Introduction
If this doesn’t seem like much of a topic for a TamiyaBase article, you’re right, but I haven’t uploaded anything for a long while. Something quick was needed while I finish up a couple of other pieces, so I’ve avoided scraping the bottom of the barrel by scraping the sides of a tatty box instead ;)
It all started when I bought a Rought Rider project on eBay, which included a Tamiya #110 Racing Buggy Rough Rider Body Part Set box, to give it it’s full title…
The Box
It’s in very poor condition and I’m unlikely to keep it, but I did at least want to get some scans that I might be able to use as PC desktop wallpaper. On the top and each end there’s a side on drawing of the Rough Rider in the alternative blue and white colour scheme, probably inspired by the Bel-Ray Bullet. On one long side we get 4 more basic views of the same scheme, and on the other, the same drawings but instead in the orange (or red?) and white colours, sponsor decals and numbers of the “box art” version.
On each side there’s also drawing of the Sand Scorcher wheel & tyre combinations, and several blocks of Japanese text. Only one of these is headed in English – “Painting and Marking”, but all are quite interesting once translated. I can’t take any credit for that – free smart phone apps continue to evolve and only a minimum of common sense and context is required. For instance, the characters that translate as “Buggy Champ” can also translate as “Pacqui Champ”, “Bukky Champ”, “Baki Chump” and many other similar forms with only minute differences in lens angle and focus. “Haki Chump” should not be confused with the Lancastrian, black pudding wielding martial art, Ecky Thump BTW (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kung_Fu_Kapers).
Originally there would have been a body, roof/driver lights sprue, decals, instruction sheet, body clip and fasteners, but now there’s just a reverse paint shadow where a previous owner started spraying the body in red before thinking better of it.
Translations
With only a little polishing, the translations are:
“Painting & Marking
Buggy Champ Painting
Most of the cars that participate in buggy races, which are popular mainly on the west coast of the United Stated such as California, are owned by individual teams, and they are painted in a wide range of colours.
The Buggy Champ does not have a standard paint job. Please feel free to come up with fun and creative ways to paint, using the examples of painting on the box as a reference.
It can be fun to try matching the paint scheme with your friends and club members.
Be sure to use paint designed for plastic models. For painting large areas such as the entire body, we recommend Tamiya Color, which can be easily sprayed to a create a beautiful finish.
Pactra, and American brush enamel paint is also useful for painting details such as the driver figure. In addition to the stickers included in the set, it is also a good idea to use stickers for other car models sold by Tamiya. It would be fun to draw sponsor-like names of related companies and stores.”
“Buggy Champ
Spare Body Set
<Spare Tire Set>
Tires are an important point that affects the performance of your car. Replace tires that are worn down or damaged from driving as soon as possible.
Buggy Champ spare tires are sold in sets of two, with dedicated wheels for both the front and rear wheels. You can also use the spare tires for the Volkswagen off-roader, also released by Tamiya. They have a different tread pattern, so it might be fun to try changing tires to suit the road surface you’re driving on.”
“About the Buggy Champ
Off-road racing is an exciting race set in the endless wilderness and desert, with speeds reaching up to 200km/h (120mph). It’s home is the west coast of the United States, centred on California.
Many races are held there, but the “Mint 400 Mile” and “Baja International” in particular have become world-famous off-road races.
The cars participating in these races are of various types, including modified Volkswagen called “Baja Bugs”, commercially available four-wheel drive vehicles, and modified pickup trucks, also varying depending on the model and engine displacement.
Racing is divided into more than ten classes, the most popular is the racing buggy class made exclusively for off-road races, and Tamiya’s Buggy Champ is modelled after a car that competes in this class Most have a tubular frame and the engine is mounted in the rear or amidships. The bodywork covers only the bare essentials, making them the stars of an off-road F1.
There is a wide variety to be seen, including some modified from commercially available chassis from specialised manufacturers such as Funco, as well as quite a few completely original chassis.”
“Buggy Champ
Spare Body Set
<set contents> A set of 1/10 radio control buggy and Buggy Champ body parts.
Please use it to replace a body damaged during driving.
The material is impact-resistant styrene resin with high strength.
You can use paints and adhesives for plastic models, so you can easily enjoy original painting or modification.
Also included are mounting clips, a driver figure, screws and nuts.
Tires and chassis related parts are not included.”
The Supplier
Note the “Airedale Models” price tag (10.99 GBP!) on one end. Like the Airedale Terrier, they also originated in West Yorkshire, specifically 208 Oakworth Road, Keighley. I found absolutely nothing in the way of reminiscences on Google or Facebook, sadly this is not at all unusual for model shops who now only exist on old price tags - it seems that only the Beatties chain was of sufficient size to have an appreciable remaining UK fan base.
The only evidence I can see on Google Streetview is a small, possibly previously illuminated, “Model Shop” sign at 90 degrees to the building that’s there in 2008, 2009 and 2012, but is gone in 2014 - by which time the premises seem to have changed hands again. This leads me to believe Airedale Models had closed in or before 2008…
Any number of web “directories” list Airedale Models like they are still a going concern but the information is pretty useless – only one gave a web address (airedalemodels.co.uk) which is also defunct, but it did give me something to look at on the Wayback Machine (https://web.archive.org/). The last functional* page I found was on the 15th of January 2006, the next crawl was the 17th of March 2006, and the page could no longer be found.
* For what passed for functional on web pages in 2006, and to the extent the Wayback Machine actually captures them … their webpage might be basic but it did what it needed to do – show what they sold, the shop, where to find it, and when it was open.
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Written by TB member Jonny Retro