Our September AFX Formula One Championship race was the final instalment of a non-stop summer at the Barn. Seven Wednesdays and a Saturday since the start of July have certainly kept us all entertained.

   

We've seen some cross-over tracks at our HO races this season and this month a classic WHO Mod layout dropped into F1. Never an easy build, this one is guaranteed to provide drama for the fastest class, but how would the F1 cars manage with the challenging layout and the bus stop chicane?

Over to Gareth for the race report...

Her at the museum is a 1/32nd scale Eldon demolition set MIB. There are 2 versions of this set. This is the one that is a little bit harder to come by. It has the blue and white cars instead of the more common red and yellow cars. If you are not familiar whit this set the cars can crash into each other and the bumpers and roof fly off. We have both versions here at the museum.Marx was going to make a similar set but only got as far as making a prototype which we also have here at the slot car museum.
       

New to the slot car museum is an HO scale Pontiac Bonneville convertible made by Marusan of Japan. They also made the bodies for Atlas. This car differs from the Atlas version by the chassis and the boot is not black. We also have another one which is a pale yellow color. These are some what hard to find. We have a large Marusan collection here at the museum so come and visit !                    

This was a car of my childhood, obviously not as prestigious as the MGB or MG Midget, but it was perhaps a car that I wished my dad would have bought. A kind of small standard "British Leyland" family car with a tuned up motor in which would have impressed my school mates at the time.  Sadly most of these would have rusted away into oblivion before I got my driving license. But it left it's mark in my mind.

So as the opportunity has arrived to make a small Saloon car, I have bought a Airfix kit of the model and a Amato chassis to fit it.
Now the Rally car portrayed on the box is a rather boring looking post box red colour below.
   

But I remember the car I adored in my youth was this kind of 2 tone version with green upper and off white (Old English White) lower body colours. It was quite rare in those day to have 2 tone colours on the body, as the most popular colour of the basic family saloon in the late 50's was still black, and it was only at the beginning of the 60's that basic family car colours became more varied.  And 2 tone was generally limited to more luxurios level models.

So perhaps I can reproduce this old childhood dream and own one (well OK a slot car version) 
   

Hello chaps!
Alright, a few updates since my last post.
The track now has a computer plumbed in, which is nicely Bluetoothed up to the valve amp and pair of Denon speakers behind it:



Additionally, I added *another* carousel:



Also, the LEGO train got a loop at one end, and is about to get another at the opposite end - as soon as the track is delivered:





And finally, the cut-with-a-breadknife single lane sections are in place, and working a treat:




Here's an overhead shot of how it currently is..........for now.....bwhahahahaha!

I'm in the process of building (rebuilding?) my new track. When I got back into slot cars I bought a bunch of Scalextric classic track and cars just to get things going. I built a 3 section modular track that had three 4'x8' table that had folding legs so I could take them apart and fold them up and stack them against the wall in the garage so we could get the cars and my bike back in there.

That got to be too much of a pain in the butt and I also liked the idea of digital racing where you could have more than one car on a lane, that way more people (read grandkids) could race. So I sold the classic track and was able to buy a bunch of Scalextric digital stuff. I built a 16' x 7' table, with fold up legs that were curved on one end so I could tilt the table up against the wall and get the cars back in the garage. I messed with it a few times just to see if it worked but never got to finish it because 3 more grandkids came along and . . . well you know how it goes.

Lately I decided to get back to the track (less babysitting) but found that my 78 year old body was having some difficulty lifting the track to tilt it onto its side against the wall. It's all 2x4s, OSB and Plywood, plus the track pieces. So I thought building one out of galvanized steel studs would be lighter, which it is. Then someone one on another forum suggested I go to a routed track using MDF. So I figured I'd give it a try. I found a few threads on how to insert the Scalextic lane change and pit lane sections into the MDF track (some were less complicated than others) so I figured I'd give it a try.

I've got the steel stud frame about worked out and I'll be covering it, top and bottom with 1/4" plywood and using 1/2" MDF for the track. I've been thinking about the electrical and was wondering about being able to use the variable voltage AC to DC power supplies I bought for the old analog track. I've been searching for threads on using those with the digital power supplies but can't find anything (probably my lousy search terms). I understand that the digital systems supply full power to the track and the car's power is controlled by chips (or some electronic do dad in the car/controller). So do I even need the aftermarket power supply? The other question I had was about power taps. On my analog track I had a bunch of them. Do I need them on the digital track? If so are they run the same way as the analog track?

Thanks for any assistance anyone can give.

Joe

Hello everybody,
If you are a WWSCC listener you will have heard north Americans talk about cleaning tracks using a "swiffer" cloth. Has anyone found the UK equivalent?
I have spent a lot of time in Tesco cleaner aisles but not found what looks like the same thing. Have seen Swiffer cloths and wands on Amazon but would appreciate a steer from anyone who has actually bought the UK equivalent. 

Leo

I am in the UK. I am searching around and I am having trouble finding what NEW IN SHRINK stuff is for sale and where I can get it. Could someone please help with that? I am in deepest darkest Wiltshire, so about a million miles from anywhere, but I do not mind buying online providing the price is good.

I was looking for the AFX 1:64 stuff, but cannot find anything new in the UK. Space is an issue, I am in a small bungalow.

I was looking for the Carrera 1:43 stuff as they say even though it is bigger it takes up roughly the same space as AFX. BUT, I cannot find any of that in the UK new in shrink.

If I was going to go for Carrera 1:43, do you have to buy a track pack(s) and then buy cars and controls separately? Are there any all-in-one boxes.

The new Carrera Hybrid stuff looks good, but it appears to need both racers having one of them new fangled smart-phone thingies. Is there any chance in the future that Carrera could do a non smart phone version for people who are 'smart' enough not to have bought into the smart-phone craze?

The one that looks the ****best**** to me by a mile is the Carrera 1:32. It looks fantastic, but after having seeing some videos, I would have to build another wing to my bungalow. The neighbours are not going to be happy about that, as their garage next to us will have to come a cropper.

One thing I should add, is we not be having a fixed build if that is important. We will be putting it up and packing it away, every time we play.

As for style, I think I would like some sort of porshe or posh car, or touring car, or NASCAR, that kind of style. Are there any box sets with that?

So, any advice, especially where to get this stuff in the UK at a decent price will be very helpful. Are there any shops in the UK that sell AFX, Carrera or Scalectrix?

Hi All, I have a wooden track for 1/32 scale for Scalextric or metal chassis with sponge tyres work great.
Track is in sections so can be taken down and rebuilt for next meeting about an hour with 3 or 4 people or best left up if you have the space.
Comes with 3 power supplies 1 for each lane and 3 controller plugs 3 Pin
we are on Ebay tel 07934894112 text or phone

Here is a  1/24th scale Buick Wildcat made by Hasegawa of Japan.