Dye Kyosho Rerelease (re-re) White Wheels

[rcmathguy]

Hi Everyone,

This is my first post to the forum since I am not typically active in contributing to any social media sites but I have enjoyed this forum for a long time, been inspired by the creativity I have seen, and learned quite a bit. I thought to take this opportunity to post something potentially helpful to those who are interested.

Since I was unable to find the answer to this question anywhere, I ended up contacting Kyosho USA to ask if the white re-re wheels they sell for the vintage (legendary series) buggies such as Ultima, Turbo Optima, and Tomahawk (to name a few), can be dyed. After they contacted the designer at Kyosho, they informed me that it should be possible to dye them since they are made of a nylon material.

Please Note: I was told Kyosho has not tried to dye them, and I myself have also not tried to dye them yet, but they said it should work. I have some projects in mind and hope to do it in the coming months, but not anytime soon.

If anyone else here has had experience dying the white Kyosho re-re wheels, it would be great if you could please let us know if it worked (?), what color(s) you used, what dye (probably Rit), and which wheels. Thanks in advance. Some cool pictures to see the outcome would be helpful too!

In case anyone is interested, it looks like Kyosho now has a few hop-ups for the Ultima 2019 including yellow wheels.

Finally, if anyone has purchased the "yellow" Turbo Optima (pepper pot) re-re wheels, can you please confirm if they are plain yellow, or more like a fluorescent yellow? I guess I am trying to find out if they are the same color yellow as the wheels that came with the TOMS buggy from back in the old days. Thanks everyone.

rcmathguy

[MrChin]

Hi - I haven't tried to dye wheels but I'd be really interested in the outcome. As coincidence would have it, I was only looking at a spare set of Optima Mid wheels this morning and wondering how I could re-colour them! I have cracked how to re-whiten wheels that have yellowed over time, but not re-colouring. My attempts many years ago with paint didn't wear well. Can't help on the yellow re-re question I'm afraid, but I'm sure others will pitch in if they know.

[XLR8]

Hi Everyone,

This is my first post to the forum since I am not typically active in contributing to any social media sites but I have enjoyed this forum for a long time, been inspired by the creativity I have seen, and learned quite a bit. I thought to take this opportunity to post something potentially helpful to those who are interested.

Since I was unable to find the answer to this question anywhere, I ended up contacting Kyosho USA to ask if the white re-re wheels they sell for the vintage (legendary series) buggies such as Ultima, Turbo Optima, and Tomahawk (to name a few), can be dyed. After they contacted the designer at Kyosho, they informed me that it should be possible to dye them since they are made of a nylon material.

Please Note: I was told Kyosho has not tried to dye them, and I myself have also not tried to dye them yet, but they said it should work. I have some projects in mind and hope to do it in the coming months, but not anytime soon.

If anyone else here has had experience dying the white Kyosho re-re wheels, it would be great if you could please let us know if it worked (?), what color(s) you used, what dye (probably Rit), and which wheels. Thanks in advance. Some cool pictures to see the outcome would be helpful too!

In case anyone is interested, it looks like Kyosho now has a few hop-ups for the Ultima 2019 including yellow wheels.

Finally, if anyone has purchased the "yellow" Turbo Optima (pepper pot) re-re wheels, can you please confirm if they are plain yellow, or more like a fluorescent yellow? I guess I am trying to find out if they are the same color yellow as the wheels that came with the TOMS buggy from back in the old days. Thanks everyone.

rcmathguy

My guess is that they are the same yellow as the vintage wheels. I only have AE World's car wheels in which to compare them and the AE wheels are a little different - a little more green than the Kyosho wheels. The Kyosho wheels are a bit more yellow - not sure how else to describe them. Hope this was helpful.

[rcmathguy]

Hi - I haven't tried to dye wheels but I'd be really interested in the outcome. As coincidence would have it, I was only looking at a spare set of Optima Mid wheels this morning and wondering how I could re-colour them! I have cracked how to re-whiten wheels that have yellowed over time, but not re-colouring. My attempts many years ago with paint didn't wear well. Can't help on the yellow re-re question I'm afraid, but I'm sure others will pitch in if they know.

Sure thing, MrChin. Dying the wheels (typically with Rit clothing dye) in hot water will be the best path to color them. Whitening is less work since you can just put them in a bath of grocery store hydrogen peroxide out in the sun for a few hours or days as needed. One thing I learned here on this forum is that after you have whitened them, it is wise to soak them in regular water for a few days (possibly changing the water) so that the peroxide remaining in the nylon will leach out. Otherwise, if the nylon parts come in contact with anodized aluminum for a long time, the peroxide can eat away the anodizing. For wheels this might not be a problem since they do not typically touch anodized parts, but things like shock collars (on an RC10) which have been whitened may be an issue if not soaked in water after whitening.

I also hope someone will have tried the re-re wheels dying process. It would be great to know if it works as Kyosho said it would. All the best.

[rcmathguy]

Hi Everyone,

This is my first post to the forum since I am not typically active in contributing to any social media sites but I have enjoyed this forum for a long time, been inspired by the creativity I have seen, and learned quite a bit. I thought to take this opportunity to post something potentially helpful to those who are interested.

Since I was unable to find the answer to this question anywhere, I ended up contacting Kyosho USA to ask if the white re-re wheels they sell for the vintage (legendary series) buggies such as Ultima, Turbo Optima, and Tomahawk (to name a few), can be dyed. After they contacted the designer at Kyosho, they informed me that it should be possible to dye them since they are made of a nylon material.

Please Note: I was told Kyosho has not tried to dye them, and I myself have also not tried to dye them yet, but they said it should work. I have some projects in mind and hope to do it in the coming months, but not anytime soon.

If anyone else here has had experience dying the white Kyosho re-re wheels, it would be great if you could please let us know if it worked (?), what color(s) you used, what dye (probably Rit), and which wheels. Thanks in advance. Some cool pictures to see the outcome would be helpful too!

In case anyone is interested, it looks like Kyosho now has a few hop-ups for the Ultima 2019 including yellow wheels.

Finally, if anyone has purchased the "yellow" Turbo Optima (pepper pot) re-re wheels, can you please confirm if they are plain yellow, or more like a fluorescent yellow? I guess I am trying to find out if they are the same color yellow as the wheels that came with the TOMS buggy from back in the old days. Thanks everyone.

rcmathguy

My guess is that they are the same yellow as the vintage wheels. I only have AE World's car wheels in which to compare them and the AE wheels are a little different - a little more green than the Kyosho wheels. The Kyosho wheels are a bit more yellow - not sure how else to describe them. Hope this was helpful.

Thanks for the reply, XLR8. I think I know what you mean about the Worlds wheels. I am hoping the Kyosho wheels will be a good match for the vintage yellow color. If I am not mistaken, that same color is used for Ultima Pro wheels, Lazer ZX (and ZXR), as well as the TOMS wheels, but not certain. Unfortunately I am only going from pictures online and only own the ZXR wheels, which are pretty much plain yellow, but with what (to my eye) seems like a slight fluorescent yellow-ness to them (but not green). Thanks again!

[MrChin]

Hi - I haven't tried to dye wheels but I'd be really interested in the outcome. As coincidence would have it, I was only looking at a spare set of Optima Mid wheels this morning and wondering how I could re-colour them! I have cracked how to re-whiten wheels that have yellowed over time, but not re-colouring. My attempts many years ago with paint didn't wear well. Can't help on the yellow re-re question I'm afraid, but I'm sure others will pitch in if they know.

Sure thing, MrChin. Dying the wheels (typically with Rit clothing dye) in hot water will be the best path to color them. Whitening is less work since you can just put them in a bath of grocery store hydrogen peroxide out in the sun for a few hours or days as needed. One thing I learned here on this forum is that after you have whitened them, it is wise to soak them in regular water for a few days (possibly changing the water) so that the peroxide remaining in the nylon will leach out. Otherwise, if the nylon parts come in contact with anodized aluminum for a long time, the peroxide can eat away the anodizing. For wheels this might not be a problem since they do not typically touch anodized parts, but things like shock collars (on an RC10) which have been whitened may be an issue if not soaked in water after whitening.

I also hope someone will have tried the re-re wheels dying process. It would be great to know if it works as Kyosho said it would. All the best.

Thanks for this - I didn't know about the re-soaking in water so I'll be sure to do that next time. Picked up some more peroxide today

[rcmathguy]

Thanks for this - I didn't know about the re-soaking in water so I'll be sure to do that next time. Picked up some more peroxide today

You are welcome. Glad it was helpful! By the way, I have read that some people even go as far as to gently boil the whitened parts to remove the peroxide, but I do not know if this is necessary. Maybe it is, but it seems difficult to know for certain unless someone has experienced and can verify the downside of not boiling. Best.

rcmathguy

[XLR8]

For what it's worth, I always boil my nylon parts. I haven't researched this extensively but I'm not aware of any downside to boiling nylon. I think boiling not only facilitates removal of the peroxide, it also hydrates the nylon making it more pliable and less brittle. Perhaps you could achieve the same result by simply storing the parts in distilled water (ambient temperature) for a few days; boiling them just speeds the process. Just an opinion based upon limited research.

[rcmathguy]

I agree with that, XLR8. I have not read any downside to boiling either (except for the extra work involved), and absolutely true that nylon loves water. That was also why I contacted Kyosho about the wheels to make sure they would not melt or deform if dyed. Since they are confirmed as nylon, it should be okay. I have read a lot posts from people who broke nylon parts which were old and not boiled yet. Interestingly I do not recall reading this about vintage Kyosho parts, probably since they are fiber filled nylon vs. pure nylon (like old RC10s). I assume even the Kyosho parts can benefit from a boil, though. Best.

rcmathguy