[bwaminispeed]

Here is what looks to be a very unusual Strombecker stamped aluminum chassis.

I have never seen this one in real life, or, in any magazine articles or adds. It is definitely stamped, and, not just cut out and bent by some hobbyist.

Also, have never seen this gear before. Looks like a Cox, with the hub in backwards.

Any ideas.

 

[dgersh]

Good question Al!

I had never seen this chassis before but over the last few years have seen it pop up on ebay a couple times, without ever being able to buy one. The first time I thought it was just an aberration, but with the second time began to realize there was something going on, either an unknown Strombecker variant, or an aftermarket product made for Strommie cars.

Fraid I can't help any more, but maybe somebody else can...

Don

 

[CJA]

Ey Up,

Chassis, Wow, new to me !!.

Gear, mmmm, can that be done ??.

vbr Chris A.

 

[John Cahill]

I was holding back since I didn't have much to say...but I can support Don's comment. I've seen them popping up
on Ebay, only in the last couple years, and only occasionally. Whatever it's heritage, nice little chassis...

John

 

[gar]

Classic did make gears with the collar on the back, however the few I have are all marked "Classic" Have a look for the inscription on the toothy side! On the other side of the classic gear you can see a hex shape to the collar.

I've never seen that chassis before, I'm thinking some kind of aftermarket to replace the original plastic ones.

 

[Pechuga_VLC]

I confirm that I have also encountered the same type of chassis body in other units ( s10.evo1 ) Berlinetta Ferrari / ( s11.evo1 ) Jaguar E*.

The unit may not show us a better example to teach a unit Strombecker standart, because:

it has light painted details
tires are not reference Strombecker
wheels are not reference Strombecker
crown not reference Strombecker
reference guide is not Strombecker
decals are not reference Strombecker
reference frame is not Strombecker

In my opinion, is a fitting replacement by another small business, such as for Kal Kar, for exemple in reference 260, this is a racing chassis and in the same carton that holds the original blister packaging, says is valid for the 300 Hemi of Strombecker.

I think this is a similar case, but for us it will be very difficult to have a stroke of luck to confirm the original blister chassis (possibly together with other pieces attached).

-------------------------------------------
* s10.evo1 = 10th 1:32 Strombecker model, in state evolution 1
s11.evo1 = 11th 1:32 Strombecker model, in state evolution 1

 

[Houses]

Hi, yes, this is an original Strombecker chassis. These chassis do appear on eBay from time to time, but are scarce; as far as I know, they came exclusively with the E-Jag and GTO of the 9955 Mark IV 4-Lane set of 1966. I already have a couple of these cars. Here are some pictures of a 9955 set that appeared on eBay some years ago.

The bodies of these cars are of the late type, the same that come with the brass/Scuttler competition kits. The chassis is a perfect fit on these bodies, hold by a single 4-40 screw. bwaminispeed's clear pictures show two couples of small pins at the front, over the axis: as those on the black plastic chassis, they provide a secure fit on the front support of the body.

The parts that originally came with these chassis make an unusual mix: Tyres, rims and axles are the same used in the 66' competition kits (pan brass chassis, TC32 motor) of the Chaparral, Cheetah, etc. The two eared wheel spinners are those already used in the Scuttler kits of E-Jag and GTO and the guide is the one of the Lotus 38 and Brawner Hawk (a white version of the black guide used with the Scuttlers). The contrate is the usual pressed steel one (27 T, I guess) and the motor is the late version (flat commutator) of the open motor, as used in the set/RTR versions of Chaparral, Cheetah, etc. Thus, all parts in the sample shown seem original to me, but for the contrate (probably Classic, I agree) and probably the tyres.

The present one is probably the best looking of the many versions Strombecker made of these cars. In addition, they should have performed quite well due to the quality of the chassis and the components used; by sure far better than the Barracudas meeting them in the set.

By 1966 both the E-Jag and the GTO should have been out of production, superseded, as all the old cars, by the new line (three post fixing) of Strombecker cars. Just the remaining stock, mainly Scuttler kits, was still being offered. The reason why Strombecker decided to revive these cars in a new version was probably the need of a couple of street cars to join the Barracudas in a four lane set. They didn't last much, however: by 1967 there was a new four lane set (Chaparral/McKee/Cheetah/Lotus 30) and neither of the cars of the 9955 set was in production.

Best, Eduardo

 

[Houses]

Hola Jose, I'm sorry, I added my reply without seeing yours. As it's clear we desagree. To me the car shown is a quite good and representative example of a rare version. Just putting the correct exhaust and contrate, new tyres (Monogram or Revell silicone replicas will fit), and maybe removing paint and decals (not sure what I would do, I like the car as it looks now), it will be perfect!

Best, Eduardo

 

[dgersh]

Thanks Eduardo, good thing you saved those pictures.

The only thing that seems strange to me is that they would have two pairs of cars with very different chassis and wheels - are you sure the set was sold like this originally?

I don't think that crown is a Classic, but can't say what it is! Maybe more modern, like the silicone tires seem to be on Al's car...

Don

 

[TSRF]

I do not believe that these chassis are by Strombecker. I believe that it is an aftermarket chassis of yet unknown brand, possibly Japanese as it fits the late version, open-frame Igarashi motor that was fitted on the Strombecker 2-piece aluminum chassis in 1965, just before the TC32 came out. Possibly designed for a Japanese-market RTR slot car of some kind using the Igarashi motor.

The cutaway for the gear looks a bit "off", meaning that the stamping tooling was not of the best quality, and I do not believe that Strombecker would have let that into production if it was indeed one of theirs. The gear shown on the picture looks furiously like a Classic gear but could also be a Williams unit.

Shown in the set above are two cars with that chassis and two cars with the standard 1965 issue 2-piece Strombecker aluminum chassis and it is hard to believe that they would have had two different chassis in a single set.

Of course, anything is possible, but since this does not show in any literature from Strombecker or anything else for that matters, it is very unlikely that it came from Strombecker.

Let's put it in the "Unresolved Little Unimportant Slot Car Mysteries" chapter for the time being...

 

[Pechuga_VLC]

What a fantastic puzzle before us!

I had previously seen this type of frame, but in those days I was not paying attention. But today I have seen up to 7 times this combination of chassis bodywork latest evolution of Jag E / Ferrari Berlinetta, so from now I will pay more attention.

Indeed this type of frame does not appear in the references Strombecker official, however there are too many cases spotted and I think we have to start thinking seriously that may have been sold by Strombecker.

Eduardoi is right,
I quietly compared individual elements, and its detailed description is absolutely true.

Sorry for the confusion in my previous answer, but the car is well camouflaged.

In my opinion these curious units are the result of wanting to leverage the latest body parts in their final state of evolution. This has been used what was at hand. The overall result is a mix of different elements of the home race line and the competition Scuttler and TC-32 line.

I believe that the creation of this rare chassis, is a solution of urgency to complete the cars and market them because then the molds were not yet in USA.

Although this is likely to be sold by Strombecker, I do not think in any case it was manufactured in Chicago, but of any subsidiary or any custom component to another company, either U.S. or Japan.

Therefore, the only thing not original on the drive that teaches bwaminispeed are the decals, the exhaust pipe and the crown.

 

[Houses]

I don't think so. The correct gear fits perfectly centered in both of my cars. Too many identical cars for being an aftermarket fitting (just the chassis I suppose) completed with Strombecker stuff. I have had in my hands at least three pairs of these cars, and all came in exactly the way I described them: Strombecker rims (no others have that internal lip) Lotus 38/Brawner-Hawk guide, steel contrate... And the chassis is designed for these bodies: the front pins appear only in this chassis and in the late black chassis (second/rear guide hole filled in) that is specific to these bodies.

On the other hand a set with the pair a Barracudas, one E-Jag and one GTO certainly exists, and appears in the 66' catalogue. Admittedly, the catalogue doesn't show the chassis, but it's hard to belive that the cars shown with the set (which appears close to mint) and all the other I have seen, have had all the same non original modifications.

Don is right, it may seem strange pairing two pairs of cars with different chassis, but on one hand the Barracude chassis is specific to that car (similar ones have shorter wheelbasis), so no way of getting the same chassis for all cars unless you put in the set two blue and two white cudas. On the other hand that's Strombecker at their best, with all that charm that only some sick collectors (me among them) do appreciate. Some day I have to tell you how they chopped lots and lots of Scutller rear brackets and put the resulting amputated motors in especially designed two pieces aluminium chassis with a poorly meshed plastic gear, the result being supposed to be suitable for commercial raceways...

 

[bwaminispeed]

QUOTE Some day I have to tell you how they chopped lots and lots of Scutller rear brackets and put the resulting amputated motors in especially designed two pieces aluminium chassis with a poorly meshed plastic gear, the result being supposed to be suitable for commercial raceways...
Don't have to tell us, seen them on Ebay like that already.

 

[dgersh]

... .and lots of lots of these truncated Scuttler motors, still popping up on ebay!

But it's nice to know that Strombecker really did this on purpose and not just to sell them off as choo-choo motors...

I've seen a couple of those weird motor/chassis combos on ebay too, but if you could post a picture Eduardo, it would go nicely with this whole thread.

In any case, Strombecker sourced a lot of stuff from Japan, including all motors, so nothing should be too surprising!

Don

 

[TSRF]

QUOTE Some day I have to tell you how they chopped lots and lots of Scutller rear brackets and put the resulting amputated motors in especially designed two pieces aluminium chassis with a poorly meshed plastic gear, the result being supposed to be suitable for commercial raceways...

Who chopped what?

Igarashi issued such motors, no chopping necessary, by the boxful. In fact the LASCM bought such a box with about 50 of them just a year ago...
I will get a picture.
And yes, these motors fit in the 2-piece alloy chassis and several kits (like four different ones) were issued using that combination.

However, why would Strombecker, that already had that 2-piece chassis, need another that would do exactly the same use? It makes little sense to me and no commercial sense.

 

[bwaminispeed]

Yes Doc, but, as far as I know, this chassis has only ever been seen in Strombecker Jag's and Ferrari's, and, no other bodies. And, we are talking quite a few sightings over a few years from several individuals.

Way too much to be just a coincidence.

Also, as far as I know, the those two bodies NEVER had the two piece aluminum chassis. So, if you wanted to put those 4 cars in a set, you would have to have two different chassis. Either two aluminum 2 piece chassis and two plastic chassis, or, two 2 piece aluminum, and, 2 new one piece aluminum chassis to revive some old bodies.

Stranger things have happened, and, we are talking Strombecker here, one of the strangest of all Slot Car companies.

 

[scaleslotcars]

I have had one of these chassis for several years, when I got it it had Strombecker wheels on it (since robbed off) so I always had my suspicions that it was Strombecker.

 

[Houses]

QUOTE Don't have to tell us, seen them on Ebay like that already.

Well, maybe I should anyway.

QUOTE Who chopped what?

I don't know exactly who, probably people at Strombecker, but what was chopped was a lot of Scuttler motors. Before explaining more, to avoid any confusion, in the picture below there appear, from left to right, all Strombecker, an early open motor, a late open motor (both made by Igarashi I assume, you Philippe know better) and a Scuttler, as mounted in the '65 competition kits and some rtr/set cars (Igarashi too?).

Next are the three two-pieces aluminium chassis that came with the set, rtr and custom kits (the cheaper kits, not the brass ones) of 1966: the short version (Chap, Dino, Cheetah) on the right, the long version (Lotus 30 and, later on, Ferrari P2 and Porsche Carrera) at the centre, and the extra-long version (Barracuda only) on the left. Note the triangular and square identification holes in the first two.

By 1967 the Barracuda was discontinued and the standard rtr/set sport cars came with the well known (horrible) plastic/aluminium chassis shown below. There are short (blue plastic) and long (black plastic) wheelbase versions.

It seems that, also by 1967, somebody decided to recycle the remaining stock of Scuttler motors (they were still offered in the '66 catalogue, but were not in 1967) by the way of chopping their u-bracket arms and installing the chopped motors in new, specially designed, two pieces aluminium chassis, similar to those used in 1966. The pictures below appeared on eBay USA some years ago (sorry for their quality): they show a box of Scuttler motors, from which some are still intact, while others have been chopped and fitted with pinions and push-in terminals. One sample of each is also shown. Was this box left in this way when somebody decided to halt the production?

This is a sample of the new chassis. Compared with those of 1966, it has more room for the longer motor and provides clearance for the motor brushes.

Apparently, these chassis, also made in short and long wheel-basis versions, were paired with all types of sport car bodies available in 1967, and sold as bagged kits

as rtr, and even offered by pairs as a bonus in some sets. The two cars shown below came to me as shown, together with the bag label and flyer also shown. Note the different identification holes on the chassis. Apparently they were part of a set (probably a 9804 Sebring) which, besides the standard chassis, included a pair of these Scuttler chassis intended to be used on a commercial track (!?). The flyer is self-explicative enough.

 

[dgersh]

Wow, very impressive; looks like the Strombecker story was a lot more complicated than we ever suspected...

Don

 

[TSRF]

QUOTE I don't know exactly who, probably people at Strombecker, but what was chopped was a lot of Scuttler motors.
Hi,
They were not "chopped". The brass piece that forms the motor's nose was stamped that way directly from the die BEFORE the motor was assembled. The pinion and the lead-wire clips were also factory assembled, as these motors were specifically designed to fit in some Strombecker kits with brass chassis issued in 1965. They were also sold separately and I have the stock number somewhere in my pile of files. I recently purchased an entire box of them off E-Pay for the museum. All show the very clean die mark that shows that they were never "cut" from the Scuttler's bracket, instead stamped that way from a different die.

QUOTE Before explaining more, to avoid any confusion, in the picture below there appear, from left to right, all Strombecker, an early open motor, a late open motor (both made by Igarashi I assume, you Philippe know better) and a Scuttler, as mounted in the '65 competition kits and some rtr/set cars (Igarashi too?).

That's correct. As you will read in the new book and after lots of research because Strombecker is not a simple company to analyze, all Strombecker motors until the last day of its existence , every single model, are made by Igarashi after the business agreement made between the two companies in the third quarter of 1962:

QUOTE 1963
Much was to change with the next step, as Strombecker abandoned the Mabuchi motor in favor of their own, the first of a partnership with the Igarashi Co. Ltd of Japan that was to become a huge success story and a lifetime partnership with one member of the Shure family for many years to come.

When Strombecker collapsed in 1970 after facing bankruptcy caused by a return of unsold slot car merchandise from Sears & Roebuck department stores, Igarashi remained with two of the company executives, Alan H. Shure and James L. Gaza, who made a fortune marketing the Japanese motors in the USA for many other uses than slot cars. It is still going on to this day, albeit with a new breed of directors.

HOWEVER, I still find ZERO evidence of that funny chassis in ANY Strombecker records, so I MUST assume that it is not a Strombecker part but an aftermarket one, until someone splashes egg all over my face, which happened before and may happen again...