3 replies to this topic

[don.siegel]

Just got back from Thanksgiving in the USA and picked up a few more additions to my library there, both old and new. 

 

First, the October 2013 issue of Hot Rod, a special issue on Hot Girls, Great Garages! Here's one guy's Man Cave"

 

 

Then back in time to August 1950 Popular Science, and outdoor racing using.... Cox Thimbledrome gas cars! This may have been mentioned here before, 

 

 

 

Comics, Teen Titans, June 1968, gee, why didn' I think of that?  

 

 

Another modern mag, European Car, February 2013, an article on Slotmods, already well known in these parts...

 

 

 

And to close, here's an obscure one, Communication Arts magazine from May/June 1979, chic, hip design/graphics review, $5 at the time, with lots of color photos, an article on a Chicago design firm, RVI Corporation ... 

 

 

à bientôt

Don 

[TSR]

Don, super finds!
 
Love the Thimble-Drome cars. I never had one but they are very easy to find if one feels the need.
 
The comic book is first class, too!

The RVI info about Strombecker's packaging design is great.
 
About the nice little chunk of a young thing on the Whizzer, she can be my nurse anytime!
 
Talking about SlotMods and David Beattie, I saw him yesterday at the Long Beach Motorcycle Show where he has a track under the Progressive Insurance sponsorship. He drove one of our TSR cars with the evil guide pin for the first time as well as two of his associates and they were a bit amazed at how easy the car was to drive on the complex track, making lap after lap in complete confidence, never getting out of shape.

Here we are for a photo op with the Progressive Insurance showgirl holding the little car!
 

 
More on RVI and Strombecker HERE.
 

[sub006]

Thanks for a great post, Don! 
 
The Slot Bowl article didn't indicate if the cars had one "guide peg" or maybe two?  You'd certainly want to keep those heavy metal cars on the track, not launched into the spectators by speed and centrifugal force!  No throttle control while running, but this article may have given some people "electric dreams". 
 
Several inventors, working separately on different continents seem to have "created" electric tabletop racing in the '40s and '50s. 
 
Love the landscaping and detail on the three-laner that seems mostly inspired by Monaco.

[TSR]

The Thimble-Drome cars, at least the ones I have seen set up for rail racing, had only one guide upfront. Since the rear wheels side travel is limited by the center rail, there was really no need. They would drift up to the rail and the inner sidewall of the inner tire would lean on it.

If you try two guides, they would tilt, like the Monogram F1 cars did in their racing set until the back pin would be cut off...