48 replies to this topic

[Steve H.]

Heard they plan to clean the track next week. Will be interesting to see the difference and how long they wait for the next cleaning.

[MSwiss]

If they don't already, suggest they use microfiber towels.

[Jesse Gonzales]

It's been a long time since I've been to a track so this is probably going to get me laughed at but does anyone still use camping fuel to clean the track? I remember using acetone too but maybe times have changed. The red shop towels and a gallon can of wicked is how we used to clean them.

 

Jesse Gonzales

[MSwiss]

You sure it wasn't naptha?

I would think acetone might smear the lane stripes.

Red shop rags and old T-shirts are things of the past.

I can clean my King with a half of gallon of Naptha, and 1 micro fiber towel.

If you have non-frayed braid, I've heard a fluffy bath towel works great.

[Jesse Gonzales]

When Mike Marquez had his track (Ingleman lookalike) and Junior Carleton had his Hasse Blue King we used Coleman fuel and red shop rags, somewhere I ran into someone using acetone, it did weird things to your hands as I recall. Naptha is like lighter fluid right? I recall people using lighter fluid on the shop rags but more for spot clean-ups than whole track cleaning.

 

As I said I am a thing of the past:-) so am out of touch with what people do nowadays.

 

Jesse Gonzales

[Jay Guard]

When I was involved with the shop in Fresno, CA we would have a "club night" at least twice a month on Wednesday.  Track time was free but you had to show up in time to help clean the track which was a 145' Hillclimb.  We used Naptha and red shop towels and with 4 or 5 guys we could have the track cleaned and re-glued in 30-40 minutes.  We would then have open track time for the rest of the night to run in the track and test/practice.  Sometimes we'd even have a fun race or two.  The only real trick when using the Naptha is to not get the rag too saturated as you want to reduce the amount of Naptha that gets down in the braid.  A bit won't hurt, but if you really soak the braid too many times it tends to loosen the glue.  Worked well for us for many, many years. 

[MSwiss]

Yes Jesse, acetone will take all the moisture out of your hands, worse than naptha.

Yes, naptha and lighter fluid are interchangeable.

Speaking of lighter fluid, the late Don Perko, told me a story how, on the way to a race, in Kansas, or Texas, ran out of gas, in the middle of nowhere.

The racers all emptied their cans of lighter fluid, into the gas tank, and they made it to the next gas station.

[NSwanberg]

At Downriver the source of red shop towels seem to leave a boat load of red lint all over the track. The white t shirt type of fabric seems to work the best.

[Bill from NH]

Wash those red towels before use.

[MSwiss]

At Downriver the source of red shop towels seem to leave a boat load of red lint all over the track. The white t shirt type of fabric seems to work the best.

Nelson,
I'm going to say one word to you........ microfibre.

 

About 50 cents each, at Costco.
 


 

 

[Steve H.]

Update: Went to the track tonight with another racer to see what we could figure out before the track was cleaned. Tested JK X25, C43, and Mossetti with all the pans. Both JKs were too loose, the Mossetti definitely has more bite, and we could get all the pans to run similar fast times by playing with tape. The Jks were both great a few weeks ago.
Its going to be interesting to see how much things change on a clean track.

[Half Fast]

Steve-Was the track spray glued?

 

Cheers

[Steve H.]

Track was cleaned and spray glued at the end of December. Was told when the glue was fresh everyone was cleaning there tires with lighter fluid between heats.
Pretty sure they have sprayed glue on top of what's on the track at some point in the last month. Also some racers have in a way glued the track by putting a lot of glue on their tires at various times. What we don't get is how come treated and natural rubber tires won't grip what's on the track now. Only jk wonder seems to have any grip. Also wondering if all the lighter fluid tire cleaning might of had some effect on the traction over time.

[Jay Guard]

Steve:

After a track is cleaned and spray glued (then allowed to dry) the grip will generally be a bit too much.  However it's that extra grip that grabs the rubber and then once there's a bit of rubber built up on the glue it's pretty much the sweet spot for traction.  Eventually the rubber can build up too much and if it's not too old you may still have good traction.  However, there can be other issues as an excessive build-up tends to act like a berm and can make for some inconsistent grip and weird handling.

 

That said I suspect that your original problem may have been caused by too much "old rubber" which, just like tires, will eventually tend to dry out and not give very much traction.  Mix that with some ever present dust and you've got very poor grip.

[Phil Hackett]

Acetone is a very bad idea. In. Every. Way. 

[RacerX23]

Can anyone help - it’s been a decade that I have been away from this hobby (addiction) . Me and my son raced when he was young until the local track closed. Now years later i have the space and bought a 155 king track for my personal use. What product and technique do I put on the track ? My tires are old and so are my cars . Reading thru this slotblog the last couple weeks I realize that i know very little. Over the years I just kept buying slot car stuff when the local shops kept closing. Now it time for me too find my way - what I enjoyed as a kid was just building a car out of anything I could find and run up too the local track and run it until the motor stopped. Back to my question , , , , what’s the best product or is there even such a thing they apply to the surface

[Tim Wilkins]

http://slotblog.net/...rmation-please/

 

[RacerX23]

Thank you - Tim

[RacerX23]

Thanks - Tim. I’m going to give that a try

[Shooter7mustang]

You sure it wasn't naptha?

I would think acetone might smear the lane stripes.

Red shop rags and old T-shirts are things of the past.

I can clean my King with a half of gallon of Naptha, and 1 micro fiber towel.

If you have non-frayed braid, I've heard a fluffy bath towel works great.

 

We use Naptha and red shop towels but the Micro-fiber makes sense. Don't pour the Naptha on the track as it will loosen the braid glue, pour it on the cloth first.

[Shiggy]

I have been using naphtha in a spray bottle, applied lightly to small areas of the track at a time.
Tried various rags, including microfiber. The rolls of blue shop towels seem to be the most effective.

[Jairus]

Studded tires.

[crazyphysicsteacher]

Just treat the wonder rubber with Trinity tire tweek. The jk wonders are a problem at times and I have a product I use to soften the tire a bunch. Some guys in retro east have used it and many have seen how I can get wonder softer while still staying firm. Sounds funny but it is true. The biggest problem it sounds like you are having is just finding the right tire. Also sounds like you have a heavy car. Heavy cars like to roll a big, soft sidewall in the corner which then makes the tire lose grip. That is why the big guns worked better. Sounds like you just need the harder tire because the softer rubber flex's too much and causes you to loose bite. A lighter car can use the softer rubber as it will have less effect. Also, smaller tires help to eliminate the issue.
And don't down play wonder. Those tires will last a lot longer than the soft rubber will. Many weeks of weekly racing.

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[Dan Ebert]

Lighter Fluid and Coleman Fuel are Naphtha with rust inhibitors.  We have switched from pure Naphtha to Generic Camp Fuel sold at Wal-Mart.   It is half the cost of Naphtha.  We clean the track when needed with this procedure.  One helper spraying with the Coleman fuel.  Another following with a fine Scotchbrite to loosen and clean the rubber.  Several following with towels to wipe up the residue before it dries.  This has worked well for us and the myth that Coleman fuel leaves a oily film is just that , a Myth.   Another thing we do at the track is cover all sections with tarps when not in use.  This reduces the collection of dust on the surface.  Extra work but it has paid off.  On the tire and loose condition,  that sounds like a good track cleaning is in order.  Wintergreen, Evil bucks death grip, Nyftech type tire conditioners would help soften the wonder rubber tires for better grip until the track is clean.  Good Luck