The 58057 Bigwig was the last incarnation of the original 58047
Hotshot chassis from 1985. It's interesting that the changes were
able to happen so quickly. The Hotshot became the 58054 Supershot in less than a year, and the 58055
Boomerang followed only a month later. Fast forward three more
months to July of 1986 and we get the Bigwig. The most obvious
difference is the body which was designed in collaboration with Japanese
race car designer Takuya Yura and includes extra details like a roll
cage, tail pipes, an overhead air intake, faux engine, and rear inner
fenders. Apart from that, this was clearly intended to be the
ultimate car in the Hotshot line. It came with ball bearings and
originally included the RX-540VZ Technigold motor. Not only was
this a hotter, lower turn motor, but the chassis could accommodate a
longer 8.4V battery pack for extra power and speed. The 47330 re-release came out in 2017 with only a handful of changes including a GT-Tuned, 25 turn motor.The term "Bigwig" means an important person, especially some kind of business executive. It is an interesting name, but given the Hotshot heritage I'm surprised they didn't call it "Big Shot" which means essentially the same thing and would maintain continuity in the naming convention. Neither term would make any sense to a non-native English speaker.
This is a 4WD, shaft drive chassis with four wheel independent double wishbone suspension. Unlike the original Hotshot, is uses a separate vertical damper on each corner. Unlike anything before or since, it also uses a rack and pinion steering system. This unusual chassis is unique to this model and was never used again on another model.
One thing lost in the modern re-release is the motor. The GT-Tuned motor is probably the equal of the older Technigold in terms of rpm/volt, but it is not rated for the 8.4V that defined the Bigwig. In fact, the instructions encourage you to use foam spacers to pad the battery compartment back down to a standard, 6-cell pack. $%&! that. I'm using an 8.4V pack anyway. It will probably shorten the brush life, but I can live with that. On 8.4V, this thing is a blast to drive and vastly quicker than the Hotshot. The tires have good grip on both pavement and off-road. Handling is good. I can't claim to notice any particular difference in handling due the presence of the unique rack and pinion steering system.
Update: This model was destroyed in the 2022 fire. It has not been replaced.
 Page 1: Assembly |
 Page 2: Final Photos |