Yet another Yoke

[Minicooper 35]

Hi guys!

It seems that having a soft spot for RC10's an old Yokomo's goes hand in hand. I always loved the style of the old YZ870c. Maybe it is the awesome body with it hood or something like that. Anyway, when I came along this one on eBay I had to get it! They don't come up very often in Germany. And when it showed up I fall in love again. Since the seller lives in Germany too it was only a question of time to steal this of the bay. It went relatively cheap for around 70 Euros. The chassis is in fair condition for its age - only minor scratches on the bottom, some weird drill holes for the servo and "aftermarket" battery straps. The front shocktower seems not stock but that’s not a big problem. The only downside: the body is in miserable condition! The windows are painted, it has more cracks than the bones of an average GP bike pilot and the seller has cut some parts of it to fit the servo. It is a shame that getting hold of unpainted YZ870/Super Dog Fighter bodies is so hard ...

Well, these are the last pics before it has to go into the large "to do box". Too many other projects are waiting with the outdoor racing season in Germany is behind the door. And I still haven't managed to take the pics for Team Best Performance/Manolis and Rich ... Sorry guys!

Ok, that's it for now.

Cheers

Seb

[hkp]

Thats a great find and in lovely condition - not much work to do

[MelvinsArmy]

Beauty.

[bscotti]

Sweet!

[RichieRich]

Is this the Yoke with magnesium parts?

[Minicooper 35]

Hi Rich.

Yes, I think the lower gearbox parts front and rear and also the lower mainshaft holder are made from magnesium.

Cheers

Seb

[hkp]

Yup they are magnesium. They used the Mag motor mount until the Works 95 car. Nice idea, but tarnishes and looks cruddy after about a month in the air

[Dual]

Yokomo introduced aluminium front and rear bulkheads on the Works 91 model and subsequently on the Works 93 model. The centre bulkhead remained unchanged (material wise) as it was not located in a high stress area.

And getting really anal, the part on the front bulkhead were the shock tower is attached to was slightly thicker than the bulkhead on the YZ10/YZ-870C.

[Mr. ED]

Seb,
I just noticed the front arms are not stock either.
These are the orignial Kyosho Ultima arms.

I already liked this car first time around but now it's up a few more steps!

Hope I didn't spoil your day,
Erik

Edit: actually: the axle carriers and C-parts holding them are also Kyosho parts, not sure which model but optima-mid's are likely.
Seems you got a real vintage modded Yokomo.
I guess part availability was not good in Germany for yokomo in these days (same in Belgium).

[hkp]

Eagle eye Well spotted!

They look like my Optima Mid front hub carriers and knuckles.

p.s. you can still buy motor mounts in magnesium from Yokomo or in much nicer blue alloy from CML in the UK, or on eBay

[Minicooper 35]

Seb,
I just noticed the front arms are not stock either.
These are the orignial Kyosho Ultima arms.

I already liked this car first time around but now it's up a few more steps!

Hope I didn't spoil your day,
Erik

Edit: actually: the axle carriers and C-parts holding them are also Kyosho parts, not sure which model but optima-mid's are likely.
Seems you got a real vintage modded Yokomo.
I guess part availability was not good in Germany for yokomo in these days (same in Belgium).

Hi Erik!

No problem RE your eagle eyes! I got the original front arms with the Yoke, a change would not be a problem. I am not sure in which direction to go at the moment. Back to stock or maybe a period vintage mod? If so, your offered body would fit.

Parts availability was a pain at that time I think. I know of at least three distributors in a very short time ... No good since two are out of business and therefore there is no chance of getting hold of parts. I even tried CML in the UK since they are longtime distributors for Yoke parts.

Well, anyway, I am still happy with my find.

Cheers guys!

Seb

[Mr. ED]

I think you got a unique piece with a very creative and well executed mod.
Those same knuckles were replaced with black plastic ones later. Having them in the casted stuff makes them go well with the rest.

The fact you got the front arms probably means it was done deliberately.
Or, maybe the arms were needed to correct the different offset of the carriers and knuckles. Do you have the other parts too?

I would definitely like to meet the guy who made that mod.
He did exactly what I've been enjoying for many years and I didn't come accross many others doing this. Do you have his contact details?

For the body, take your time: it's not going anywhere else for now.

Erik

[badhoopty]

Sweet!

x2