[A62213]

Morning,

I would like some feedback on a track I’m planing to have permanently set up. 

Most likely I would be me and my kids that are using the track. Scenery is important and so is the flow. Don’t like the “lets put all the track we can fit in the area” thing. 

I have 420cm x 120cm to work with.

[woodcote]

That’s a fabulous digital layout! I like the big radius turns; the pit lane that will comfortably take six cars; the well-placed lane changers that will allow you to follow the (inside) racing line and also allow sufficient overtaking opportunities; plus it looks aesthetically very pleasing and has room for some buildings and scenery.

I am pretty sure you are planning to use ARC Pro? I'm a big fan of ARC Pro, but there are a few quirks which impact on track design and your purchasing timeframe...

Firstly, accurate lap counting requires careful positioning of the powerbase. The best place to put the ARC Pro powerbase is at the end of the straight, after the pit exit. This means the cars are in a deceleration zone, so the guide is deep in the slot (not lifting on acceleration) and triggers the optical sensor to indicate a car has crossed the line. The car will also be straight on the track for the LED to line up with the second sensor that determines which car has crossed the line. The issue with having the sensors just after a corner is that cars can get a bit sideways - the first sensor is triggered, but the LED does not line up with the second sensor, so the lap is not counted. Placement solves this issue - which is common to all digital lap counters.

An issue specific to ARC Pro is that pressing the lane change button as you cross the sensors can cause a lap to be missed. This means placing the powerbase away from lane changers (including the pit entry). Scalextric have been working on a fix and I understand there will be an improved version of the powerbase in the new ARC Pro 24 hour Le Mans set (C1404) due to arrive next month. It might be worth waiting for this set to be the basis of your track?

The final two things about the powerbase is that 1) cars must cross right to left (with the ARC Pro signage facing you) in order to count laps and 2) the powerbase must be positioned outside of the pit lane, otherwise a trip to the pits will by-pass the sensors and you will be penalised a lap.

So what does that mean practically for your layout design? As I said, I would put the powerbase at the end of the straight, moving the pit entry to half a straight from the corner (and putting the starting grid between pit entry and pit exit) which means losing half a straight from the pit length, but that's an okay compromise. It will mean you need to come round that last corner a bit slower to line up with the pit entry sensors, but that's something you will learn to do! Too fast and you miss the pit. You will also learn to leave the pit slowly to make sure you trigger the lap on the powerbase. Too fast and you will either de-slot or be too sideways for the sensor. That's all part of the game play and does mimic real racing where pit stop errors lose races.

The only other comments I have are about the elevations. I love elevations! However, we've come to realise with digital tracks that the lane changers and pit lanes need to be as flat as possible to function correctly. That should be manageable on your design - it might mean dipping down after the main straight and going under the pit lane (to be level for that first lane changer) and then sweeping up and over for the second fly-over. That could be a big elevation change, but will look magnificent with the wide-radius sweep. Make sure that second lane changer on the overpass is also as flat as possible. Supporting the full length of the lane changer with a rigid piece of board will do the job perfectly.

Elevation changes do impact on the low-speed calibration in the ARC app which is important for some of the simulations. The calibration is a constant low speed that comes into play when you run out of fuel, have a tyre blow-out, one of the random incidents (eg engine problems), weather changes or the Arcade mode. What that means is that you have to set the low speed for the uphill section and so the downhill and flat sections might be quite fast. In my mind, it's not a huge deal - it will be how it is for your track! Another issue will be the Pace Car function, which also runs on a constant speed. As you have no very tight Radius One corners in the layout, it shouldn't be too much of an issue. If you choose to use pace cars, they will just need careful calibration so they get up the hill, but don't spin out on the tightest corners. I am going to start looking at these features in my ARC Pro app thread as soon as I have time: https://slotracer.online/community/showt...hp?tid=181

I hope that all helps - it turned out a much longer reply than planned

[JasonB]

The first part of the layout (going to the left from the pits) looks great, with some fast, flowing corners. Turns 1, 2 & 3 look really good to me.

But personally I'd be tempted to do a little more work on the sections over on the right. The second loop obviously takes you out further than 1.2m, so I'm guessing you've got an L shape. But that loop prevents the track from having equal lane lengths, and also has a corner under the bridge, which might cause problems.

[A62213]

@Woodcote - thanks alot for your reply. Im using the Arc Pro PB, and allready got it - and bought the missing track i need for the layout showed. Havnt been able to test the right side of the plan yet, as i havnt got the needed track. 

The track will be under a 6mm MDF all the way around, supported with a wood frame. The XLC will be flat.

So i need the PB to be at the end of the straight, right after the pit ends? Good to know 

@JasonB - thanks, i like the first turns also - but have a bit of a hard time figuring out what to do about the right side. If I want the long straight i need the 2nd overpass.  Yes, it is L sharped where the last part is 220cm wide.

Tried a completely new layout, but... i dont really know... im not a big fan of to much track clusted in.

[woodcote]

For a digital track, I prefer your first instincts of a flowing layout. My preference for digital is a reasonably straight-forward track to drive so you can focus on the digital strategy - overtaking, fuel & tyre simulations etc and pitstops. I also find that more side-by-side action is possible with wide radius pieces and a flowing track, which is really thrilling. And newbies can also enjoy their first tastes of racing, rather than getting frustrated with crashing all the time on tight corners or get overwhelmed with having a difficult track, overtaking, the race screen, pitstops and so on...

I do agree with Jason and you about the right end of the layout. I do really like the digital lane-change flow (and pit access) of how you have it now, but there could be difficulties with cars de-slotting under the bridge. One thing might be to lose the S-bend and ensure any scenics allow cars to crash and leave the track (ie a good border) and also really good access to retrieve cars. If this section will be against a wall, that could be tricky.

An alternative would be to ditch the bridge, bring the curve top right into a straight, paralle(-ish) to the edge of the table, which you could still make visually striking with some elevation sloping down to the corner. The lane-changer could be at the end of that straight. Something like this maybe?

   

However, it may be possible to tweak your current plan (with the bridge) so that the bridge crosses the main straight further to the left. That would mean tightening the curve top right a little. For a digital layout, I think that would be preferable. You might have the track to try out both configurations? The crucial thing with any track build, in my opinion, is to build, test and tweak it before committing fully to the benchwork and scenics.

Oh, and the powebase doesn't have to be immediately after pit-out. A half straight would certainly help the cars get lined-up for the lap sensors after exiting the pit lane - if you have space. Everything is a compromise...

[CMOTD]

You may find this thread helpful when planning your track. LINK

The good thing about plastic track is that you can try out different designs before making a final decision. Track layouts that look good on paper can often be a nightmare to drive so set it up and play on it for a while before committing to a permanent set up.

[A62213]

Tried to ditch the 2nd flyover...

I kinda like the last one, but think the pit entry is going to be alitte of a hassle with a r2 just before.

[A62213]

Cant really focus on work... geeez...

Made the turn better in the topright corner and removed 1 of the xlc. 

Compromise of this is a shorter pitlane. We would never be racing more then 3 cars at a time.

[Scuderia_Turini]

Hello A62213,
I don't see anyone mentioning marshaling or car recovery. With youngsters involved there is likely to be lots of de-slotting so need to be able to reach across the track to put cars back on. The first design looks like reach may be challenging. A long straight fills the "Need For Speed" that youngsters enjoy and older folks finger gets a brief rest... so good to keep that.

Leo

[A62213]

Hello A62213,
I don't see anyone mentioning marshaling or car recovery. With youngsters involved there is likely to be lots of de-slotting so need to be able to reach across the track to put cars back on. The first design looks like reach may be challenging. A long straight fills the "Need For Speed" that youngsters enjoy and older folks finger gets a brief rest... so good to keep that.

Leo

Hey Leo,

No matter what design i go for, the upright corner will be hard to marshall. I think the cars for my kids will be turned down, havnt found out yet to do that though.