a few now and they are both excellent kits and excellent cars to drive. The fact that they've upgraded the materials to run brushless but kept the original design puts them a step up from the Tamiya re-res.

[@birit911]

I just got mine from Kyosho USA two days ago. My dream RC when I was a kid. Now fulfilled

[@RCKickschannel]

It’s an amazing kit

[@MrBonger88]

Mine is supposed to be delivered on Friday. Watching this video makes the wait feel even longer. This kit looks so good. Back in the 80’s I was always a little jealous that my buddy’s Optima Turbo had metal parts while my Hotshot was mostly plastic

[@RCKickschannel]

I can see why but the Hotshot is a special car so I think you had something special back then, even if it didn’t have lots of metal. 👍🏻

[@MrBonger88]

My delivery was pushed back until tomorrow (Monday). The anticipation is killing me

[@LordPrometheous]

@@MrBonger88 So how did things turn out? Are you loving your car? Is it as amazing as your buddy's was back in the 80s? I never could get anything like that as a kid, but watching lots of R/C videos lately make me want to finally buy things that I couldn't have back then.

[@rcaficionado]

Happy Birthday! Enjoy building the awesome new ride! Can’t wait to see the build videos.

[@powderriver2424]

I had a Optima Mid bought in Korea in 1989 best buggy ever made. Wish I still had it.

[@wayneyates5256]

Looks bloody beautiful with all the gold, oh and Happy Birthday👍👍

[@garethsroberts]

Looks like a great kit. I have a Turbo Scorpion awaiting my attention and this is on my list .....just pre ordered a Top Force that I will turn into an Evo! Looks like I will be investing in another Kyosho....stunning kit and thanks for sharing. I look forward to your build vids.

[@RCKickschannel]

Top Force Evo is an epic car and I hope Tamiya do a ReRe as I want a driver Evo. I don’t see why not if the Top Force is coming out again next month.

[@STEVOD313]

Those blister packs had some sweet parts!

[@milosrcernycerny5537]

Hi Gavin, Happy birthday!! In that kit is one little specialty. In that kit is masking for paint job. But not only for masking windows. But masking for two color scheme paint job. Never see in another kit. And it works perfectly. Enjoy your build of this beauty, I will look forward to it.

[@rcpatapouf]

This buggy is just georgeous !

[@TAMIYALegends]

Lovely 😍 Happy Birthday buddy 🍾🍾🍾

[@RCKickschannel]

Thanks Glenn 👍🏻

[@TinyTiresRC]

Awesome kit. I've been running a Javelin, love every second of it. Powered it with a HobbyWing 10.5t bushless motor, thing is ballistic. There is an in car video I uploaded from it. It looks mental, but is only running about 40mph around our L track. If you think the Turbo Optima feels high end, you should build one of Kyoshos race kits. Materials are top notch.

[@keithrx3c]

Mine arrived 2 days ago, looks awesome. Keen to see your build video/s. If you're going brushless apparently 13.5T is a good choice. Regarding the belt/chain drive, the Optima and Javelin re-releases both came with either the chain and belt and the appropriate sprockets for either option. The Turbo Optima only comes with the belt and no chain but does have the sprockets for the chain, the chain is optional in this kit.

[@RCKickschannel]

I guess the belt is better but the chain is old school right?

[@keithrx3c]

@@RCKickschannel Seems that way, most people prefer to use the belt drive. Although I have read about one old school racer that preferred the chain drive, said that after it had stretched and one of the links was taken out it was fine and would run reliably with modified motors.

[@Massproduce201]

I’m thinking about purchasing the standard optima re release in the blue and yellow color scheme, what would you recommend for middle of the road electronics for this build? I just wanna have fun with it but don’t want something too slow. Thanks!!

[@darrengrimmer8541]

Happy birthday!!!. The optima. This was the one the rich kids had back in the day

[@dave691974]

Yeah happy birthday, and what a sweet present.

[@RCKickschannel]

Thanks David 👍🏻

[@fleppie75]

I had the Ultima Pro.....was AWESOME!!!!

[@davidchapman5694]

Hi Gavin, you are going to find this kit just goes together and lines up really easily. If you are going to run it then build it with belt drive it’s just less hassle. The other thing I would recommend for a runner is a Penguin RC Repo optima pro body and under tray . It fits and the under tray will help keep the muck off the gorgeous gold metal. Happy birthday and I,’m really looking forward to seeing this one get built.

[@MrHarlDephin]

"quite expensive kit" says the man who owns 4 Avantes and a 959... :) Happy birthday anyhow!

[@alfredyost7972]

I have one of these that I am going build soon. Kyosho also makes an electronic speed control and a Brushless motor too. The speed control is brushless and is silver in color and the brushless motor looks great and it is red. You might want to look into this. If you get these parts it will help you keep the car looking old school but have modern power for your car.

[@RCKickschannel]

Thanks for the info on the ESC and motor. 100% going to get them 👍🏻

[@alfredyost7972]

@@RCKickschannel I am happy you are aware of them . I am very lucky that I live in the USA and also California. Why? Because both Tamiya and Kyosho have distribution centers here in California. I can get most of these items cheap. Also the tariffs are very low on imported items until recently. If you live in the USA then you know what I mean, but if you live in the UK. Ouch !!

[@Massproduce201]

Can you be more specific on the motor and esc model numbers? Last car I built was a tamiya tA05 chassis and that was ten years ago. Want to go middle of the road electronics preferably brushless and lipo? Also would any modern transmitter/receiver and servo perform with these older kits? Thanks again.

[@SPEXWISE]

Not sure what's in it? Says Kyosho on the box. Very nice kit inside. Have you ever tried building/driving team associated or schumacher?

[@beetlebailey9510]

Sweet looking kit can't wait to see it running 👍

[@MrBonger88]

Finally got mine today. I was surprised at how much smaller the box is compared to the Tamiya boxes.

[@RCKickschannel]

Schumacher cars come in small boxes. XLS is super compact.

[@petkez]

Hello from Canada. I just received my Kyosho Turbo Optima and I was wondering if you had decided on a Belt or Chain drive? Cheers

[@tahustvedt]

Kyosho kits were blister packs back in the day. We considered Tamiya cars to be almost toy grade compared to Kyosho and Schumacher back i the day. The tires on this are made of a modern racing compound. I like that they made some new 2.0" tires for vintage drivers to use, but would have preferred the original tires myself.

[@davem249]

Stick with the belt drive as the chain you will be forever adjusting it , also when I got my kit there was a dive belt cover missing so you may have to check that you got it included.

[@RCKickschannel]

I don't think my affliction to be able to drive mint kits will let me do much driving with this kit over blasting it around the garden on the grass in the summer so I think I will put the chain on to look vintage. The issue is if I love driving it I will be forced to get another one that's a runner and thats $$$

[@richjames1595]

nice i just bit the bullet and purchased. really tough choice between this and an egress my first kyosho can't wait will run with a 11t reedy motor yeha. keep up the good work mate.

[@RCKickschannel]

Kyosho Optima is just amazing.

[@floridalife7877]

PS 2 or PS 34 for the red paint?

[@rcaddictgarage]

That wall looks great👍👍👍👍👍👍

[@RCKickschannel]

Thanks, I still need to paint the last two runners.

[@smellurfingerrcdejesus9176]

I like your unboxing it was so funny

[@charlieparis1]

Where do they make the rere Kysho kits?

[@marktomlin7199]

There's gold in them hills

[@garrymorris4515]

Happy Birthday Gavin, don't the Kyosho Turbo Optima come with the E.S.C. and motor? like the Tamiya kits.

[@thepatriotrcchannel8693]

Just picked up 2 non gold versions at a flea market in Georgia for $10. With red track bag all from 1986

[@RCKickschannel]

Result!

[@georgethimakis8143]

Run a brushed 19t motor and the belt drive. Chain was the original drive back in the day but the belt is obviously smother and can handle a little more power if you choose the brushless route. The car now comes with a slipper clutch which the original didn’t have, again for today’s motor esc’s. if you go brushless, don’t go nuts. It would be a shame to break!

[@tomkirbygreen]

Do you plan on build video car? Would love to hear your thoughts after you’ve built it.

[@RCKickschannel]

Hi Tom, Yes it’s getting built and is almost at the top of the build list.

[@LukesVintageRC]

beautiful buggy i am truly jealous!

[@trinitymirror]

Another great vid Gavin, great looking kit, enjoy. Gavin,your opinion. If I was to go for a 10th Tamiya buggy, new . What would you say is the "best bang for the bucks" ? Limited on funds. Noting too basic.

[@RCKickschannel]

Gary Murphy I take it you want NIB kit? If so we’ll low budget but big fun is the Frog. Great looking, fun to drive and an interesting chassis. Simple to build and painting is OK. A little more and going 4x4 is the Boomerang. Great value and a lovely car to build. Simple project that will put a big smile on your face. Brushless is an option as well if you want more punch and it can take it out of the box if you upgrade the bearings. If you want to blow the budge a little then a Hotshot is a true classic with looks to die for. I’m sure others will agree and disagree with some of these choices so it would be interesting to hear others opinions. 👍🏻

[@RoadsideRC]

Cool looking kit!

[@B.K._BerndK.]

Sehr schick 👌😍👍

[@phillipcakebread7924]

Go belt drive as the chain used to wear and needed adjustments but if im correct the turno only had belt it's a great build enjoy and happy birthday

[@KaizerTest]

Now I definitely have to go look at your earlier videos...hahahahaha😆

[@RCKickschannel]

Kaizer Test LoL it’s funny to watch them. I’ve a long way to go but I’ve come far I think.

[@ishtiaqahmed3629]

Please do a detailed build video for this amazing RC. 😘😘😘

[@bijikedelai]

Such a beautiful kit but its far from my budget. Gotta saving up for this one 😬

[@briana2137]

Unrelated question to the Kyosho. Do you recall what color the bottom left buggy on the wall is? The yellow/green one. Probably a Schumacher from the looks of it. Happy birthday as well.

[@RCKickschannel]

Schumacher CAT K1 Aero 👍🏻 It’s my daily driver buggy. Brushless with saddle lipo, goes like a dream and is pin sharp. 🚗💨

[@briana2137]

@@RCKickschannel I've always liked Schumacher buggies. Do you know what paint color that is? I have some bodies to paint and I really like that color.

[@gailanderson9832]

So much better than any of that hobby grade crap you have covered your wall in

[@RCKickschannel]

Kyosho make some stunning legendary kits. I have a Fantom on order and I have an Ultima in the build pile. I also have a Kyosho F189 Ferrari F1 car thats due to be built on the show next week. 👍🏻

[@michaelthomas8981]

So the bush was the compromise?

[@RCKickschannel]

No, I love bush Michael. 👍🏻🤪

[@h-jg7730]

Dont understand me wrong! I Love Tamiya too but i dont understand the Hype only on Tamiya !!! Kyosho was always & is still today exactly 100% Tamiya level same quality . I had a lot of build kit cars & brushed motors of both brands. Mabe Tamiya was first on the market ? Mabe thats the Hype ?

[@whome7004]

My Friend Im a supporter of the channel 100%Love the daily growing collection, Your Blessed. I got a question been meaning to ask,don't take this wrong!! You a great builder bringing the classic back to show room condition, Are you Ever going to put those gifts to work on something that you can expand your skill set on and put a RC Kicks Channel Model together to turn laps! Put the power down and get some other Tall gold tone shelve Queen Call Trophies shinning as much as the bodys!Is RC Kicks more than just a spot These Great Kit go to just look good and most a second Chance at life ! Im not talking about the ones on the Wall of fame , But a Bad attitude young brother fighting and bashing to Make the Family of get lineage Proud!Dont be upset but imagine if the Model could think and had a heart beat that's what's in there heart and on there mind! Just thinking if I were a Tamiya and what I would be thinking, I'm Ready Ready Ready For my dusting and tires to be turned!! To be dusted again . There all Champions! RC Kick is a Championship team, Just a bump idea from a bump who has a moter

[@RCKickschannel]

Hi, My plan is to experience as many cars as I can and the ones that I like the most I will have a mint shelf queen and a second that is a runner. Currently my runner cars are: Traxxas TRX4, Frog, Falcon, Schumacher K1 Aero, Hotshot. I have a fake Top Force Evo that will be a driver as soon as I finish it.

[@jamesmagmer8929]

Great...now I have to buy another kit.....stop showing such great cars! Love the vids btw,my wife thinks you are a ...it's a family channel I'll leave it at that. I'm going to get this either way,don't tell her

[@RCKickschannel]

I have always had a way with the ladies lol. 👍🏻. Go on you know you want a new kit 👍🏻 Don’t tell the wife, it will be fine... 👍🏻😜

[@A01010reaper]

If you this this was good try the TURBO OPTIMA MID . Not that was a racer

[@うみっこらんど]

後ろの棚、タミヤ車だらけやないかwww

[@MrSneakyGunz]

Jealous!

[@Gene_the_OG_Raver]

shit that's a big box.

[@cobybryson6668]

Awesome !!!

[@cobybryson6668]

Ide Like to have his R/C CARS COLLECTION