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Well, I just got off the phone with Cliff at Associated. They are moving/moved from the Costa Mesa location and have decided not to do the bodies anymore.

Good news though, they have shipped the molds to China and we should see the Protech and Viper bodies in a month or so. Seeing as how Associated is not going to let the old market go waist-side, I will be focusing my efforts in other directions in the body world.

Keep your fingers crossed that China keeps us covered for years to come. I will keep in touch with Cliff and if China fails to deliver, maybe we can get this stuff back in the states. I am almost ready to do small orders but if Associated would work with me, I could go into higher production.

Hoopty's gonna start throwing stuff!!!!!

I preordered some from Tower, so we'll see if it dies, sounds like it will.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed. Maybe that explains the "on order" status at tower?

I bet 100 RC10talk sticker sheets that they ARE to make them again

Anyone want to speculate what the quality of Chinese grade lexan will be?

mrlexan wrote:Anyone want to speculate what the quality of Chinese grade lexan will be?

that seems to be your greatest fear Jay, maybe because your pseudo is at stake...

mrlexan wrote:Anyone want to speculate what the quality of Chinese grade lexan will be?

hopefully better than the crap lexan they were being made out of before.

i dont know how many bodies i've trimmed that were like tissue paper at the lower bottom section at the rear of the side pods.

hoopty, that is more a function of the draw of the lexan (stretching it when it is heated over the mold). They should have just increased the material thickness. I don't know what the standard AE body raw material thickness is but the typically range from 0.030 to 0.060 of an inch. For racers is can be all about counting ounces, for the collector, I say screw it, just make the thing stout.

mrlexan wrote:For racers is can be all about counting ounces, for the collector, I say screw it, just make the thing stout.

"lexan collectors". A whole new rc genre. I'll take the real thing over something that's been changed to sit on the shelf.

Hey, what can I say, I am obessed with clear plastic.

My point was, most people who buy the Protech bodies are not going to compete in the world's, so beef up the material thickness a bit so that the body does not get crushed from general handling. Even if I run a vintage race, I don't care about an 0.5 oz.

i've got bodies that were crushed in the spot i'm talking about before i even took them out of the package...

i seriously mean its like craft paper in that one section sometimes...

i would be happy as a clam just to have the lexan all be consistant in all areas, but i wouldnt mind at all for them to be like .030

i would say they are closer to .020 or so, but i dunno.

i know its technically illegal to sell bodies etc, but has anyone tried to just reproduce the bodies?

this machine can be built for about $225

http://www.build-stuff.com/1001plans_hobby_vac.htm

i found the proper size sheet of lexan for about $5.50 in bulk for the 030 stuff, and 9.00 for the 060 stuff, i dont think the 060 stuff will form too well since it seems VERY thick as compared to the normal 030 stuff.

Hell if there is enough interest ill start vacuum forming in my basement lol. I think if i pour plaster into a body and fix it up a bit, it would form a decent mold in which to vaccuum form. Ive seen really crappy looking molds form some nice things at the packaging plant i used to work at.

Way ahead of ya mike. I have the mold and the vacuum box ready to go. We did three bodies last Saturday with mixed results. Changes have been made and we will probably try it again Friday night. I have done a few of the drivers with scary success. I think the bodies will go the same, just going to take a little time.

Now because Associated is still in the game, I will probably ( ) not make the protech for production. Just for my own personal use. But if Associated drops the ball, I am ready with a Protechish body that I think will not be classified as a repro but simply an after market body for the vintage look

badhoopty wrote:

mrlexan wrote:Anyone want to speculate what the quality of Chinese grade lexan will be?

hopefully better than the crap lexan they were being made out of before.

i dont know how many bodies i've trimmed that were like tissue paper at the lower bottom section at the rear of the side pods.

Yeah, I've seen that too. It's so thin you can tear it with your hands.

Tadracket - glad to know you're "at the ready" if associated miscalculates.

Tadracket wrote:Way ahead of ya mike. I have the mold and the vacuum box ready to go. We did three bodies last Saturday with mixed results. Changes have been made and we will probably try it again Friday night. I have done a few of the drivers with scary success. I think the bodies will go the same, just going to take a little time.

Now because Associated is still in the game, I will probably ( ) not make the protech for production. Just for my own personal use. But if Associated drops the ball, I am ready with a Protechish body that I think will not be classified as a repro but simply an after market body for the vintage look

make underbodies...

make one for the graphite and one for the tub. maybe do custom pulls for composite craft, rpm, etc.

i would consider running alot of my buggies if i didnt have to worry so much about scratching the tub or taking a chunk out of a graphite nose or tail.