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14/12/2012 1:48 pm
Silent Sam
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Is there anyone making or any rumors of anyone going to make a 1/18 or 1/24 scale Number 40 Indy Turbine car from the 1967 race? The model kits from Bandi or going for over $500 and the cheap 1/24 MPC models are going for $100++. There is a huge market for these. This car is 45 years old, why is there still 'rights' on this?
14/12/2012 5:45 pm
I'm interested in knowing why as well. It cetainly seems a potential great seller, but having only one use for the patterns and molds (no variations of it like the Lotus 56 has) do make it more challenging from a profit standpoint.
14/12/2012 8:40 pm
I've not heard but I'd love to have one in 1:18. I have two 1:12 Bandai kits. One in pristine...
... condition and unbuilt the other built and pretty much junk. They do routinely go for around $500 - $600 on eBay.
14/12/2012 10:48 pm
Yes
We, quite likely, will see a "Silent Sam" sometime in 2013, possibly even early 2013, so squirrel away those dollars because you're going to need them.
As an editorial comment, I am tickled to death that turbine engines were outlawed on the Indycar circuit. Where I once thought they were really interesting, the Indy 500, if populated only by turbines, would be a boring debacle IMHO. One small step away from a battery powered Indy 500.
Any of you that have gone to an "Unlimited Hydroplane" race in the last 20 years can probably understand what I mean. Where these boats used to be called "Thunderboats" because of the screaming of the massive Allison and Rolls-Royce aircraft engines, they now whistle past producing almost no noise and none of the visceral thrill they did in days past.
To have the Indy 500 go the same way would take away a lot of the excitement that 25,000 piston-powered horsepower create today.
15/12/2012 5:32 am
Bill, that's fabulous news! That will be an automatic and immediate purchase for me as it is...
... a car that I covet and has been on my wish list for a very long time.
Your point about the Indy 500 was the concern back in the late '60s when those cars ran then. Fortunately, then were eventually rendered non-competitive by the rulesmakers and I also believe eventually banned.
I used to attend the Hydroplane Gold Cup races held on the Detroit River. I'd forgotten they called them "Thunderboats" until you mentioned it. The nickname was apropos as they were definitely thunderous. On Belle Isle, which is located next to where the hydroplanes raced, scale R/C hydroplanes also raced in ponds located on the island. Like their 1:1 counterparts, they too thundered and were a thrill to watch.
Does anyone remember this boat? One of the more interesting boats called the Chrysler Crew. It was powered by twin blown Chrysler Hemi engines. I don't believe it was ever very competitive against the Allison powered boats.
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