Custom 1/32 Slot Car Build

[Flygirl]

Don't know if anyone here is into slot car racing. I am.

A few years ago I routed my own track and added a computer-driven timing system triggered by a photocell embedded in the slot.

The project took about a year of sporadic building, and I haven't even done the scenery yet. It's a smaller track, but will portray the Bixby Bridge on CA's scenic Highway One.

I also added two electrically thrown switches and isolated blocks, like old school model railroading, so I can park cars on the track while others race.

This model is a Slot.it 1/32 Audi R8C build from scratch. I also designed the livery and produced it in Photoshop, then created my own decals and applied them to the car.

This one competed in last year's Race Across America, a premiere slot car event.

There are lots more where this came from!

[4pipes]

That's fantastic!

[xb-60]

Originally Posted by 4pipes

That's fantastic!

x2!

I'm relieved, however, that your 'ideal' Cobra will be white....not pink
Cheers,
Glen

[Flygirl]

Thank you! How about an early model Porsche 911? This was built from a Japanese Imai static model kit from the early 80s that I bought on the online auction site.

I added running gear to the chassis, built a half pan interior, and finished it out. Paint color is a matte WWII camouflage that I dunked in Future floor wax for that acrylic shine.

Only bummer is, there aren't many female driver figures available in 1/32; that's me driving again.

It's nowhere near as fast as the Audi, but one of my favorite builds.

Hey, and get your feet off the dashboard!

[mreid]

Thelma and Louise in the Porsche I see. Great builds! Please share more. I had a 4 lane track in my basement when I lived in CT on a 12 x 12 layout. It was a blast, but my son and his friends wore it out. It was on the floor and they still managed to smash up all the cars. It was a lot of fun while it lasted. Did I mention, please share more?!

[Flygirl]

I hope I'm not overposting.

Here's a shot taken during track construction, of the distribution panel behind a driver's station.

Weird, wild stuff.

[mreid]

It is impossible to overpost on this subject. Let's see the track layout.

[Flygirl]

Mazda 787B, the "Parts Bin Special." Built from parts I had lying around, took third overall in last year's Slot.it Summer Shootout.

During the course of the race, the cars were shipped to tracks across the U.S., then to Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, then back to the U.S. for the finale. By that time it had covered approximately 35 actual miles without any work done to it except tire changes and lubrication.

I was hoping for first place and had held it through most of the series, but third was excellent and I was really pleased to finish so well against such strong competition.

[Flygirl]

Well, since you asked: Here's an overview of the track. One day I'll add scenery and I think it'll really be something.

Built with 1/2" MDF and stained glass tape as the conductor on each side of the slot. Lots of undercutting in the spiral. Two plank bridges and a dirt "infield" section shake things up and add different textures. 10 amp adjustable voltage power supply, and the PC-driven timing system I mentioned earlier.

I had never used a router before this project; I'm lots better with one now!

The spiral is banked all the way through and the cars can run this track surprisingly fast. I run only non-mag cars, there are no traction magnets holding the cars to the track. It's the old school way and generally considered "pure" slot car racing.

What's really cool about routed tracks is that the turns aren't constant radius, and follow the racing line like 1:1 cars do. With multiple lanes, the cars converge on the apex of a corner, then fan out again through the straights.

Earlier this year I was lucky enough to do some unlimited racing on an Ogilvie hillclimb track from the 1960s. We had seven lanes going at once and the action was incredible! I'd suggest to anyone, to go to a slot car parlor, rent a car, and just have at it for a half hour or so. The rhythm is intoxicating and some of the cars are so fast, you drive more by sound and rhythm than sight.

[Jeff Frigo]

Originally Posted by Flygirl

I will pay you to make the back of my dash look like that.

[Flygirl]

Here's one more of the track, earlier in the assembly process. A lot of Bondo was used to smooth the surface.

I'd better stop now.

[Rick Parker]

Is that Pinto in the background a 71 or 72? That takes me WAY....back

[xb-60]

...umm, this is a different league to the Scalextric Cobra in my avatar!
And is that a Mk I Cortina on your track?
Cheers!
Glen

[Gaz64]

Originally Posted by Flygirl

Mazda 787B, the "Parts Bin Special." Built from parts I had lying around, took third overall in last year's Slot.it Summer Shootout.

During the course of the race, the cars were shipped to tracks across the U.S., then to Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, then back to the U.S. for the finale. By that time it had covered approximately 35 actual miles without any work done to it except tire changes and lubrication.

I was hoping for first place and had held it through most of the series, but third was excellent and I was really pleased to finish so well against such strong competition.

I used to race slot cars a few years back, when I painted the bodies for our 24 hour races one year, I did 3 Mazda 787 bodies in 1/24th scale, made my own decals scaled down from the 1/10 scale Tamiya R/C kit, and had working headlights for night racing.

Looks like you have a good looking setup, many happy times ahead.

A very addictive hobby.

[Mark IV]

Originally Posted by xb-60

...umm, this is a different league to the Scalextric Cobra in my avatar!
And is that a Mk I Cortina on your track?
Cheers!
Glen

Looks more like a MK I LOTUS Cortina!

Ah yes, slot racing, my misspent youth and contributor to my lack of grades! I was around for that in the heydays of the 60s.....all of my allownace ended up as melted Mabuchi armatures.....

[RANDY CARTER]

Very nicely done, the cars and the track. I don't do slot cars but do build 1/10 scale R/C drifters so I can surely appreciate the quality of your efforts.

[ZOERA-SC7XX]

Very interesting thread. I raced slot cars back in the sixties and am in the process of returning to this very entertaining hobby. I also am planning to build a routed oval in my basement (20' x 7'), which will be a scale 1/5th mile track. The cars I do are mainly vintage stock cars (some from the sixties), and a few new Reality-Raceway built modifieds which I will race at certain commercial tracks who embrace the strict rules. Slot car racing was ruined back in the 70's with the onset of expensive rewind motors, custom controllers and bodies that looked like door wedges. Some raceways are promoting accurate hard-body slot racing and northeast modified (Parma chassis) cars with sealed motors. They are fast (slow) enough for us old guys to actually see. I think it will be fun again. Anyone interested in this racing go to MODIFIED SLOT CAR RACING - Home

[Flygirl]

^^^Great cars! I love the Impala, all of them really. I can't wait to see how your track comes along. Routed tracks are the best! Mine is a small little thing, but it's portable and has survived two moves with no damage. I'm kind of mixed about the cars; I like slower non-mag racing but those doorstop cars were unbelievable, and I found myself hypnotized by the motion and speed. It was kind of a trip.

And to those who identified it, that is indeed a Lotus Cortina. The Pinto? It's an early '73; I drove it in high school in the late '70s and (of all the cars to end up keeping), it just kind of never went away.

I suspected I might find a few kindred spirits here.

Some more pics:

1. A Porsche 908 body that I built and mounted on a TSRF brass chassis equipped with a pin guide and all the other old school running gear. It's blazing fast on my track, but I like the body so much that I don't run it too much since I've yet to add guard rails.

2. Ford Galaxie with Slot.it running gear and a brass chassis. This one's a sentimental favorite but is happier on bigger tracks.

3. Slammed GT350. Also with Slot.it running gear and a custom chassis I cobbled together from the parts bin. I Dremeled the inside of the body to where it's thin as an eggshell, and lowered it as much as I could in hopes of wringing every last tenth out of it. It's fast, but not quite as fast as I'd hoped after all that work. The body is also a bit too delicate for its own good.

4. McLaren. Another custom decal job, vacuum formed interior, a super lightweight that competed with some success in the first Slot.it Shootout some years back, but failed to find the podium at the end of the series.

5. Lotus Cortina. Lots of lead underneath, and it's still a bit top heavy.

[tnewland]

Very COOOOOOOL!!! A good friend of mine shares a shop with a couple of guys that custom build competitive slot cars. This is a hobby that deserves a resurgence in popularity!

[FWB]

i have some vintage slots i diddle with.....much older than what most are used to.
late 50's early 60's AC gilbert stuff.....32 ford bodies....i'll try to scare up some pics