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Old 2020.08.08, 09:57 PM   #1
TyrellMadeMe
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Side body clips - Source?

Hello!

I need to replace a side clip on one of my ASC bodies. After some searching here and on the wider web, it appears that Kyosho doesn't sell them as replacement parts. Correct?

I found a few for sale on Shapeways (Byebye Racing, Fovea3d, and Useful Idiot), or it seems that others have cannibalized a white body for the clips.

Any suggestions for the best source for a replacement side clip?

Thank you!
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Old 2020.08.09, 08:44 AM   #2
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That is correct. Kyosho does not offer them separately. In part, they are not modular, especially for older Autoscales as the clips were lightly different vs. more modern ones that are more uniform. 3d print them and will need to trim to suit the car.
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Old 2020.08.09, 06:52 PM   #3
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Thanks for confirming! I’ll try one of the Shapeways designs.
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Old 2020.08.10, 02:01 PM   #4
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Was it a newer side clip? The older ones were pretty much tanks.

I believe the only other way to get genuine ones outside cannibalizing some ascs you may have are in whitebody sets. Not sure how much the printed ones cost or how good they are so I do not know if it would be a better option to just buy a whitebody set.

The clips are less rounded now and the plastic seems more brittle compared to what we had years ago. Autoscale quality in general has also gone down too though. My new r32 and r34 bodies sat crookedly out of the box lol. I don't ever recall having to mess with the older side clips on ascs just for them to sit correctly.

This quality issue along with the lack of a real glosscoat and how expensive these ascs have gotten is pretty crappy for an already niche scale.
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Old 2020.08.10, 02:41 PM   #5
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I don't disagree with those sentiments in general however is worth noting we begged, pleaded for less weight and in part, bearing the fruits of this labor. Much thinner plastics, more brittle, etc. The cost issue is baffling to me because HRC can make a more detailed white body for comparable price. GL did the same and included the dummy chassis. I'm not sure where the money pit is in their process but smaller runs from boutique brands are beating them at their own game. I saw the YouTube video Kyosho released showing the hand painting process for the Autoscale so they are not entirely mass produced by robot assembly lines. Each is hand painted and assembled, so your going to get some variation in the process simply by the nature of the process. that and with much smaller runs, perhaps the tolerance levels are much higher. just speculation on my part on the last bit.

Given the 3d printed parts need trimming to work regardless, far more cost effective to use those than spend money on anything else. If you have a friend with a printer, it's less than $1 in plastic. Shapeways, thats high way robbery in terms of cost as well.
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Old 2020.08.10, 02:49 PM   #6
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I'd be interested in watching that manufacturing process video if you have the link handy Arch2B.
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Old 2020.08.10, 05:20 PM   #7
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Here is one where their pressing out parts.
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Old 2020.08.10, 05:22 PM   #8
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Here is one of the painting video's they released.
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Old 2020.08.10, 05:28 PM   #9
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Here is the video I recall from a tour where they were painting and assembling the most recent Porsche.
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Old 2020.08.10, 05:31 PM   #10
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Here is one that, well, is just for sh*t$ and giggles. Something must be lost in translation... Feel free to skip this one if your not prepared to witness some awful product marketing karaoke.
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Old 2020.08.10, 05:36 PM   #11
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Here is one of a tour of the factory making the body molds.

I love the 'How its Made' type shows and wish we got an entire episode on Autoscales from design to fabrication.
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Old 2020.08.11, 06:04 PM   #12
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I don't have any access to a 3d printer so have no real say in that issue. I considered buying one myself a while back but was more closer to buying a waterslide decal printer lol. Ended up buying neither though.

I always thought kyosho injection molded these things. The autoscales look that way at least.

That dude had like 10k in differentials there lol.

The bodies being crooked may simply be mold degradation after so may uses and years. This happens with Transformers as well since later reissues always have fitment problems and loose joints.

TFs have pretty much doubled as well (v3 Prime cost north of $500! US unless you preordered to import him) but the technology and transformation has become much much more advanced so the pricing makes sense. Autoscales not as much lol. Both these products are made in China so the costs should have been kept down or at the least be more reasonable.

I wonder if the licensing is what makes them so expensive. Licensing for VW/Porsche, Audi, Honda/Acura, Nissan, Ford, and other manufacturers must not be cheap.

We couldn't get a proper masterpiece bumblebee for the longest time because VW was so stingy with it or Takara wouldn't pay for it. If anything good came out of the Bay movies, it was manufacturers seeing how profitable their licensing could be for these figures.

Kyosho could use a jump in sales as well, but $50 a pop for a body that will get dinged up on the track is a hard sell, and I don't know how they could expand (do they want to?) without more exposure. Maybe a call to Micheal Bay is in order?
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Old 2020.08.12, 01:48 PM   #13
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@arch2b
Thanks for the links! Awesome to see the behind the scenes action.

@pfcparts
The Autoscale bodies are definitely injection molded and I'd assume the same for the clips. I haven't looked to confirm but I always thought the side clips were always the same size and the bodies have built in supports designed to meet the side clips at the correct position consistently.

It wouldn't make sense to have different size clips for every body when you could just adjust for the width variance in the body mold itself. Plus if the side body clips were different for every body, that would add a lot of manufacturing costs because they would need their own molds. The autoscale bodies are multi-piece molds to achieve overhangs and such so they wouldn't be able to do something like a typical two piece mold with a sprue. Also the side clips are always white or black so they are definitely produced separate from the body which is often molded in the finished color. That would reinforce the idea that they are always the same part.

All this said, they may have changed the side clip design itself on the whole(to be thinner for example as Arch2B said) but I have not put in the time to do this research. If opportunity allows, I will report back so I can be the foremost authority on side clips.
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Old 2020.08.12, 02:08 PM   #14
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Looks like I need to put an * on what I just said.

I don't have as many loose bodies as I used to but after taking a quick look, it seems the clips are generally a consistently molded size part in either black or white.

Looking at the Mclaren F1, Ferrari 430 for example have black clips and are consistently sized. The Mclaren F1 lGTR Longtail though has a very narrow middle section and that has a unique clip. The funny thing is when I look at the clearance, I feel like they could still use the regular side clip.

My loose bodies are all older and my new stuff is all NIB so can't do much more intel. Maybe it's the newer bodies that have unique side clips or they just make specific ones when they're limited in size.
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Old 2020.08.12, 02:24 PM   #15
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On licensing
- Definitely a real cost to license bodies. How much really depends on how many different people are at the table that want it. Take Ferrari for example. Kyosho has been creative on this front with getting around exclusivity licenses by having a weird size like 1/28 for the autoscales, and for 1/64 selling their diecast in pieces so you have to assemble it like a model.

On mold deformation
- There's no way mold degradation would give you a crooked body. These molds are extremely thick and heavy. At the most you'd start to get some wear on edges etc but you wouldn't have full tweak to the body. That seems like a heat related issue, either the body was not allowed proper time to cool out of the mold or someone at the factory let it sit too long next to the furnace. I have however seen improperly glued side clips a few times, that might be where the crookedness is coming from.
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