Newest Track: The Schweizering - Part Four

Over the last few weeks, I have been back at work on the track, switching mostly to the elevated, curvy sections opposite the "old city." Been laying a lot of plaster cloth and shaping some banks, hills and mountainous areas in the small space available; looks like a snow storm hit right now, but the painting and scenic work will come soon enough.


This being the Alps, I did want to add a "tunnel." I was going to originally have the track drive through a different tunnel, up along the wall, but the only suitable spot for that was where the shaped "riser" track sections are set end-to-end, to make an "up-and-up" straight going towards the top of the hill climb. Visually, this is a point of interest, and I didn't want to hide it under cardboard and plaster.


I instead have opted for a "scenic" tunnel, similar in concept to what he did at the upper corners of one of his older layouts (I forget which one). This is on a lower section of track, appearing to run off the main road and under the upper back straight. I'll probably drop a safety car there at the tunnel entrance, along with some sort of barrier and a policeman or two; I'm pretty happy with it so far.



Overall, I must say I like the way the plaster forms "firm up" the track as a whole and make the structure more solid and substantial. Yet it seems there is so much more to do...once I finish the plaster work and get the some basic painting done, I can finish filling/painting the track surface and get some copper tape down over the rails. I test ran cars for a while before I finally settled on this layout, but I want to get some cars back on the track and running again!

Beautiful New Peugeot from Avant Slot

Just came across this for sale on the Spanish site Todoslot - via a post on Twitter - the 2010 Oreca Matmut Peugeot. Definitely a sharp, colorful livery that I know a lot of sloters would like to put on the track.

PHOTO CREDIT: Todoslot.es.

Ford Brings Slot Cars to LA Auto Show

When the hobby can get exposure like this at a major event like the International L.A. Auto Show, it can only be a good thing. Ford brought this custom track to the show so the attendees (including journalists and other industry professionals) could have some fun, and it seems they did.

PHOTO CREDITS: jalponik.com.

The photos of the impressive display were provided by Jalopnik's Justin Hyde, who indicated that a lot of people seemed to be enjoying themselves - and acting like big kids. Great idea.

Newest Track: The Schweizering - Part Three

Just a brief update on our progress - the Pit/Grandstand building is shaping up nicely...it's turning out to be a fairly large structure - with three Artin grandstands, three VIP suites, a control tower and ten pit garages, the whole thing will be about five feet long. The basic structure is complete, but there's a lot of work yet to do, including the roof, back walls and interiors for the VIP suites, garage doors, lighting, etc. - but the photo below gives you a pretty good idea of where we stand.


At the bottom of the photo, you can also see the "parking garage" underneath part of the track - where I plan to store some of my extra cars (especially some of the older ones that have no display case). Below, you can see a photo of the garage itself, showing the simple LED lighting that's currently installed.


Work on the structures is pretty much at a standstill right now as I complete the rest of the structural work on the track - including the elevations and mountain forms, painting and filling the track surface, and laying copper tape. I'll include some photos of that work in the next Schweizering installment.

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My Old Track: Circuit Schweiz-Baden

While we're hard at work on the new track, I thought I'd drop in a few photos of my first track, Circuit Schweiz-Baden. Below is the original description I included for an old RadTrax customer track contest:

"Schweiz-Baden was designed as a purely fictitious place, nestled at the foot of the Swiss Alps...just a stone's throw from the wooded forests of Alsace-Lorraine. The circuit was mainly home to Le Mans prototypes of the coupe and open-cockpit variety, though a wide range of modern and classic GT cars also ply its many challenging curves. The track was landscaped and includes a hand-painted backdrop, combined with several areas where painted scenery and three dimensional models blend together (see the village area). The L-shaped tabletop is approximately 4' x 12' along the back side and 3' x 6 foot along the right-hand side.


The main section contains a paper-clip arrangement, with the main grandstands and pits surrounded by outside straightaways--and at one end, the "Trinity Curve"...a banked section with three inside 60-degree curves (curve-straight-curve-straight-curve). This came about because some of the longer cars couldn't take more than two sections of the tight Artin banked curves at a time. The smaller table section contains the "esses"...raised on a upper level of track--all supported on a 4" layer of foam, which is covered with crumpled and painted landscape (kraft) paper--an old and very cost-effective model RR trick. Schweiz-Baden features a wide range of varying curves and level changes over it's approximate 58 ft. length, and believe it or not, sub-10sec. lap times are not that easy to come by--even with an out-of the box Fly.


TRACK DETAILS

The track is a hand-laid (no computer plan) Artin 2-lane setup, with custom-painted borders...and I also blacked-out the dotted-white-line separating the lanes. The power supply is from the Artin 4-lane set, it provides separate power to each lane, and I splice-wired the extra leads to double the per lane amperage from 1.5 amps to 3. That and the Parma controllers make a BIG difference in the overall enjoyment level. Look at the photos and I think you'll agree that it is indeed possible to design a unique and challenging layout with Artin track. (Okay, it did take three different sets...) Artin Lap Counter/Timer; Ninco, SCX and Artin barriers, with white board advertising barriers slipped into channel at edge of track.



SCENERY

The Control Tower, Pits, Medical Station and Beer Haus (concession stand) are hand-made from foam-core, cardboard boxes and clear plastic boxes. Many of the building exteriors are inkjetted onto large sheets of adhesive-backed paper, then applied to the structure. A mix of porcelain "collectible" accessories (I painted out the snow) and other painted toy buildings round out the architectural mix, which includes 3 painted Artin grandstands. The track signs blend old and new logos, along with local (Swiss & European) advertisers like banks, magazines, radio stations and even passenger railroads. My overall goal was to make the elements blend together as well as possible, with enough scenery to add interest and fun--but not to overdo it by trying to cram as much as possible onto the table."



As it turns out, the basic inspiration for the original track and scenic themes will be carried through on The Schweizering. Of course, the result will be better this time, we hope.

Monte Carlo Rallye Track for Sale Now on Ebay

Bill - or slotforum member jmswms - has established the highest levels of craftsmanship when it comes to building multi-level, scenic mountain rally courses. We've enjoyed many of his projects like his Targa Florio course - but this Monte Carlo Rallye track - built for a special Petersen Automotive Museum event in LA is really incredible.


Bill is about as good as they come when it comes to modelling mountainous areas, like the French Alps around the Pont des Miolans, which this track is based upon. Bill's probably forgotten more about scenic modelling than many of us have ever known, and each new project he takes on is a real wonder. Since the museum event, Bill has begun adding even more detail to this particular track, like the French village elements and additional lighting seen below.

PHOTO CREDITS: ebay.com.

Of course, it should be added that this fantastic Monte Carlo Rallye track is for sale, with part of the proceeds going to the MSFriends charity that co-sponsored the event. Check it out now on Ebay. To see more photos of the track and how it was constructed, visit the thread about it at slotforum.com

The Need for Speed — Without a Speeding Ticket.

Came across a nice article in the Suburban Chicago Glen Ellyn News about Chicagoland Raceway, where owner Mike Swiss - a five-time national champion and a two-time world champion - invites all ages and skill levels to join in on the fun. The facility holds races that are open to the public every Saturday night, where two racing tracks are hooked up to a computerized system that tracks a person’s number of laps, their best time and last race time on a monitor.

PHOTO CREDITS: Mysuburbanlife.com.

While Swiss will get in on the action during the Saturday night races and take on his customers in a friendly race, the chances for success againsy him aren't in your favor: he's been traveling around Chicagoland racing competitively since the age of 14. He’s also traveled to South America to race, and spent 19 years working for Koford Engineering, a slot car component manufacturer, for 19 years.

Hats off to Mike for his past successes and his hard work in promoting the hobby! Tom find out more about Chicagoland Raceway, check out their website.

Now if Carrera Would Only Make THIS Ferrari...

I just came across this on Jalopnik - it's the racing version of Jim Glickenhaus's wicked Ferrari P4/5 - which is currently under construction. Set to compete in next year's 24-hours of the Nürburgring, the car--dubbed the Competizione--will incorporate the suspension and V-8 drivetrain of an F430 GT2 ALMS racing car under bodywork like that of his one-off, Pininfarina-built Ferrari Enzo.

PHOTO CREDIT: Jalopnik.com.

I think this would make an incredible slot car - hopefully Carrera (who owns the current rights to Ferrari) will agree, assuming the car does run at The Ring and hopefully at some other races (LeMans would be nice) as well. While many of the current available modern Ferraris are nice - this would be a real step up, in my opinion.

Scalextric Super Racing System (SRS) Cars

They are not easy to find now, but the lexan-bodied Scalextric SRS cars were not only good performers, but for many years, they were the only game in town in terms of more exotic endurance racing cars like the Lancia LC2, Nissan R89C and the Peugeot 905. Now that some of these cars are (or will be) available in high-quality hard body shells from manufacturers like Slot.It, LeMans Miniatures and others, we have options that look a little better and offer more durability. Nevertheless, these cars from the mid-80's/early-90's still look quite good, perform well, and still have significant value for collectors. The chassis are super lightweight, and the strong motors and lexan bodies deliver excellent racing performance. These examples are in very good shape, sans the obvious yellowing of the Lancia Body, which was originally pure white. I've seen some that are still nice and white - so I don't know if this one was exposed to too much sunlight or perhaps had been clear-coated...with something.

Hobby Growth: Open Day at Bexhill

Every once in a while on the slot car forums, members will discuss various ways that we can attract more people to the hobby. You'll always come across a few interesting ideas, but sometimes it can be as simple as opening the club's doors to the public and inviting them to share the fun.

That's exactly what the Bexhill [UK] Scale Slot Car Club did when they held a special open-to-the-public event at White House Farm in Netherfield, near Battle. The club's Open Day attracted people from as far away as Devon, according to Martin Douglas, the club’s chairman.

“The open day was a success and we had people coming and going all day," he said. "There were always at least a dozen visitors inside. A lot of young people with their parents came, as well as those who had not raced slot cars for 40 years. We have had a lot of emails since the weekend asking about club membership.”

Hats off to the club for doing their part to expand the hobby!
PHOTO CREDITS: Bexhill Observer.

VIDEO: The Porsche 917 Was Scary Fast

Forty years on, many still marvel at the legend of the Porsche 917. I came across this great video courtesy of Jalopnik, which notes: "The Porsche 917 is what happens when Ze Germans focus all their energy on global domination... in a good way."

Porsche 917 from Mee on Vimeo.

I have a couple of Fly classics in my collection, but watching this really makes me want to get a few more. Still looking for a good deal on a 917 long-tail...

Newest Track: The Schweizering - Part Two

In planning, it was clear that rather than placing drivers at the inside of the "U" where they would just block each others' view, it was decidedto just "hang" the drivers station and the control PC from a steel support pole (already there) placed back far enough to give a good view of the track while still allowing drivers to move forward for marshalling. I'll run the cabling and wire-work either up and down across the ceiling or in a cable channel across the floor. The monitors for race control will be mounted just under the track surface, at the bottom of the "U" - and tilted slightly upwards - where I think they will fall into the drivers view a little better than if I was to hang them from the ceiling.

THE MEDIEVAL CITY - AFTER PAINTING THE CASTLE STRUCTURE AND WALLS.

It took a lot of trial-and-error when it came to getting the paint job on the castle and city walls just right. A combination of dark washed and light dry-brushing seems to have provided the right effect, and I an pretty happy so far. The castle sections are really the centerpiece of this old town - everything else kinda follows; The tower will get a shiny finial on top of it's verdigris-copper dome, and it also needs a good wash to simulate some corrosion. The rest of the town buildings will be a little lighter and brighter, with some hanging flower baskets and window boxes (this IS Switzerland, after all. I'm also working out how to light the buildings here as well, and am getting ready to start the stone ramp/bridge that heads up into the town.

THE MAIN STREET THROUGH THE CITY - TRACK FILLING AND PAINTING HAS BEGUN.

I've also altered the plan a little already. I needed to take a length out of the back straight in order to leave enough room for my track borders on each side of the room. Here is a revised diagram (below). The Curves are all R1s (17) and R2s (16) - I use them in different combinations to try and keep things interesting. On the diagram, the R1s have the dotted line - the R2s do not. (the diagram is from Ultimate Racer 3.0) I also use 22 full straights, 1 half straight and 3 double-length hump-back straights (normally used to build overpasses) for the rest. The diagram switches out a full for a half straight on the left side, just to keep the layout clearer.

THE REVISED TRACK PLAN (CLICK TO ENLARGE).

The curvy side at left gradually rises to just over a foot or so before heading back down through those esses. The "hump" tracks are used in an "up and up" fashion, heading up the hill climb, rather than in the normal "up and down" way. More on my progress later...

If You Look Close Enough, You Can See Slotcars in this Photo

I came across this, uh...interesting...bit -- courtesy of The Sun online. They delivered a nice video and slideshow featuring Page 3 beauties Sam and Mel, showing off Scalextric's Quantum of Solace race set. Though the set nor the photo feature are new, I hadn't seen them before, so I thought I'd post a photo here.

PHOTO CREDIT: thesun.co.uk.

To see the rest of the photo slide show, and an accompanying video - check it out here. Who says slot cars aren't sexy?