Johnny Lightning slot car bodies - items remaining.

Clip on to 1.5" wheelbase Aurora AFX chassis from the '70's through Tomy Turbos, to recent 1.5" wheelbase Tomy AFX Racemasters MegaG chassis.

Also fit Viper and Bulldog 1.5" chassis, as well as Autoworld Magnatraction clones. (Basically any 1.5" chassis that uses the same body mounting system as Aurora AFX.)

£10 each + postage. (£3 2nd class within the UK, £5 to EU and £10.55 to USA will cover 'one to many'. Last package to U.S.A. took just eight days, with no additional  import duties.  )   

          

                                   

Advanced tuning tools
If you are looking for the basics, look in this link to the Slotracer.Online manual.
https://slotracer.online/manual/tools.php

However, once you've gripped the basics and you are looking for tuning tools to give you an edge, have a look at the advanced tools below.

Ultrasonic cleaner £30
   
The newest addition to my tool set.
Dirty components do not look as good or work as well as clean components.
I have dropped complete motor mounts into the cleaner without any bad effects.
I have also dropped entire chassis' (without tyres) and also had good results.
The ultrasonic even cleans your braids. Use a jewellery cleaner fluid in conjunction with the ultrasonic.
I am truly shocked by the debris and dirt that comes out into the solution when dipping an older car from the first time.

Prior to the ultrasonic, I would dip a motor and run in under its own power but the ultrasonic appears to be able to shake loose the dirt and embedded carbon from motors without running them. If you have a  motor that has a tendancy to smoke on startup due to bearing oil getting on to the commutator, an ultrasonic is probably the only way to tackle this without opening the motor up.
If the ultrasonic cannot shift the dirt, a commutator true up is probably your only option.

Digital scales £10
   
Very good for checking the weight of a car and measuring static motor torque.
Also very good for checking front to rear weight balance so that any ballasting can be added to counteract bad behaviours (power delot, roll deslot, understeer oversteer etc) that the car shows. Tracking/logging the positioning of ballast against lap times is important.

Power supply £45
   
It is always good to have a stable and reliable PSU.
I've owned the Fusion FS-PS201ADJT for about 3 years. It has ever let me down and provides the power for motor testing, tyre truing and an Oxigen Digital throttle and testbed setup.
Good value, twin outputs, current limiter, built-in fuse, 4 to 14v range approx.
Don't be tempted by the cheaper single output version, a false economy

Laser Tachometer £15
   
A laser tachometer gives you insight into how a motor is running, above or below specified RPM and also whether the motor has any built-in clockwise or anti clockwise bias that you can leverage to your advantage. Laser tachometers work best when the motor is out of the car. It is possible to measure the rpm of the wheels and with some simple maths determine the motor speed but this calculation has to be done manually for every wheel size.

Torque arm (£zero)
   
It is difficult to measure torque dynamically but a simple torque arm matched to a set of digital scales can give you some numbers, giving insight on whether manufacturers are sandbagging or glory running when it comes to their torque numbers. Torque matters because it has just as much a part as motor RPM in the performance of the motor and plays a big part in determining a suitable gear for the car.
Test at 4v. Never stall your motor at full voltage! 
 

Tyre truer (£zero to £300)
I borrow a tyre truer when I need one.
I've never needed a truer more than once a year.
The majority of new tyres I buy are well formed, well sized and only need skimming on the axle in a hand held motor mount.
Tyre truers are a difficult choice because they each work in different ways.
Whether you choose :
- drum truer "hudy" type
- on-axle truer "razor" type
- rotary disc truer "nsr type"
- or.. just skim the tyres in the car

... your choice of a truer suitable for your needs depends on :
- The cars you have
- The wheels (push fit, set screw fit, air-hub?)
- The axles . Smooth or knurled ends?  Axles from different manufacters are not the same size due to metric rounding (among other factors)
- The tyres. Are the new tyres well formed (slot.it f22) or rough like hell (nsr supergrip)

Tyre oil roller. 
   
If you are using oiled tyres, a roller is useful.
Some truers have a built in roller (nsr type) but if yours doesn't and you have to oil your tyres, you can make one from an old motor, motor mount, old axle holder and 2 old axles.

Wheel and crown balancer (£5)
   
My DIY balancer made from a G-clamp, an old axle and 2 button magnets shown.
When you want you want to go the extra mile for performance, balancing will bring small incremental improvements, smoothing the ride and getting the power down.

Digital calipers
   
Having your car challenged, checked and shown to be too wide is embarrassing.
Set your cars up with callipers and you are sure to be within the rules.
Also, logging the effects of different settings gives you insight into the effects and allows you to prep new cars and predict the results of the settings you choose.

Gear tables (£zero)
   
Simple tables are OK, but a full set of tables will include tyre diameters and  will allow you to change components in any part of the transmission (pinions,  crowns spurs, wheels, tyres) and predict the results.
If you don't have such a table , put one together in a spreadsheet.

Setup plate and shims.    (£zero)
   
OK so the basic setup plate IS included in the slotracer manual, but if you have the time and inclination to make your own, there are several advantages you can build in.

1. Use shims to optimise the ride height of your cars.

Create shims from old store cards or any other pieces of plastic you have lying around.
For some classifications (eg DiSCA LeMans Oxigen racing) there is a minimum ride height so shims ensure compliance.
For tracks where no ride height minimum is enforced, create shims to get your car as low as possible without scraping the chassis or motor on the track.

2.downforce simulation.
If you are racing plastic track ( with steel rails ) or wood track with magnabraid, your car will suck down your the track because of flux leakage from the motor.
If you embed rails, magnabraid or magnets into your setup plate, you are better able to simulate your car's stance on the track.

3. Rail height simulation.
Scaley sport rails are flush with the track surface, ninco are raised, wood tracks are often  recessed. Using shims under the front wheels or under the guide allows you to simulate the stance the car will have on the track and adjust to suit (using guide washers and/or front axle screw adjusters)


Rolling Road (self build for about £50)
   
There are no rolling road units currently being commercially produced (as far as I can tell)
Some used "tamiya speed tester" units can be found and adapted.
Link below for all of the components and diagrams to build the unit shown.
https://ibb.co/album/7NR8c9
This unit gives you insights on motor selection and gearing but is not an alternative to track time.
Test your cars, Look at the numbers being pulled by your best cars and try to replicate those numbers on your underperforming cars.
Once you identify the ideal speed range for a car (for a given car-weight, motor type and track) replicating this into new builds is easier.
Combine the rolling road info with information on the weight if the car and you have some insights toward setting up new cars.

I've had more requests to build these RR-V2 units to order than I can count, however, the complexity of the build makes it non viable.
The joint venture with Dale at Slot Cartel ground to a halt.
Recent discussions with Slot.IT revealed that they are too busy with other projects to take this project on right now, however they are willing to lend some expertise to help integrate some oxigen digital functionality into a new prototype RR-V3.
I continue to explore other options with other slot car tool makers and am hopeful that I will be able to start producing units for sale.
---‐--------

If you have questions, fire away!
If you have some advanced tools, please share

Alan W

     
 I have just completed a Ford Mirage M1. I have completed it as the car which ran in the BOAC 500 at Brands Hatch in 1967. The car was driven by Pedro Rodriguez & Richard Thompson. I remember the race as it was the first big international race meeting that I attended. The body was cast by Fast Bodies.

This book has a lot to answer for:

In 1981 I had some Scalextric track and five cars bought on a whim from my local paper's 'bargains under £5' section. I played with it occasionally but had no overriding interest in the stuff. One day I was in W H Smith, saw the book in question on the shelf, bought it and started on the slippery slope to slot car addiction. My wallet has never forgiven me!

Forty years later the guide has been through several incarnations and expanded from its original 135 black and white pages to around 700 full colour ones by the time it reached its 8th edition in 2015. Yes, I bought most of them and even got the author to sign my copy of the 6th edition at the Goodwood Revival in 2004! Sad or what?
   

Although the first seven editions were written by Roger Gillham many enthusiasts have contributed information over the years including well known Scalextric collector Adrian Norman who came on board as a joint author when the 8th edition was compiled. By now it had been renamed 'Scalextric The Ultimate Guide'.

All of which brings me neatly to the subject of this review - the 9th edition. Roger has now retired from the project so Adrian has taken over authorship of this latest version. For the benefit of people who aren't aware of him Adrian is a long-standing Scalextric enthusiast and collector who wrote the factory liaison column for the NSCC magazine for a long time. He was also employed as Scalextric promotions manager by Hornby for many years. His knowledge of the subject is virtually unparalleled.

As mentioned above the 8th edition ran to about 700 pages. This new one has well over 3000! It is now so big that it has been split into 10 parts, volumes 1 - 3 are currently available with the rest to follow during the course of this year. In fact it should probably be renamed the 'Ultimate, Ultimate Guide' and contains more information about Scalextric than any sane person would want to know! A full rundown of the individual parts with ordering details can be found HERE. It is a truly massive undertaking on Adrian's part and I dread to think how many hours he must have spent on the project.
I have been sent volume 1 for review which covers some pre Scalextric history along with the development of the brand from tinplate wind up toys through to the modern plastic age. It also includes a complete catalogue and photos of virtually every Scalextric set produced.

Chapters
1 The Tin Age.
This is a very interesting section which deals with the founder of Scalextric, Fred Francis and the history of his Minimodels firm. Fred was a very talented engineer who had much more on his CV than toy racing cars.

2. The Development of Scalextric.
Contrary to often perceived opinion Fred did not invent slot racing although he was largely responsible for its entry into mainstream toy production. This chapter therefore covers the general history of the hobby prior to the launch of Scalextric in 1957 and goes on to give a general outline of the firm's development through the years.

3. Scalextric Tinplate cars and sets.
A detailed look at the early tinplate clockwork cars and their subsequent transformation into slot cars.

4. Plastic Scalextric Cars.
Following The sale of Minimodels to Triang in 1958 the tinplate cars were phased out and replaced in 1960 by the plastic variety we have been playing with ever since and this chapter gives an overview of the next 40 years of production. It is not a detailed listing of every car produced but a pictorial guide to some of the types of models available to date with notes on various significant changes. A full listing and photos of every car will be found in subsequent volumes and this chapter is more a taster of what is to come later. 

5. UK Scalextric sets.
A large and very comprehensive section covering virtually every set produced to date. Every box lid and many contents are pictured along with a potted history of each decade and developments of the Scalextric logo and marketing. It is an excellent history of the brand in itself.

The whole book contains a huge number of relevant photos, including some nice ones of Rallyhub's tracks and this 1st volume alone runs to well over 300 pages.

Editorial pedant department
No publication is without technical errors, as I know only too well from editing the NSCC magazine for nine years, and this one is no exception. I spotted the usual small number of typos but my main source of criticism would concern the way the text has been laid out. Justified text has been used throughout where each line is exactly the same length and this is a notoriously difficult format to get right. You have to be very careful not to produce over spaced text or unnecessary hyphenation where one word is split in strange places over two lines and this book is riddled with the second error. Quite large font sizes have been used throughout, which is great for my ageing eyesight, but a small reduction of a point or two and some limited copy editing would largely have eliminated them.
The average reader will hardly notice these things and it doesn't detract from the overall enjoyment of the book but it really grates on my grammar Nazi sensibilities.

Buy it?
A tricky one to answer - all ten volumes are going to make a very large hole in the buyer's wallet and the complete collection will probably only be of interest to a small number of really dedicated Scalextric enthusiasts/collectors. Incidentally, there are still some copies of the 8th edition available for those with a slightly more moderate involvement in the subject.
This first volume is a very useful introduction to the subject though and is well worth buying as a stand alone item. I found it eminently readable and it filled several gaps in my knowledge of things Scalextric. If you should buy some of the other volumes you will discover that there is much, much more to the story of this quite remarkable toy.  Who knows, after reading this one you may descend into the same rabbit hole as I did after that very first red covered book way back in 1981!

A real IT boffin back in 2004 in South Africa built these controllers. He like many of us moved away. 

It is a wonderful controller But something has blown. It works without a wiper board. And is so smooth. 

Is there someone in Europe that I could send it to for repairs?

Any help appreciated.

I started a track about 2 years ago, but then retirement came along and I thought we would downsize , so track was packed away, and wood used elsewhere.

Plans changed as I was offered a job I could not refuse, so we are staying on.

I have a good friend coming round to help with the framework and base Then te real issue begins - track design,

I will be using 60's Revell track WITH borders. I have a space of 4 meters by 1.8 meters.

Any and all suggestions/designs welcome. I do not want coiled snakes type track. I would like to do some scenery.

As per title
Racing at SSRC and sometimes Champagne Mouton (literally translates to Champagne sheep, which is better than cheap Champagne)
Collecting a few slot things here and there.

Joel

Check out this exhibit at the Goodwood Festival Of Speed. LINK

I don't understand a word of the technical stuff but is this the future of slot racing?

I have a chassis with alloy wheels of the same pattern all round, however the fronts are anodised grey. Google searches tell me  anodisation can be removed using oven cleaner - but does anyone have any alternative ways please?

   

George Turner Models are having a sale next weekend - Friday 16 to Sunday 18 July...

Quote:For those of you who have not seen; this weekend (Friday 16th to Sunday 18th) we will be offering free postage on all orders and 10% discounted from all orders over £100.
To take advantage of these offers pop over to the website: http://www.georgeturnermodels.com/
Take a look at some of the lovely cars you might like and send us an email with your order this weekend.

Time to browse the website