Pan, Roller, or complete?

[Shiftykapone22]

Hey everyone, I caught the rc10 bug and am looking to get my first one which will be a shelf queen. That being said I am partial to the gold pan but again price can determine want vs afford haha. My question is for being totally new to these, would I be better off budget wise and final product wise to buy a pan, a roller, or complete. I am not in a hurry to build it so if I need to spend time and track down parts that's a part of the fun but if there is no way I could build it part by part cheaper then a roller or complete then there is no point. I am sure there are challenges to buidling from a pan but for a novice is it way more headache then it's worth? Thanks in advance and sorry if this has been asked before I searched but didn't see anything quite addressing my questions

[bluewormx]

Hi,
Deciding which way to go before hand is a good idea.

I understand your word Pan as: Building from the ground up.

VERY expensive especially if you go for new parts, and could take years to source all the parts.

Roller as: a semi complete car

complete: as well ehhh! Complete! Not really much fun there!

Things you need to decide now: what gold pan do you want to build? early short arm car (before 1990), or a championship edition. those can also be built in either early or late variants. (6 gear CE, or stealth CE).

Do you want to go for NEW parts or are you fine in mixing new, old, and re-issue (rere) parts.

Do you want to build a box stock car or a car with period correct hop-ups?

Make a decision you can also change it later

[Shiftykapone22]

Haha, thanks for the reply and giving me even more to think about haha!! You were correct in assuming I ment pan as building from the ground up, which now seems like it may be a little over my head. I am not looking for a out of the box fresh build but not looking to pull off the body and see 30 different colors of white/yellow parts that don't match haha. I know you can peroxide the parts but in my limited knowledge, I feel like it would be hard to get them to all match if they are from different cars. I would love to be able to say I built this car because it would be the ultimate learning lesson and would educate me on different time correct hop ups and rare options, etc. . I guess in short I want a nice shelf queen but doesn't have to be perfect. I know I want a gold pan that's not drilled out for weight or add ons, and I want factory parts. That being said any recommendations of what a cheaper entry level gold pan year or version would be best? I am assuming the older the more elusive and championship edition add to the rarity also? I need to research my years more, I know I cant come on here and ask everyone to hold my hand through it but, if there is a "Common" or "budget friendly" pan that you recommend for a novice it would be helpful!! Thanks everyone

[mk-Zero]

I would say just keep your eyes on eBay. There's RC10s on there all the time that are complete and fairly "correct," but just need to be cleaned up and have a few parts replaced. Good way to get your feet wet as you learn about them.
If you haven't read this thread yet, please do so asap: http://www.rc10talk.com/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=13059
It will educate you about the different versions of the RC10 and help you know what you're looking at when searching on eBay.
Beyond ebay, make sure you're looking on your local Craig's List, you might get lucky on there and find something better and cheaper.

[Shiftykapone22]

Thanks for the link! I will for sure read up on it. I do a ton of searching on Craigslist and Facebook but doesn't seem to be anything local, I even put up ads haha, my local hobby store says they have never seen one so I guess in ND they are a rare commodity. But as far as ebay I keep checking and just need to pull the trigger I guess just waiting for the "right" one to catch my eye. Thanks again for the reply!

[jwscab]

There are tons of rc10s of pretty much any flavor and color on eBay. Prices are really good now it's a buyer's market. Find something nice and something crappy and buy both!

[jcwrks]

Your best bet is probably eBay, and gold pans are plentiful right now. Just search for RC10 and you're set. Only you can decide if your shelf queen should be a true vintage or rere, new or used, 6 gear or stealth, etc.

Note: Avoid any auction that has a AB stamp shelf queen in the title, description says the trans needs an idler, or has masked head shots.

[mk-Zero]

Note: Avoid any auction that has a AB stamp shelf queen in the title, description says the trans needs an idler, or has masked head shots.

Bad seller?

[jwscab]

totally wacky auction. Super shady and way overpriced.

[lmw94002]

Literally the hardest part is probably getting a good condition gold pan tub... nose & motor plates are relatively easy if you know where to look. You can still find new ReRe tubs or re-ano'd original tubs or a very nice original... but the tub is probably the single biggest cost.

I've literally bought a dozen different RC10s from eBay, some for some of the after market pieces, some for spare parts, etc. I will say nearly all had some pretty scuffed tubs, or had extra holes/cuts, are bent/twisted, etc. But now I have plenty of parts, some for beating and racing... Some I've cleaned up really good for new builds, and some I've sold off. > half my tubs were trash... but I have aftermarket chassis and ReRe Chassis to build the fun/play cars with.

IMO, the next issue is 6-gear parts... can be harder to find and pricier compared to Stealth parts if you want a total new rebuilt tranny.

Another good resource for "clean" cars are the FB groups. The cars in general on the RC10 FB groups tend to be from people who know what they were doing. I literally picked up two short-arm RC10s in nice shape w/ extra gear (hope to post pics if they arrive this weekend) for $200+s/h. Also a great resource for parts that you're having issues locating.

[jwscab]

there are some really nice low mileage/low damage cars on ebay right now.

[lmw94002]

there are some really nice low mileage/low damage cars on ebay right now.

ssshh... i don't want him sniping me. just kidding. haha.