56 replies to this topic

[Mbloes]

I like to build Eurosport type cars but, as you know, they no longer come with front wheels. So I install my own.

 

Here are two that I've done (I just finished the one in the foreground):

 

 

[Mbloes]

F1 cars already come with front wheels but I like to upgrade the pathetic 1/2" ones that they use to something more robust:

 

 

 

 

 

[Mbloes]

These cars were designed for a more "scale" Eurosport class, so they came with a variety of blocks that you could use to change the wheelbase ride height of the front wheels.

 

In addition, there was a long chassis and a short chassis. Both are shown below. FYI, these were designed by Richard Mack:

 

 

[Steve Deiters]

There is something unholy about a slot car without four wheels.

[Tex]

I agree. While I accept that wing cars are what they are, I don't understand why they continue with the sham "front wheels" like they do... they are pathetic excuses for wheels and they should just do away with them.

[Paul Menkens]

There is something unholy about a slot car without four wheels.

Whatever it is, what it isn't is a car.

[tonyp]

Four wheels is a car.
Two wheels is a motorcycle.

[Robert BG]

Nice work, I especially like the open can car.

What setup is that?

 

I miss the more scale appearance  too. There's a lot of Int 15 motors out there that would fit in there pretty nice for not a lot of money.

 

I actually was kicking around the idea with a few guys to build and race cars from our parts bins before I got sick. There was 6-7 guys seriously interested with enough obsolete parts to build a few cars in case anyone wanted to give it a go. The rules we came up with were pretty simple, any obsolete chassis or current GT 12 modded to have front wheels in the wheel wells. Motors where either group 12's C cans or Int 15's and TI-22 for the body.

 

The idea was to make it close to a "run what you brung" type race. The focus was on an affordable way to get practice time and hopefully introduce new racers in a laid back atmosphere.

[Robert BG]

I agree. While I accept that wing cars are what they are, I don't understand why they continue with the sham "front wheels" like they do.... they are pathetic excuses for wheels and they should just do away with them.

 

While I agree with you what bugs me even more is slower cars using stickers for front wheels. 

[SpeedyNH]

nice!

[bbr]

"racers in a laid back atmosphere"

Wish this could be true, lol
I look back at how retro begin. A bunch of old friends getting together to run slot cars, now it is one of the most competitive racing in slot cars.

Mike B, nice work

[Mbloes]

 

What setup is that?

 

 

It is an old Alpha setup, still with the plastic endbell.  These are probably my favorite setups and I have a few of them.

But the arm is the opposite of open - it's a very custom 65-30 balanced arm that is very mild.   Perfect for my track as it's a short 50'.

[Phil Hackett]

4 wheels is a car
2 wheels is a motorcycle


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

...and 1 wheel is a unicycle....

 

Sentiment agreed. Front wheels are required.

[James Wendel]

4 wheels is a car
2 wheels is a motorcycle


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

So have you seen the video of the two cowgirls riding their motorcycles around the living room?

https://www.youtube....h?v=09GKDKGc9hA

[Robert BG]

"racers in a laid back atmosphere"

Wish this could be true, lol
I look back at how retro begin. A bunch of old friends getting together to run slot cars, now it is one of the most competitive racing in slot cars.

Mike B, nice work

 

I get what you're saying and agree. But in this case there is already a ultra competitive  eurosport GT 12 class. Our idea was just to get together,have fun all while using stuff we've got laying around. Most of us are pretty rusty when it comes to flat tracks and fast cars and figured it'd be fun practice without beating up on expensive gear.and if anyone wanted to join we'd be happy to lend them a car and controller if needed. Other than a pair of tires they could see if GT 12 was for them.

[Mbloes]

...and 1 wheel is a unicycle....

 

Sentiment agreed. Front wheels are required.

 

What I can't understand to this day is how EVERY track owner at the time bought into:

 

• Full glue
• No front wheels

 

Maybe it's just my OCD, but if I was a track owner I would have said "you're not putting that crap all over my track"  and "you're not dragging your frigging chassis on my track".

 

Then I guess I would have been out of business.

[bbr]

the evolution of "model car racing" to racing a device on a track with a slot.

even today, the modern "retro" racing, everyone runs the same body.

what wins races is not how skilled you are, but how fast is your car, time n time again this is the way races are won.

 

I've won races bc my car is faster than everyone's, against more skill racers than myself LOL

if my car is 0.1s faster than any other on a king track the race would be mine

[Nonfractal]

I am a hard body 1/32 racer.
All uk hardbody clubs require front wheels, some even require that the front wheels touch and roll.
Aesthetics is important to many hard body racers, where racing proper scale representations of full size cars is considered an key part of the scene.

The no-holds-barred full-on brigade is represented by BRSCA.
Laser cut metal chassis, lexan bodies, stickers for front wheels. Its just very different.

However, at some point, I will visit and race at a BRSCA club.

Slotting is a broad church so just choose what you like and race that.
Alan W

[team burrito]

i agree, everything is better with front wheels.

[John Luongo]

great looking car team burrito! good attention to detail!

on the subject of front wheels, i agree with others. and with respects to Sir Mix-a-lot: "i like front wheels and i can not lie..."

[NateT]

I remember when I was young, I worked on an oval car and few drag cars and one of the first things that we would do is strip the car of all the things that were not required to go fast and only keep the things required for that class of racing. 

While we did manage to keep the front wheels which seemed to help a lot on the oval car, the requirements for front wheels on a flexi car seem pointless as the only time you would have a chance to see them is when the car is in tech or in the pits. 

I always found that racing with front wheels on a banked track was a ticking timebomb, as the minute you took a hit, the wheel or axle would start flopping and your race was done.

I enjoy going fast and would consider myself a slot racer vs. slot car or model car racer but that being said, I feel that everything has a place and accept both sides as being right.

I would never ask a flexi racer to put front wheels on their chassis for some FK or Gp10 GTP racing on my King track,  I would also insist that any hardbody racer use scale looking fronts or an ES32F1 car have the proper fronts.

[Steve Ogilvie]

I have always liked a scale look with front wheels. This is a Plafit I bought a long time ago and love the look. It handles very well but what I really like is there is no wide body between the front wheels, it just looks like the real thing, narrow nose and all. The front wing helps the scale look and hides the guide flag too. It has a lot of miles on it and I am going to try and restore it and build 3 similar cars once I have the time to go on Professor  Motors web site and figure out what parts I need.

 

[gshdralph]

I like to build eurosport type cars but, as you know, they no longer come with front wheels.  So I install my own.

 

Here are two that I've done (I just finished the one in the foreground):

Pretty neat. Just curious, what bodies do you run?

[Dave Crevie]

I'm sure that part of the allure to retro is the requirement that the cars have fronts, and that the wheel openings on full bodied cars be cut out. When I ran Eurosport, they also had to have fronts. I guess that having started in slot racing when the cars were still model cars has branded my view of slot racing. For me it is still model car racing.

[MattD]

Most of us like slot cars that look like some kind of real car and also reach back into the 60's when we started.       Racing something without front wheels is OK by me, but don't call it a "car".