Legendary series Optima Pro

[GoMachV]

Sweet!

[BattleTrak]

Cool! Are the shocks gunmetal? ..can’t tell..

[XLR8]

Hmmm, I saw this posted on TC yesterday.
I'd like to add one to the collection but first I want to do a little research to determine how this model differs from other Optimas. Apart from the body and undertray, is there anything new here?

[1911Colt]

I see:

[GoMachV]

Hmmm, I saw this posted on TC yesterday.
I'd like to add one to the collection but first I want to do a little research to determine how this model differs from other Optimas. Apart from the body and undertray, is there anything new here?

the original pro moved the servo back behind the battery and the battery forward for better balance. They did this on the rere as well. The rest of the original kit was pretty standard- plain small red shock and chain drive, nothing special. Not Turbo based, just plain optima based. The rere is more of a turbo spec.

[silvertriple]

the top deck is also different, and from what I can see, they changed the layout for the front shocks with shock towers and fixation on the arms...

[XLR8]

I see:

Yes, there is a slight resemblance.
Actually, I wouldn't mind owning that Pinto in your photo. I've been binge watching The Barn Find Hunter and after roughly 170 episodes, I've discovered that I like wagons.

[XLR8]

Hmmm, I saw this posted on TC yesterday.
I'd like to add one to the collection but first I want to do a little research to determine how this model differs from other Optimas. Apart from the body and undertray, is there anything new here?

the original pro moved the servo back behind the battery and the battery forward for better balance. They did this on the rere as well. The rest of the original kit was pretty standard- plain small red shock and chain drive, nothing special. Not Turbo based, just plain optima based. The rere is more of a turbo spec.

the top deck is also different, and from what I can see, they changed the layout for the front shocks with shock towers and fixation on the arms...

So "Pro" in this instance means better balance and improved front-end geometry.

It's a bit underwhelming, isn't it.

[GoMachV]

The original pro was the last optima kit made, and was a step backwards for sure except for the balance. Never did understand why

[mikea96]

Maybe we will see a long wheel base mid next.

[1911Colt]

I see:

Yes, there is a slight resemblance.
Actually, I wouldn't mind owning that Pinto in your photo. I've been binge watching The Barn Find Hunter and after roughly 170 episodes, I've discovered that I like wagons.

I'd love to own it, too! I keep an eye out for Pintos. I have always liked them. I keep saying I am going to dust off the old drag car, "civilize" it, and make it a street car, but it never happens.

I don't see the Optima Pro listed on Amain yet.

[sundevil67]

Oh come on Kyosho ... maybe hold off on the press releases & breathless announcements until you're a little more confident about the shipping timeline, eh? I mean, I'd rather they take the time to produce a polished kit that meets the high standard of quality we're used to from them, but the repeated announcements of release dates, then missing those targets doesn't exactly inspire confidence. It is also somewhat annoying that Kyosho Europe seems to have been shipping them over there for a while now.

The last note I got from Amain also said that it was the last time I'd have to indicate my preference for remaining on backorder...so this was unexpected... wonder if it means the date is still completely unknown.

Anyone thinking of contacting Amain for more info, I'll save you the effort. They are clueless about this, and even seemed annoyed I had the nerve to ask about this, and the availability of parts for the whole Legendary Optima series after noticing they seem to be rapidly disappearing without any certainty about discontinuations.

[silvertriple]

The original pro was the last optima kit made, and was a step backwards for sure except for the balance. Never did understand why

I read somewhere the Optima Pro was intended for racers, and none of them would use the standard shocks anyway, so that's the reason it was set with red shocks initially...

[terry.sc]

Oh come on Kyosho ... maybe hold off on the press releases & breathless announcements until you're a little more confident about the shipping timeline, eh? I mean, I'd rather they take the time to produce a polished kit that meets the high standard of quality we're used to from them, but the repeated announcements of release dates, then missing those targets doesn't exactly inspire confidence. It is also somewhat annoying that Kyosho Europe seems to have been shipping them over there for a while now.

In Europe we aren't expecting them until end July/August, and that timeline has been known for some time.

A lot of this is on the retailers, rather than Kyosho though. As soon as a manufacturer announces a new model how many shops immediately stick it on their website and start taking orders from customers now so you won't order it from somewhere else, instead of the old way of seeing how many they manage to get with a delivery date from the distributor, then listing those for sale.

Remember the Mid release, Kyosho sent out information to shops to gauge demand before they started any production. So it took about 5 minutes before the shops spread the pictures over the internet and started taking orders. Took about 9 months before we finally saw the actual car.

In a similar note, on this side of the pond when the RC10T was announced plenty of shops immediately listed it and started taking orders, only some time later to discover almost all of them aren't going to be fulfilled as Associated were only sending 75 of them to cover the whole of western Europe. Of course all their customers are angry at the manufacturer as all the shops tell them Associated hasn't sent what they wanted, rather than angry at the shops for taking their money while not having the goods to sell to them.

Schumacher do the opposite. No presale publicity, just an announcement on the day they ship them out of the factory so you can buy them immediately. Although they do have an advantage in that their biggest market is the UK rather than trying to organise a worldwide product launch.

[sundevil67]

Yeah, all makes sense. I guess it makes it worse when retailers throw out incorrect timelines or just can't say "I don't know" or reply to inquiries at all.

The frustration I feel is from how quickly aftermarket/replacement parts for all of the Legendary Series disappear, and the uncertainty about if/when the kits themselves will be discontinued after selling out so fast. When they are "limited editions" like the 60th Fantom, they're immediately bought up by resellers & up on eBay at 3x the original price... I get the marketing logic behind limited supply creating urgency or even additional demand, but they seem to under-predict the actual numbers. I see them producing multiple editions for the 1/12 Fantom (!) an obscure car I thought I was the only one left who cared about, while the re-re USA-1s or Optimas just quietly vanish from the shelves along with their replacement parts. This defeats the whole purpose of reissues, at least in my opinion, because in theory it should allow me to finally drive versions of the original cars I have sitting on the shelf because parts are impossible to find.