1275 replies to this topic

[Pablo]

we accept him we accept him, one of us

[Gator Bob]

Guys,

......... I can't seem to put it down, and keep having to give the arm a little turn just to feel it resisting. Nice.

I seem to have that same addiction for nearly 50 years.

"Hello, HELLO, I'm back from the store....Ahhh Geez Bob .... you were spinning that same motor when I left 2 hours ago"
"Hon, check it out....it feels way better with the pinion on it....wanna feel it now?" _{???she thought it was the same motor}
"No........ "

[havlicek]

Glad it got there safe and sound Al...and you're most welcome

-john

[MantaRay]

I went back to re read the rules................The last one is still the best...........Thanks Jairus

We are on the honor system here somewhat, but... you guys are the biggest innovators in slot-dom that I have ever seen and someone had to come up with a system to keep you nut cases in-check. Therefore the entrants themselves now become the watchdogs.

[draggon]

Guys,

I could have done this by PM to John, but thought it'd be nice to announce publicly that my motor arrived today, and what a tidy little thing it is too. I can't seem to put it down, and keep having to give the arm a little turn just to feel it resisting. Nice.

Thats pretty funny. I did the exact thing myself when John's bullet arrived!

[One27ray]

Ok, I'm convinced... John my motor need help !!! I would PM you but, I still havn't figure out how to do that

[Mark Johnson]

Could I have #3 please if it's not taken .
Mark

[draggon]

Sorry Mark, I took it

[Jairus]

Mark, Check Post #5 for the list of names and numbers that have been so far reserved.

[havlicek]

Ok, I'm convinced... John my motor need help !!! I would PM you but, I still havn't figure out how to do that

Hi Ray,

I would be glad to help if I can. I'm not sure what you mean by "needs help", but I can do a pretty good job of rebuilding your motor...winding a new arm, or maybe just cleaning it up and resetting the tolerances depending on what it needs. The PM thing is EZ...just click on the person's screen name and you'll go to their page where there is an option to send them a message in the upper right hand corner.

-john

PS I'm not at all sure that some of the really hot motors people are considering for this race are the way to go Ray. If your motor is a "middle of the road" (somewhere near G20-ish) performer, it might not need help. I'm not a racer and never was one either, but the big wire glorious amp-sucking light-dimmers with #24 or #25 arms in them don't seem good candidates for lasting more than a race without a tear-down. Also, those wonderful beasts did so well in relatively heavy chassis with all kinds of pan (and other!) movement...not what's going on here. Later on, as cars got lighter and lighter (and lighter and lighter!), they sprouted all kinds of air-control devices to help keep all that horsepower on the track. Even if people built #25 motors that could stand up to a couple of races without a tear-down in between, it's hard to imagine those things being easy to drive in such a basic chassis as these and with no wings, diaplanes or whatever else.

The real race guys with experience might offer the best advice (unless they want to keep it to themselves for an edge!), but after having done a little experimenting, I think somewhere around a #27S or a #28S in a solid setup should be a real hoot to drive in this thing. It's possible that a #26 will work, but even these start to get into the 3-4 amp range. Maybe others can chime in who have race experience...better yet...race experience from the period. Obviously Philippe has deep knowledge in the area from personal experience and could probably make a very educated guess about how to proceed. There are others here as well, but maybe some of those are planning to run in this thing and want to play their cards close to their chest.

PPS It would also be helpful if you said what motor you presently have to run. Like I said above, maybe it really doesn't "need help"?

-john

[One27ray]

John,
Thanks for your response, hopefully I sent you a PM . I've seen a lot of your excellent work here and sense I don't know enough about motors, I was hoping to send it your way for some TLC, I'm looking for something that will last the mini-series , thanks for the info.
Ray

[Jairus]

Update on my entry:
Just got back from the track. Not happy with the changes I made to the car. Best I could run was a 6.2, while before the changes I managed a 5.6. Chassis changes were good as the car does handle better, but the motor I really screwed up by changing the arm over to a vintage #26s THORP. I also lowered the gear ratio which didn't seem to help this arm either. Ran much better at the higher ratio with the RehCo #24 arm and so that is going back in before I hit the track again on Friday while retaining the 4:1 ratio. Regardless what John says, I think ultimate power is what is needed here. (All due respect to Mr. Havlicek of course.)
Also thinking about converting the oilites over to ball bearings since that seems to be what a few of you other guys are doing.

[havlicek]

Hi Jairus,

No worries buddy...like I said, I was never a racer so what you're finding out is helpful. Since none of the old pros is chiming in here (dang it...the old slot car secrecy thing has reared it's ugly head again after all these years!), you're going to be one of my best (only!) sources of info. Maybe I'll just wind myself up a #23, cut away most of a can for cooling and get some hefty magnets and throw all caution to the wind!

-john

[MantaRay]

Jairus, How does the car handle in the deadman, finger, 90 , Donut and the lead-on? That's where the Proxy drivers are going to have to be able to drive the car and keep it on. Is that beauty you built "hooked up"?
Thanks for the report

Ps I know you are not testing on a king....

[Jairus]

Ray, Yeah, that is the biggest problem I am having during the testing is finding a good combination on THIS track that can really corner and still run well on the King. In other-words, if it's borderline on this track it'll be great on the King!

The car has no problems with traction and there's no wheel chatter so I got the tires nailed with JK natural rubber (3/4"w). I am at 100 grams dead and it seems to take the corners just fine, but was really down on power... A LOT, and got uncomfortably warm besides! Could be the vintage arm was bad. I found a couple more old arms, including a gp20 that I'll pop in later. For now the #24 is back in.
But ultimately, once I find a good combination on this track the car gets sent to Bryan for testing on the King at B.P. just like I sent the Mule in Jan.

[Gator Bob]

This race will be a handling race, the brute HP will get ya down the straight but wear tires down in the first race. You might be finding the 24 faster and maybe easier to drive because it is bogged down based on the fact with in line set-up you are limited by the crown size.
With the gear change you made and the 24 wire going back in the car should be faster then the first two test sessions. The 24 needs like a 5:1 ratio that can not be accomplished with out some very big rear tires..

Most laps will win, not the fastest car.
How long is that track and how many feet of main straight?
How much of the 100g is the weight of the body?

[Jairus]

The track is 112' and only my test track. The races will take place on 150'+ King tracks so I am building for that eventuality. 5:1 is too low a gear I think. If I could find a 6t gear... then maybe I can get lower but for now 4:1 is the best I can do. Larger tires means building a new chassis.

I'll work on that 6t pinion thing...

As for the weight of the body... buy one yourself and find out silly.

[Gator Bob]

Try the ARP-4806.

While the tall molded side dams produce more "at speed" downforce and lots of side bite they raise the CoG alot.

[boxerdog]

This is a good thread... I like this from John:

No worries buddy...like I said, I was never a racer so what you're finding out is helpful. Since none of the old pros is chiming in here (dang it...the old slot car secrecy thing has reared it's ugly head again after all these years!), you're going to be one of my best (only!) sources of info. Maybe I'll just wind myself up a #23, cut away most of a can for cooling and get some hefty magnets and throw all caution to the wind.

Funny thing; despite all of the talk about openness, the Internet sharing culture, social media, teamwork, etc.....those damn slot racers still keep secrets!!!

Actually, it's a racing thing I think. I kinda doubt that Hendrick and Knaus dial up Joe Gibbs for a Monday morning tech talk to share their latest discoveries. I know when I was involved in circle-track racing we actually did the opposite, leaking bogus info to keep other teams headed in the wrong direction.

Having said that, establishing that nothing I might say is authentic, here is what I think I know so far:

1. Most of the open arm motors I have tested, including one of John's, are very fast in a straight line.
2. My car in it's present configuration does not handle very well and more speed is not the answer, it is one of the problems.
3. It is hard to get the optimum gear on one of these cars using 48p stuff.
4. I am working on "softer" motors in the interest of handling and also tire wear.
5. I have no idea how anyone drove these cars back in the day using the controllers available back then. I was out of slots at the time, but I wish I had been able to go to the Bay Area to see some races on the big tracks.

HTH Dave

[One27ray]

Try the ARP-4806.

While the tall molded side dams produce more "at speed" downforce and lots of side bite they raise the CoG alot.

Hey Bob, but that's what makes them darn Thingies so Fun to Run....... what about H.O. versions of the Deepdish Choti-noda bodies ? talk about CoG

Good luck to all this Weekend Thingie Racers

[Gator Bob]

Ray Fellows
Thingie enthusiast & member Chairman of the Botherhood of the Thingie

[chief32s]

Spy shot from the Old Forge...




Its always interesting to see how something that has been held in the imagination turns out when realised in actuality...Getting there.

I hope you guys think this is in keeping with the spirit of the "negative lift" swoopy Choti bodies.

First pull later this week hopefully.

Al

[slotbaker]

Very cool Al.
What colour light is this one gunna have??

[MantaRay]

MAybe it is just me......I thought Choti's were low in the middle and high on the sides. Kinda like the one in the background with the round bubble.

[Jairus]

I said any body is legal as long as its a thingie. If Al wants to march to a different drum he's fine to do so.
(Most "artists and musicians" are a little off anyway.)

Nice work Al, I look forward to the next spy shot. And if you want to run another "Blacklight" body, as Ray suggests, you are okay to do that as well.