138 replies to this topic

[Champion 507]

Gentlemen:

Wow! Great information! Thank you all!

Back in 1966, I remember my local track in Huntsville, AL telling me NOT to rezap Mabuchi magnets. But every time I turned around, I read where Tom Malone of Car Model Magazine said TO rezap 'em. I was always confused by that. It did seem that one set I had rezapped did, indeed, "feel" weaker, but of course I had no equipment to provide any readings. I thought it just might have been a poor zapping job or a poor zapper. They just "felt" weaker.

Now 40+ years later to find out what my track told me what was "right on", is pretty special. I have a couple sets of NOS 16D Tradeship mags for future motor projects that I will NOT have zapped.

Soon, I hope to be sharing some Champion 507 and 517 builds and rebuilds. I'm no Havlicek, but I have fun at it.

Thanks again, guys!

[Champion 507]

Hworth08 QUOTE:

"Monty also mentioned cog, or the "clicking" feel when you rotate the arm by hand from one pole to another. The post is 5 or 6 years old somewhere on OWH and I've forgotten most of it but the amount of cog often relates to the "harshness" of motor".

* * * *

I talked to the guy at PRI about a year ago and told him that I noticed that the magnets found in the current Parma Deathstars don't feel as "thumpy" when you turn the arm by hand as they did several years ago. He explained that "thumpy" magnets doesn't mean they're strong magnets. He said the current EPX mags that Parma is now using are stronger than the ones from several years ago.

Back in '67 my buddies and I raced at a place that had a Stan Engleman 220. Off the track, when we were "bench racing" it was "braggin rights" to see whose car had the "thumpiest" magnets by hand turning the rear wheels of the car.

[dc-65x]

I still have to paint the body but at least I procrastinated long enough that now I'll probably have to wait until next weekend .

I did paint the driver but first I had to cut the bottom third of him off so it would clear the motor. This left me nowhere to glue the driver to the interior. There is also a "sweet spot" for the interior and driver to be when the body is installed. This spot doesn't put any pressure on the motor and chassis.

So, I came up with this little post glued to the bottom of the steering wheel and a slot in the interior:



With the body mounted and the drop arm off the chassis I should be able to get the interior in its happy place and get some tape on it. Then slide the driver until he says he's happy and put some epoxy on that post.

Onward to airbrush land...

[Toremeister]

Way Sano Dc 65x ! We all appreciate your efforts to share your re-creationes! I got 4th place in that race but would have made the podium iffn that gosh darn Mr.P had'nt nerfed me in the bank !

[TSR]

Bruce Paschal was there?

[dc-65x]

Thanks Tore . That means a lot to me especially coming from guys who were there like you and Fred.

I don't know if PdL was there in 1966 . But he might have been giving you car "negative waves" from afar as it entered that bank .

[TSR]

Far away in Gay Paree, I had a voodoo doll in the shape of a blond Swede boy holding a Cox controller. I planted the needles at the perfect time of the night.
Greenwich mean time of course.

[dc-65x]

Hey Jairus and Noose, I painted something . When I paint I feel like I trying to salvage the body from one operation to the next . I've lucked out on this one so far though .

All the holes are drilled for the roll bar, stacks and pipes. The body is completely ready to go except for paint:



I'm using a vintage Lancer Butyrate body and Testors plastic model paint. I have a couple of these Lotussss....Loti........oh well, bodies. This one is the most yellowed. It just doesn't matter with a green and yellow paint scheme. The body is washed with lemon dish soap, dried and scuffed up with a Scotch Brite Pad:





Since I'm no painter, the last time I tried to lay a stripe it ended up crooked . So this time, after taping the windscreen, I tired laying down a piece of Pactra RC striping tape on the outside of the body as a guide:



That really helped this lamo painter . I blew the green on and peeled off the stripe tape. So far, so good:



Flat yellow was next and BAM!.....a British Racing Green Lotus with a yellow stripe:



If I was smart (and no one has ever accused me of that) I'd wait a week for the enamel to dry.............

Onward

[Tex]

Aw, yeah! It's comin' together like $240 of pudding! Aw, yeah!

[havlicek]

It sure is lookin' purdy Rick. The slight yellowing of the windscreen only adds to the vintage vibe from where I'm sitting and I can just see people doing recreations trying to figure out how to make a perfectly clear body appear "aged". Now that I think of it, I bet people have tried

-john

[flarimer]

...this just gets better and better. Looking forward to seeing more.

fL

[dc-65x]

Thanks guys . It was so tempting to start assembling the thing. Thankfully, I set it aside for the slow drying enamel to cure. Next weekend I hope to finish her off............

[Rick]

Gentlemen, I don't think we should let him off so easy. If he has a week for paint drying, he could be bending up wire and showing us the next masterpiece in the series......................

[Duffy]

Awwww guys, give 'im a rest. I'll step up, & make my "Lost Cause" Lotus 11! --As soon as I can figure out how to squeeze my R-Geo jig down to freekin' 2.300" track...

Duffy

[dc-65x]

I love Lotus 11's

[dc-65x]

......I approached this build as I would have after reading the race report back in 1966. I picked the features I liked from the cars pictured and went to town........

...........In the future, with Fred's help, perhaps we could build what I call a "Magazine Car". That is, as exact a replica of his pictured racer as possible...........

With the above in mind here is my finished "Shop Car" inspired by Fred Larimer's beautiful original Team Russkit Pro Racer:



I tried to build this car as I would have in 1966 after reading the race report. I left off the drivers shoulder belts because the R&C Concourse judge said to . Besides, all my small paint brushes were shaking like crazy :





Hmmmmmmmmmm, aluminum pipes and stacks:





In my experience "fly weight" cars with rewound motors, today’s sticky tires and spray glued tracks have handling problems. So, I'm using a harder compound Alpha Supernatural tire. I've left them exposed to the air for 3 weeks to harden them even more. I'm also adding a huge hunk of 1/16" thick lead to the drop arm. In fact I might have to stack another piece on top of that we'll see:





"What you say! That not Korrect!" Well, yes, a brass guide weight was often used but that's just not enough weight. Mike Steube did use lead in the 4th R&C race:



Anyway, I like the look of a 3 to 6 rail tapered drop arm with a hunk of lead rather that a 12 rail, parallel job. To each his own :





Thanks for looking

Onward

[Rick]

WOW

Clap clap clap clap clap clap clap clap clap Clap clap clap clap clap clap clap clap clClap clap clap clap clap clap clap clap clap Clap clap clap clap clap clap clap clap clap...................

[Jairus]

Very nice scooter!




Hey, you painted the pin heads.... great touch.

[dc-65x]

Thanks Rick

........Hey, you painted the pin heads.... great touch.

Hey Jairus, I have to... . If I don't Al Penrose will yell at me . Actually, he suggested I paint them on that Cooper GP I did and I like the look too.

Thanks Al

[Hworth08]

Pretty, pretty, pretty! Even if the injector tubes are gonna make the engine pop and sputter! Just joking, now you've gotten me to detailing the injectors and bigger does look better!

Performance wise, there's a good chance that putting the lead weight as far foward as possible is best. Check Tore's chassis in the 5th Rod & Custom race, his lead is very close to the guide. And that track really tested the chassis.

Again, a mighty nice car! Waiting for test results!

[dc-65x]

Thanks Don. I'll cut out a piece of lead for the front of the drop arm too and fool around with them at the track. Maybe adding to the front would be better than stacking them in back.

Rick

[havlicek]

Another beauty Rick! It seems a shame to stuff all that lead on there, but with such a light chassis and that rewound Russkit I'm sure it will come in handy I'll also be looking forward to hearing how it goes!

-john

[Jairus]

Wonder if we can get more droparms made like this:

[Hworth08]

Well Jairus, that's about as far foward as a person can get the lead!

I remember using the pyramid shaped guide holder and then using a 6 gram brass weight on top of the guide. Even today a Cheetah 7 frame often responds to lead placed as close to the guide as possible.

Rick, where can a person find the 1/16th lead sheets?

[dc-65x]

Hi Don,

I got the 1/16" thick lead Smallparts.com but they have discontinued it . Lucky Bob's slot car parts has it with adhesive on one side which I'd have to remove for this application. I guess we'll have to Google a new source.

Rick