295 replies to this topic

[Cheater]

Thanks to Ron Hershman for posting these photos to Slotblog and for allowing us to create this reference.


The Queen 66


The Windsor 80


The Regal 90


The Royal 95


The Monarch 100


The Aristocrat 135


The Imperial 150


The King 155


The Sovereign 220


The Emperor 220

I can't read all of the design names and lengths, and am hoping Ron can supply the missing info. If so, I will update this post.

[Tom Thumb Hobbies]

Greg,

Most if not all of those pictures came from my stash of documents from our early days. One of our Ohio racers asked if he could make high quality digital scans of them. Just as soon as I can get them from the "vault" and he can scan them I will forward them to you. I hope to scan both sides so all the data is available.

I believe I also have Mila Miglia, Revell, and Strombecker. Would you be interested in them also?

[Ron Hershman]

Mike is correct... these are color copies of 1992 or so vintage when Mike's dad was kind enough to loan them to Ken MacDowell to be copied. I made/paid for a extra set at the time for my own stash.

The Emperor 220 pic came from somewhere else over the years. I do have a complete set of originals I found the other night looking for some stuff.

[idare2bdul]

Out of all those track designs I would never have guessed the King track would have become the standard over time. I remembered some in the picture but not all.

[Rick]

The cream always comes to the top...

[Mark Wampler]

I can't figure out why humps down the straight was to anyone's advantage. A real signature trait among American Tracks. The Monarch is my favorite.

[Cheater]

Most if not all of those pictures came from my stash of documents from our early days. One of our Ohio racers asked if he could make high quality digital scans of them. Just as soon as I can get them from the "vault" and he can scan them I will forward them to you. I hope to scan both sides so all the data is available.

I believe I also have Mila Miglia, Revell, and Strombecker. Would you be interested in them also?

Absolutely, Mike.

I think a reference thread with as many of the '60s track designs as we can collect will be of continuing interest to a great many people.

[Marty Stanley]

I can't figure out why humps down the straight was to anyone's advantage. A real signature trait among American Tracks. The Monarch is my favorite.

Mark,

I don't think the humps were put there for anyone's advantage - perhaps more of a disadvantage.

To me good racetrack design is very similar to good golf course design. If it were simple, it would not be a challenge and a lot of folks would not enjoy their time and come back, just to try to conquer the features that the designer put in to keep them from running flat out. The "Esses" and the humps or fall away straightaway are all little things that must be overcome. Elevation changes to do make a track interesting to drive, be it in 1/24 or 12 inches to the foot. I remember going up to Watkins Glen to watch the Can-Am cars - mostly to watch Mark Donohue's Lola - negotiate the fall away straight leading into the hard right turn. It was exciting.

Recently I've started to race at a facility in Holly Hill, FL - The Race Place. The track is rather unique and it has a road course that can be added or deleted from the track by means of some 'switching blocks'. The photo below shows most of the track:



Talk about a feature-filled short section of track! This seems to have it all. There are so many "blip and brake" sections in this road course that it really takes some time to learn. As you enter the "infield" you are greeted with a sharp left hander that leads into a punchable banked turn. That sure does provide you with a false sense of security! You can not slow down quick enough for the quick left hander that leads into the fall away straight away. If you take it easy through the banked turn, then you can set up for the fall away and then the sweeping "Esses". There are all sorts of places to make up time and also lose control of the car at the same time. The fall away straight that leads into the hard right hander is very reminiscent of what I saw in Watkins Glen many years ago. It is a track that offers you a challenge and is simply fun to drive.

Someday I'm going to get to Mike Swiss's place. I've read about his flat track and it looks like a driver's track!

Of all those listed by Cheater, just give me the 90 foot "Black" track - the one that is flat - except for the humps. My favorite track of all time.

[Tex]

That track looks like an attempt (and a good one!) to recreate Daytona. You can see that it can be configured as a tri-oval or include the infield. Even the entrance to the infield section is just past the S/F kink as at the real Daytona track.

And best of all... NO STINKIN' CHICANE!!! LOL!

[MG Brown]

That track looks like an attempt (and a good one!) to recreate Daytona.

Imagine that - being located so close to Daytona Beach and all.

[Rick]

From my recollection, the Windsor was 80 feet, I owned one with plain stamping on the bottom of the track sections, and the Regal was 90.

I don't think American made a poor track design in any of them. They fine tuned the red with the King. The purple was just too long, you could gear for the straight or the back half, but not both. The "eclair" was unique too, with two risers instead of an inclined plane.

The esses on the Windsor were tough, more difficult than the orange.

I have had the pleasure of owning an American yellow Windsor, a Hillclimb, A blue King.

I have never seen a Figure 8 or The 220 Emperor, but have the rest.

Was it 1990 Atlanta where they ran Eurosport on a Regal? I remember it being raced clockwise, up the straight towards the donut.

[Ron Hershman]

I have raced or ran on all of the designs except for the Emperor.

We had a 90' Windsor with 90 stamped on the bottom and we also had a 135' Orange with 135 stamped on the bottom. Weird for sure.

Yes, 1990 Nats we ran Euro Sports on the flat black Regal track going down the donut. I think Jon Laster won 1/32 and Gugu won 1/24 or maybe it was vice versa. LOL.

[Phil Irvin]

That track looks like an attempt (and a good one!) to recreate Daytona. You can see that it can be configured as a tri-oval or include the infield. Even the entrance to the infield section is just past the S/F kink as at the real Daytona track.

And best of all... NO STINKIN' CHICANE!!! LOL!

It is a direct/correct copy of the Daytona Speedway. I have raced there many times . Greg can even only change the inner 4 lanes to run the infield. That middle kink in the short straight can be a killer.

OL'FRTS RACIN TEAM
PHIL I.

[Mr Dynamic]

Thanks, Ron, for posting those pictures! At Bellflower Raceway in CA they had an Aristocrat Track. I really enjoyed that until 1994.

Would you let us know what was the first track at Tom Thumb? (I remember it as being orange?)

Thanks again!

Capt Zombie - out

[Ron Hershman]

If you're referring to Tom Thumb in Columbus, OH... they started with an American orange and yellow.

[Bob Campbell]

Does anyone have pictures of an American orange? I started on one of these and still like the layout!

Bob C.

[Ron Hershman]

Fifth picture down from the top.

[Mark Wampler]

Mark,

I don't think the humps were put there for anyone's advantage - perhaps more of a disadvantage.

The "Esses" and the humps or fall away straightaway are all little things that must be overcome.

The 'esses' were fun to negotiate and you can't punch the bank on the Monarch. Coming out of the bank has to be handled with care too as you can easily do yourself a wall blast at the base of the donut

I miss the Monarch. Black was a favorite lane. I did the fast time and most laps on black. One disadvantage is the little picket fence at the top of the donut. If you swung out too far you could catch a couple of those pickets and deslot yourself. Better to replace that section with plexiglass.

[Mark Wampler]

One other thing that was nice were those comfy stools. Got really spoiled. The wall was right behind the driver's stations. Just kick back, relax and turn some laps.

[Ron Hershman]

The 'esses' were fun to negotiate and you can't punch the bank on the Monarch. Coming out of the bank has to be handled with care too as you can easily do yourself a wall blast at the base of the donut

What class of car were you running that launched in the bank on a orange???

[Mark Wampler]

What class of car was you running that launched in the bank on a Orange???

Its how you came out of the bank. Now I can't remember how it was done, but you had to back off pretty fast. The bank was more of a blip and brake for the donut. Of course we were running old stuff. Today, it would be more negotiable. Last we were running some strange stuff. We took the womps to a whole new level. We're taking 1/24 scale champion chassis, some scratch built and shortening the wheelbase to womp specs, but running angle winders with some air control. Running some 15's and a few old NCC 20's, a couple of parallel wound Thorps. Some real hatchet jobs overall. The only rule we had far as motors was a maximum 2.2 amp draw, free wheeling. The American Power packs without batteries just couldn't take the hammering. Ah those were the days.

[Marty Stanley]

One other thing that was nice were those comfy stools. Got really spoiled. The wall was right behind the driver's stations. Just kick back, relax and turn some laps.

Mark,

I must agree with you on the stools. Having the racers sit during the race kept everyone out of each other's view. By sitting, everyone had to be back from the track as their knees were hitting the edge of the track while seated.

And the wall behind the driver's stand was just so comfy, especially for those endurance races.

Whatever happened to the stools anyhow?

[Ron Hershman]

Its how you came out of the bank. Now I can't remember how it was done, but you had to back off pretty fast. The bank was more of a blip and brake for the donut. Of course we were running old stuff. Today, it would be more negotiable. Last we were running some strange stuff. We took the womps to a whole new level. We're taking 1/24 scale champion chassis, some scratch built and shortening the wheelbase to womp specs, but running angle winders with some air control. Running some 15's and a few old NCC 20's, a couple of parallel wound Thorps. Some real hatchet jobs overall. The only rule we had far as motors was a maximum 2.2 amp draw, free wheeling. The American Power packs without batteries just couldn't take the hammering. Ah those were the days.

We raced a lot of 16D Flexis with the Parma Fiero and Vette GTP bodies then. It was wide open through the bank a blip or coast and turn ( depending on what lane you were on ) through the deadman/90 or more a 75 or something, the drive the donut up to the esses, go deep into the first s then drive it through.

With Wing cars, it was punched yellow, purple, and black from the top turn to the donut which was a quick blip and get through the esses as fast as you could without falling off. Red was the trickiest in the deadman and donut.

We had a net in the bank... not for launching cars, but for cars getting nerfed in the bank.

[Bob Campbell]

WE had a net in the bank..not for launching cars, but for cars getting nerfed in the bank.

I remember the bank being steeper on our orange. We had some group 7 cars launch in the bank now and then but it was mainly caused from nerfs.

At the end of the bank, in the corner was a pop machine that we used to have cars land on top of. When open cars started using steel center sections we had a few cars fly off and stick into the sheet rock!

Fun times!

Bob C.

[Mark Wampler]

Yeah, the track in Pismo Beach with the Monarch closed down in '88. So, from my recollection, we didn't get into the mega fast machines. The fastest we got into were the Koford feather can 15's before the 12's became popular. We also had a net. Nerfing was just too easy with the tight clearance between lanes. It seems to me that to run real fast wing cars, you could only run four lanes instead of 8. Anyway to upgrade to batteries and the replace the old American lap counter, etc, it was not very practical at the time. It would be perfect for scale racing w/ Falcons and PS mini motors.

Far as the stools, those went out with the American Tracks and the 60's sad to say!