10 replies to this topic

[don.siegel]

There are slot car motors, and then there are... well mystery motors! In my ever-expanding collection of odd scratchbuilt slotcars, I have a good dozen with unidentified motors, obviously glommed from either model trains (but not the usual candidates), or some odd industrial application (like the round Globe/Versitec motors, originally used on satellites). 

 

This is not really an identification contest, although I would appreciate any IDs, but just to show the variety of motors that slotters have found to propel our cars... 

 

First, under the guise of a Revell Lotus body (these were popular for conversions of all kinds, having come out rather early, ca 1963), a rather odd 9-pole unit, I would guess offhand for some hobby use, boats or trains.... very long gearing, which would indicate a torque monster, but haven't tried it on a track. Has an air of some of the Tradeship made in Japan units... 

 

 

 

 

 

Then another one I've shown before, undoubtedly an attempt at a dragster, with a big hunk AC motor, probably from a big model train. And yes, those seem to be gears from an Erector Set (Meccano)... 

 

 

As usual, I'm starting this thread before I've taken all my pictures, hoping that will inspire me to take the rest. 

 

Any other contributions to the mystery/industrial/hobby motor game? 

 

Don 

[Samiam]

Did you have to show the close up of those sloppy winds?

 

Must have been Ray Charles's early attempts at hand winding.

[don.siegel]

Nine poles, Sam, one tends to lose track...

 

Don 

[Pablo]

You know I always love these kind of cars, Don.  The winds on that arm look fine to me. 

 

Please keep 'em coming...

[Samiam]

Don't get me wrong guys. I love those old Rube Goldberg cars. But after seeing arms wound by John Havlicek you get spoiled.

[don.siegel]

Here's another strange one, which looks more like a black box than a motor... no idea where this comes from - anybody recognize the general type of motor? The brush layout is in fact similar to the Lindsay train motor, so assume it's from a choo choo... It's all under an innocent looking truck... 

 

 

 

 

 

At the other extreme, an old friend of ours, the little Kako 3V motor, used on many a motorized toy and some early slot cars - but rarely seen in a piano wire frame with heavy lead wires (and it had excellent silli-sponge tires, pirated for another car...)

 

 

Here's one that I at first thought was exotic, but turned out to be the relatively rare Russkit 24 - which looks like an industrial motor! (and its big brother, the 25, was in fact derived from an industrial motor...)

 

 

 

 

More to come, 

Don

[don.siegel]

One from an old friend, Globe Industries of Dayton, Ohio... but not the usual SS91 screamer. This is a slightly bigger, but still round item. Some guy who didn't want to pay 15 bucks, so scrounged it from a downed missile, or something like that... In fact, this seems to be a pretty common layout for a lot of industrial motors, round with enclosed brushes, etc. Pittman does some as well. 

 

 

 

 

And in a nod to our English friends, here's the Snidely Whiplash, supposedly by MAMA enterprises of the Far East (that's what the Model Cars Motor booklet says, but I think that's been debunked, right Joel?)... And of course it's the Pronto Whiplash, but my American friends will know what I mean, eh Rocky? It is of course a slot car motor, but looks pretty odd to me! 

 

 

 

 

And another nod to our English friends, a train motor that looks like a very big brother to the K's... 

 

 

[Pablo]

This just never gets old   Pardon the pun  

I love all of them, Don

[Coal Train]

I'de love to rewind the arm in the last one

[don.siegel]

Well, I may not have had a dozen of these, but I did find one more, again an odd round motor, distant cousin to the Globe; that com cooling/access hole seems to have been homemade, and the motor looks pretty solid inside. Like most of these, I haven't wound it up yet... lack of a home track and all that (+ laziness). 

 

 

 

 

 

Don 

[Dave Crevie]

The one in the fifth picture of the sixth post looks like, but is not, a Bonner motor. This type of motor was

commonly seen in motorizing kits for plastic models. The best shot is the last one, with the nuts used as

uprights for the axle bearings. I did the same thing on many of my scratch built chassis, as did most of the

guys in my circle at the time. But we used square nuts, which were most popular back then.