Yokomo Designers / Engineers?

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Yokomo Designers / Engineers?

Post by RCveteran »

So I see all the threads about the company/cars history. Anyone here with information on the designers / team behind the early cars. Was there "a guy" like Akira for Kyosho? Or a Cliff Lett, Cecil Schumacher type.

Doesn't seem to come up anywhere? I see the basic history of the company and founders and such but nothing on the designers. Maybe it was a team or they were just employees lost to history, but something that would be interesting to know?

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Re: Yokomo Designers / Engineers?

Post by RogueIV »

I know Masaaki Hirosaka (Masami's father) Was and engineer for ABC Hobby and later Yokomo but not sure of exactly what he specifically did with production cars outside of Masami's racing career though.
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Re: Yokomo Designers / Engineers?

Post by Frankentruck »

Did Masami ever race using an ABC Hobby motor?
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Re: Yokomo Designers / Engineers?

Post by Jirka »

Frankentruck wrote: Thu Feb 27, 2025 8:36 pm Did Masami ever race using an ABC Hobby motor?
According to Masaaki's web pages in 1/12 JMRCA (=Japan nationals) Masami did use:

1982 and prior, no pictures from his motors.

1983 Some "mystic" silver can based??? motor:
29 1983 All Japan Championship 27.jpg
29 1983 All Japan Championship 28.jpg
29 1983 All Japan Championship 30.jpg
29 1983 All Japan Championship 30.jpg (42.39 KiB) Viewed 562 times
29 1983 All Japan Championship 30.jpg
29 1983 All Japan Championship 30.jpg (42.39 KiB) Viewed 562 times
1984 Race (that famous that Joel Johnson win and Trinity did not get bankrupt) there is no clear enough pictures from Masami's car.

1985 There seems to be M&Y motor:
36 1985 All Japan Championship 14.jpg
1986 M&Y Again:
21.jpg
27.jpg
1987 There was HPI motor. He used HPI also on 1987 IFMAR offoroad worlds in UK.
14.jpg
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42.jpg
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1988 And forward Reedy

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Re: Yokomo Designers / Engineers?

Post by Jirka »

Didn't Gil Losi Jr design 870c and since that the same design was used until 1997 worlds when MX-4 introduced.

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Re: Yokomo Designers / Engineers?

Post by Alex B »

Jirka wrote: Fri Feb 28, 2025 2:22 am Didn't Gil Losi Jr design 870c and since that the same design was used until 1997 worlds when MX-4 introduced.

Jirka
I think that is the case, then Masaaki took the design and refined it up until the introduction of the YZ-10/WCS 93. I'm unsure if that was designed completely by Masaaki but he certainly designed the MX-4.
:shock:

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Re: Yokomo Designers / Engineers?

Post by Phin »

Here's the 834b prototype, which the magazine associated with ABC Hobbies: https://www.rc10talk.com/viewtopic.php?p=480864#p480864

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Re: Yokomo Designers / Engineers?

Post by RCveteran »

Jirka wrote: Fri Feb 28, 2025 2:22 am Didn't Gil Losi Jr design 870c and since that the same design was used until 1997 worlds when MX-4 introduced.

Jirka
All these years I had no idea. He touched a lot of things. I've always thought the 870c design was amazing in its simplicity and serviceability and yet was a winner at the same time. It was the first car I won with at least :D

Until this thread I was unfamiliar with ABC hobby as well. Glad I asked.

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