I Don't Run or Race Formula 1...So The Artins Are Moving On.

These two Artin Formula 1 cars have been among the first cars I ever owned. Certainly not the fastest cars, with their modest motor and light magnet, they were still dependable runners, regularly drifting around the curves--even though real F1 cars don't do that. It's not that I don't like F1 cars, it's just that I have my hands full collecting endurance racers and can't afford to add another category to my "must have" list. As a result, these have been posted on eBay in the hopes of collecting a few bucks to go toward something I really want.

Both cars are in excellent shape; they have had little track time and should run fine - especially with some light scuffing/sanding of the original tires. Probably best for providing new racers a decent runner in the event that you don't want to let them use one of your more expensive cars. If you want to take a look, the listings are here:

Artin 1:32 Formula 1 No. 8 (Mercedes)

Artin 1:32 Formula 1 No. 1 (Ferrari)

Cleveland Slot Car Show: Big Crowds...Old Crowds...and a Nice Haul.

 As long as I've collected slot cars, I've never been to a slot car show...so I was keen to drive up toward Cleveland this past weekend to check out the Cleveland Slot Car Show. Organized by the Model Motoring Club, the show primarily features HO stuff - but there was plenty of eye candy for 1:32 fans like me, and I managed to pick up some nice cars at some nice prices.

I was surprised how many were in attendance, as the main parking lot at the Quality Inn was completely full. There was a large overflow lot on the south side of the hotel, and it was almost full as well. I paid my $5 admission fee (also gets you a raffle ticket) and entered the main hall, which was full of people carefully moving up and down the aisles, trying to keep out of each other's way and scrutinizing all the cool stuff that was for sale. Local retailer Bad L's Hobby had some nice 1:32 cars available, and I snatched up a 5th Scalextric Mini for my collection. I don't normally buy that type of car, but they are so much fun to drive that I have wanted to get one for every member of the family.

There was a dealer at the back of the hall that really caught my eye - with a big selection of classic Fly, Slot.It, Ninco, SCX and Scalextric cars - as well as some collector special editions and other odd-and-ends, like those over-scale Vanquish cars. Discounts on purchases of 2 were eagerly applied and a LOT of people were sorting through what was available. My last purchase was an orange Carrera Hemi Cuda, that though gently used, was about half the price you'd find for a similar car on eBay. Finally, that GTO I was given as a gift many years ago has something to race against!

As I left, I scanned the crowd and one thing was clearly evident: this hobby is aging, for sure. I'm certainly no young buck, but the vast majority of the people here were males between 55-70+ years old. In such close quarters, I reflected for a brief moment that it was probably a good place to catch a case of COVID...but not hearing an excess of coughing, hacking or other old man sounds, I happily carried on. When I got out to the parking lot, some guys had a grill set up behind their pickup and were looking over their purchases and cooking up some lunch, like they were in the Muny lot before a Browns game (without the drunkeness or fighting). All in all, it was a fun time and definitely worth the drive.

Slot Journal Now has a Store with Cool Gear!

It's just a start, but Slot Journal has just set up a new shop where you can get some cool gear to express your love for the hobby. For now, the designs feature our SLOT Journal logo on T-shirts and other apparel, drinkware and various cool items. You'll find a link to the store at the top of our web pages.

As time goes on, we'll be adding some additional gear, with slick slot car-themed designs on the back of Tees and some other ideas that we're coming up with. We've chosen Zazzle as out supplier since we've had good experiences with them in terms of quality and delivery.

Of course, we developed the store mostly for fun--not to make money. We plan on getting some of these items for our own use and also to have some things available as give-aways and prizes. So be sure to check the stuff out and if so moved, get yourself something. It's a great way to let others know that you're serious about slot cars!

This Has Got to be a World-Record-Size Home Track

 I'm sure a lot of people share one of my wife's hobbies - scanning Zillow to look at people's houses and seeing what today's dollar will buy in various parts of the country. We're not planning to move anytime soon ourselves, but it's always fun to think about what it might be like to live somewhere else or have a vacation home. So, the other day, when she mentioned that she had come across a house not far from us that had 8 slot car tracks I knew I had to check out that listing. What she really meant was that it was not 8 separate tracks, but a SINGLE 8-LANE HOME TRACK.

Not that there's much of a difference. The track - which appears to be located in the basement - has to be the biggest track that I have ever seen in a house. Not that it's really a home track...it appears to be a huge commercial track that someone managed to cram inside their house. Cram might not be accurate, though, since it appears that there is room to spare around this behemoth.

Someone on my Facebook page said they think this track may have once been located at a commercial shop in Elyria, Ohio - which may be possible, that's only about 45 miles away. In any case, this is certainly impressive. Did I mention the house also has an indoor pool? For over a million dollars, it should. Definitely out of my price range...

The listing can be found HERE.

Lamborghini and Audi Roll into the Slot Car Garage

 Some new cars keep trickling into the garage, as I continue to scour eBay for the occasional good deal. While prices can sometimes be crazy, I've managed to find some new old stock or nearly-new cars at decent price. One example is this Lamborghini Huracan from Carrera.

I really like the yellow and blue livery on this one, and the white wheels really make it pop (did I ever mention that I really don't like black wheels on race cars?) I already had one other Huracan in the collection, but this one was hard to resist. The other new car to be added was an Avant Slot Audi R10.

I already have two other R10s in the garage, but I have been looking for this Kolles livery for a while; every now and then one becomes available and I was able to snatch this one up. I was surprised how light and thin the body looks on this as opposed to most manufacturers' cars, although I have not taken it apart for a closer look yet.

To Vid or Not to Vid? That is The Question.

I’ve talked before about the explosion of slot car video content on YouTube recently, and I suppose it’s only natural to consider jumping into the pool myself to test the waters. Just last week, Rahul and his cohorts on the weekly ConquestRacing Club live stream took an episode to consider why more people should start broadcasting videos and discuss how to get started.

I've had fun participating in live streams and online chats like the Worldwide Slot Car Chat.

First, let me say that I think it’s great that there’s so much content available out there. If someone is new to the hobby, they will find a lot of helpful information, and overall, a very positive attitude about the various ways people can enjoy slot cars. “Find your own way” seems to be the prevailing attitude today, and that’s a healthy thing – because it is sometimes possible to get bad advice, or advice based on someone else’s ideas of how one should pursue the hobby. Being open to learning or hearing different viewpoints is something to be encouraged, yet we don’t want to be lemmings, either – jumping headfirst into every trend or product that‘s the “flavor of the week.”

So, sure – I’ve considered adding original videos to my YouTube Channel. I probably would not do too many live streams, as I like to post videos that people can watch on their schedule, not mine. Besides, there are already so many live streams each week to help build community. Even posting every week is probably not something I can commit to -- lots of other slot car YouTubers post once or twice a month, and that seems reasonable. After 20+ years in the hobby, I know firsthand it’s easy to get burnt out after periods of intense activity, and I’d like to avoid that.

Like Dirty Harry said: “A man’s got to know his limitations.”

So it seems the first thing is to find a niche – and I think I can sort that out. Definitely don’t want to cover the same ground everybody else is staking out, so there won’t be a lot of unboxings (at least not of the same car that everybody else is showing) or news (I let people like Dave Kennedy handle that) or in-depth technical stuff. I’m not a hardcore racer, but I do like to tune cars and have a few build projects on the shelf. Scenery is also big for me – and I think I can offer some interesting content there. By nature, I can be a contrarian, so don’t expect me to follow every trend or tired old saw that people insist you MUST comply with. I'm also a cheapskate, and I like to show you ways to save some money.

Of course, a big chunk of content will include a step-by-step the rebuilding of my next slot car track, The Schweizering, which I hope to get started on - as soon as I can get the hibiscus plants out of my allotted basement space and into the garden. I also need to move some other items to the garage.

For now, I’m working out my video space and getting the technical aspects together. I think I have some decent cameras and mics to make it work. Lighting is also a consideration. Just figuring out how to get it all together is the big job. But it will happen.