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I bought a box of random car and boats parts off a guy who was moving and cleaning house. He was originally going to toss the stuff but decided he would rather have someone interested buy it for a few bucks. Under plastic cases and other parts, I pulled out what I believe to be a Turbo Optima Mid SE. The guy I bought it from didn't seem to remember what it was but rather how much fun it was to run it. As far as I know, the Mid SE had the platinum shocks but I don't know what other identifying parts it had different from the Turbo Optima Mid. I took it to the hobby shop to see what I could find for tires and the two guys at the hobby store had never seen one. Another guy offered me $120.00 and acted as if he was doing me a favor but didn't seem interested in answering question when I declined his offer. The other response I got was that it is an upgraded Turbo Optima Mid. I think I am going to clean it up for light use to prevent any further damage to the chassis/parts and restore back to stock as much as I reasonably can but time will tell. The stock bumper is in the box. I have a few questions:

1. Any doubt this is a Turbo Optima Mid SE?
2. Did it come with a motor, if so what was the stock motor in it? It came with an Astroflight motor so I know that is not right.
3. Are the arms correct or aftermarket? The ones on it almost look like Andy's and the box has a bunch of other arms in it.
4. What other parts are missing?
5. Any ideas on cleaning up the wheels? They are pretty good but scuffed in some areas.

Thanks for any help.

Hello,

Nice find, and yes its a Turbo Optima Mid SE with Andy's arms and bumper.

Not 100% sure, but I think The Kyosho Optima Mid SE did not come with any motors...

If you want to see a detailed build: http://www.kyosho-optima.com/midse.html

Nice Turbo Mid SE there, looks like a good basis for a thorough restoration. The SE has countersunk holes on the bottom of the chassis plate.

tintin74 wrote: ↑Wed Aug 12, 2020 2:27 am
Nice find, and yes its a Turbo Optima Mid SE with Andy's arms and bumper.

Not 100% sure, but I think The Kyosho Optima Mid SE did not come with any motors...

If you want to see a detailed built: http://www.kyosho-optima.com/midse.html

Thanks for the link and ID of the parts. The images are great and now I know I am missing sway bars and that I do have the correct arms. I figured it may have come with a Le Mans motor but had no clue. The more I look at it the more I like it. Picked up a set of Schumacher Tire/Rims that barely fit but actually make the car look modern. The closest hobby shop has great staff but it is almost all Traxxas with a bit of Associated, HPI, Kyosho, Losi and Tamiya mixed in. No where near the stock carried by shops when I was a kid.

Coelacanth wrote: ↑Wed Aug 12, 2020 12:47 pm Nice Turbo Mid SE there, looks like a good basis for a thorough restoration. The SE has countersunk holes on the bottom of the chassis plate.

Thanks, I think I will clean it up the best I can. Parts seem scarce so far. Thanks also for the countersunk detail. Good to know what I didn't know.

The manual on page 2 says no motor then goes on to say in step 21 LeMans 240ST is in blister B.
I have two Mid SE's that I restore a couple years ago. I got both of them via flea bay from different sellers and both arrived with 240ST. Coincidence?
You can quickly identify an SE by Chassis (anodized bronze rather than Mid's silver), Shock Towers and MSC mount (FRP rather than aluminum), Wheels (plated silver rather than molded white), Anti Roll Bars (the Mid had none) and of course, those quirky Platinum shocks (Mids were conventional gold anno). The SE also included universals up front, ball diffs and decal set was also different from Mid.
My SE's have belt and gear covers that are tinted bronze. Was this also the case with the Mid or were they clear?

The Turbo Optima Mid SE did come with a LeMans 240ST.

Tinted belt and spur gear covers were stock on both the regular Mid, Turbo Mid and Turbo Mid SE. Clear covers came on the LWB models.

As stated above, the platinum shocks and bronze anodized chassis w/ countersunk holes and silver wheels pretty much guarantee it's a Turbo Mid SE - ball diffs would add more proof. It should have universals up front, and the front shock tower should be FRP, but that was easily broken and might have been replaced.

The Turbo Optima Mid shared the same chassis along with other similarities, but it came with gold shocks, gear diffs, and turnbuckle tie rods - so it's most likely not a Turbo Optima Mid.

As far as missing parts, to return it to stock would require bumper (which you have), stock arms, stabilizers, and the 240ST. But ... it's also super nice as is - the andy's arms are cool and hard to find front/rear sets. If you have a box of parts, the stabilizers might be in there, as they were most likely removed due to the Andy's arms. The Astroflight motor is really cool. It's probably a Turbo 05 Racing motor - very torquey and a nice upgrade.

SteveMax wrote: ↑Wed Aug 12, 2020 10:51 pm The Turbo Optima Mid SE did come with a LeMans 240ST.

Tinted belt and spur gear covers were stock on both the regular Mid, Turbo Mid and Turbo Mid SE. Clear covers came on the LWB models.

As stated above, the platinum shocks and bronze anodized chassis w/ countersunk holes and silver wheels pretty much guarantee it's a Turbo Mid SE - ball diffs would add more proof. It should have universals up front, and the front shock tower should be FRP, but that was easily broken and might have been replaced.

The Turbo Optima Mid shared the same chassis along with other similarities, but it came with gold shocks, gear diffs, and turnbuckle tie rods - so it's most likely not a Turbo Optima Mid.

As far as missing parts, to return it to stock would require bumper (which you have), stock arms, stabilizers, and the 240ST. But ... it's also super nice as is - the andy's arms are cool and hard to find front/rear sets. If you have a box of parts, the stabilizers might be in there, as they were most likely removed due to the Andy's arms. The Astroflight motor is really cool. It's probably a Turbo 05 Racing motor - very torquey and a nice upgrade.

Thanks for the information. You know your motors. Pulled the motor and it is a Turbo 05 Racing motor. I also went through my pile of motors from when I was a kid and found the Le Mans. Haven't found the sway bars in the box but did find a Magnum Jr and Sport so I just need to match crystals and swap plugs to Deans. The buggy still needs a good cleaning so maybe with luck, this week end.