mickrcarver

iTrader: (101)

why is it that 4 rubber tires for a touring car cost between $35.00 to $40.00 bucks a set? and you can buy a full size car tire for just a tad more? can't say its to pay for the molds cause they have i'm sure been paid for over and over ,can't say shipping w/ flat rate boxes ,so what is it? I hate it because its killing asphalt rubber tire racing. well it is for me


just venting

CarbonJoe

Supply vs. demand, and also what price the market will bear. You want sticker shock, check out road bicycle tires. Who would think that you could pay almost $200 for two bicycle tires.

At least foam R/C tires have come down in price a little.

mickrcarver

iTrader: (101)

but you would think that the tire makers would want to try to make more sales,I mean I would want to sell more tires for less and make the sport grow and have a future sales following, instead they want to sell a few, for high prices to hope they make enough money for their future

Twism86

iTrader: (4)

You can find nice premounts for around $33 + shipping, so yea around 40 but your getting wheels too.

Ive came to realize a while ago this just isnt a cheap hobby, not much you can do about it

mickrcarver

iTrader: (101)

I have just started running a B4 and a hotbodies D4 wce off road cars and the rims and tires for them are half the price and last forever. go figure
maybe proline and jconcepts need to enter the touring car rubber tire market

Cpt.America

iTrader: (52)

They are so expensive because there is very little competition in this hobby. What do you have... Sorex and Take-off making quality tires? Maybe a single one-off company making an a tire for the same price? Welll... when you only hvae one or two tires to choose from, prices stay high.

CarbonJoe

Have you seen the prices for pre-mounted 1/8 scale buggy and truggy tires? How about $75 - $80 for a set of 4 tires. Guys around here were wearing them out in 3 runs. Sorry, but I'm not into dropping $200 per race day for tires to run 2 classes, all in the name of fun. And these guys run every weekend all summer long.

stitchy

iTrader: (13)

On top of the supply & demand answer, middlemen need to make $$ too. There are probably cheaper off brands out there, but would a competitive racer use them?

Proline/JConcepts half the price? $10-15 for tires, need two pairs. That's $20-30. Wheels, let's just say $5 a pair for $10. That's $30-40 in total. Don't forget the tire glue!

trdsupra88

iTrader: (25)

http://www.thetoyz.com/cart/thetoyz_...8&cat_name=TC4
try these and youll see why you pay so much for sorex and jacos...I guess were paying for quality too...

swimbikerun

iTrader: (108)

The prices are what they are for the same reason you pay $30 for a few pieces of steel, low batch runs. If you take material costs out of the equation focus on conversion costs then the biggest variables are cavitation of molds, press size, and batch size. Less change over = more efficiency. Higher cavitation of mold = more parts in same amount of time. RC is a niche industry and everything is specialized. The surprising thing is why prices haven't gone up? If you look at what RC equipment costs in the 80's versus now you will see that prices actually gone down if you factor in inflation.

mickrcarver

iTrader: (101)

sorry, just don't see it, I'm just gonna cut my touring car racing down to maybe once a month instead of every weekend, and focus alittle more on my 10th scale offroad

olhipster1

iTrader: (102)

I have to say it's a bit of a sticker shock...
drop the price more people will buy...

ever wonder how much it actually cost to make a premount? or seperate?

I bet you the finished product (premount) from start to finish is probably $4 dollars (maybe $6 tops):
so the waterfall effect begins.
Markup begins:
A -Manufacturer profit markup
B -1st Distributor/Wholesaler markup (at least 100%)
-2nd if applicable Distributor (at least 100% markup)
C. Distributor to LHS (at least 20% to 30%, LHS doesn't get the best deal from the list)

have to admit...I'll pay it because I love the hobby...but it does but a strain on the wallet

mickrcarver

iTrader: (101)

its a shame when your local hobby shop can't even make a buck or 2 off rubber tires! what will these companys do when they completly kill touring car racing all together?

adamge

iTrader: (1)

mick, how many runs are you getting on a set of tires? I'm getting like 50 runs on a set of Jaco blues, running TC 17.5 carpet, 6 minute runs.

mrrcguy

iTrader: (25)

Now thats what Im screaming! When all things are considered and proper comparisons are made, the tire bill for on road racing is nothing compared to off road racing.

I believe there are some common miss-conceptions on this topic due to the large variances of people who race off road compared to the people who race on road. In off road racing there are huge numbers of people who are likely to be considered bashers who happen to race. I believe this group far out numbers the group considered to be serious or competitive racers. These "racers" who are realy just bashers at a track are the people who dont replace their tires when needed . These guys likely will run only a couple sets for a whole season if they can get away with it. Its the serious off road racers though that see the true cost of tires as they are the ones keeping the freshest inserts and rubber (and winning the races). On the other side of this topic lyes the on road racers. I believe that the ratio of bashers to true racers is far different in on road racing than off road racing. On road automatically appeals to the type of person who is likely to stay on top of his tire management and such. Seems to me that where ever I race on road the majority of the racers know that to have a shot on the box they have to have good rubber. The average off road basher/racer just cant wrap there heads around the importance of proper maintainance (chassis and tire). They just need more motor so they can clear the quad like the fast guy.

1/8th scale off road at the level I strive to maintain = $100 - $200 for tires per weekend,?,?,?

Screw that! I'll take my $35 Sorex or some $25 Much More's any time,