JANUARY 2018 NEWSLETTER

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Erica Woods
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1 JANUARY 2018 NEWSLETTER Welcome back, I hope you have all had great holidays Most of us have a had a break from building and racing. I am dead keen to get racing again in A spot of housekeeping regarding orders, to avoid confusion. When you place an order, it will show as "Pending" Once I see it, and have printed the picking slip ready to pack it, I update the status to "Processing". Then, when I have packed the parcel and it is with the courier or in the post, I update the order status to "Delivered" - That means I have sent it to you, not that it is in your letter box, or signed for from the courier. You receive an automatic confirming each status update. This just gives the you best information about progress of your order. together a Calendar of slotting events, and a list of clubs, club night race dates etc. If you have a particular event planned, do give me details of date and location. I will add that to the calendar; with the contact details you wish to show. If you would like me to advertise your club or racing group on our site, just tell me the contact details you want shown, the day/night of the week you usually race, and the location - if appropriate. One event to be aware of now, as entries are nearly full already. After 9 years of the CanAm Proxy, Dave Carter who is the current proxy racing organiser in NZ; has "retired" the 'CanAm Proxy', and has created a brand new event close to all our hearts for 2018 This is the Australian Touring Car Championship / Bathurst Proxy Here is a link to the proxy rules and entry. Entries are nearly full already, so speak up quickly on the forum thread if you wish to enter. (ATCC/Bathurst Proxy) At some point in January, we will experiment with an entirely new "look". The basic site layout will be similar and the categories will be unchanged, it is more like redecorating. The alterations are mainly to improve the functionality for those with smaller screens on tablets and phones. The News Many Have Been Waiting For At the suggestion of customers, I have "branded" most product codes, so that all cars for instance, show the manufacturer when you are browsing the general cars category. I have added more information in category headings about parts, such as gear shaft diameters. Thanks very much to customers for those suggestions. I am happy to receive more, if these will help make a better browsing experience for you. It is great to see Tony cook of NSR (Nelson Slot Racers), and the NSR and Thunderslot Distributor; taking on the role of RTR slot racing admin in the NZ Slot Car Association. The RTR Nationals will be held in the South Island again this year at the Pitlane Club, Dunedin from 27th to 29th July. There are a number of other invitational events being held around the country during I am putting We are pleased to advise that Slot.it have reappointed us as their New Zealand distributor. Initial stocks are now visible for ordering. Stock arrives next week. If there is something we still don't have listed - please holler! We have stocked up on existing catalogue cars still available from releases over the past year. New releases will arrive each month, with parts restocks. I have a small number of their 2017 parts catalogues available at no charge - just ask for one when ordering; or you can simply download as a PDF file from this link; DO explore the Slot.it site overall, it has so many downloads, and so much useful parts information.

With Slot.it comes sister company Policar. We are also filling the shelves with this fine product.

one is full. Motor: Slot.it Flat-6 20,500rpm 200 g/cm torque (Mn09h) mounted as angle-winder 1.

B12/80 #31-24hr Le Mans 2012 CA39a - Slot.it Motor: Slot.

0mm offset Gearing: Crown 28t (GA1628-pl) - Pinion 11t brass Matra-Simca MS 670B Le Mans 1973 -

it V12/4 21,000rpm (MX15) mounted Inline Gearing: Crown 28t - Pinion 9t brass March 701 2nd Spa

2 With Slot.it comes sister company Policar. We are also filling the shelves with this fine product. There is some big news on the Policar front; but more on that in our February newsletter as this one is full. Motor: Slot.it Flat-6 20,500rpm 200 g/cm torque (Mn09h) mounted as angle-winder 1.0mm offset Gearing: Crown 28t (GA1628-pl) - Pinion 11t brass Opel Calibra V6 #17 DTM Norisring 1996 CA36b Slot.it New Cars & Other Stuff Coming Just a selection, so settle in and take a browse around Lola B12/80 #31-24hr Le Mans 2012 CA39a - Slot.it Motor: Slot.it Flat-6 20,500rpm 200 g/cm torque (Mn09h) mounted as angle-winder 1.0mm offset Gearing: Crown 28t (GA1628-pl) - Pinion 11t brass Matra-Simca MS 670B Le Mans CA37a Slot.it Motor: Slot.it V12/4 21,000rpm (MX15) mounted Inline Gearing: Crown 28t - Pinion 9t brass March 701 2nd Spa 1970 Chris Amon - CAR04a Policar Motor: Slot.it V12/4 23,000rpm mounted as sidewinder Gearing: Crown 32t - Pinion 11t brass Audi R8 LMP- 24 hr Le Mans 2001 #4 CA33B - Slot.it Motor: Slot.it PMX01 FF ,500rpm mounted inline Gearing: Robust Hewland style 3 gear-box Z1: Pinion is 9T brass Z2: Step-down gear 25/16T Plastic Z3: Crown 17T Brass

Lotus 72 Oulton Park 1970 - CAR02b by Policar

it PMX01 FF-030 24,500rpm mounted inline

Pinion is 9T brass Z2: Step-down gear 25/16T

1972 Fittipaldi - CAR02c Policar Axles Kits,

motors, screw sets, tools & more Plastic

gearbox: The slimline FF-030 motor type used

robust, whisper quiet, and creates an amount

cars are very impressive to drive, especially

You can alter gear ratios with the aftermarket

3 Lotus 72 Oulton Park CAR02b by Policar Motor: Slot.it PMX01 FF ,500rpm mounted inline Gearing: Robust Hewland style 3 gear-box Z1: Pinion is 9T brass Z2: Step-down gear 25/16T Plastic Z3: Crown 17T Brass Lotus 72 Monaco 1972 Fittipaldi - CAR02c Policar Axles Kits, wheels and tyres, pinions and gears pods, motors, screw sets, tools & more Motor: Slot.it PMX01 FF ,500rpm mounted inline Gearing: Robust Hewland style 3 gear-box Z1: Pinion is 9T brass Z2: Step-down gear 25/16T Plastic Z3: Crown 17T Brass About that Hewland gearbox: The slimline FF-030 motor type used with most F1 cars for fit has very little torque. This means weak acceleration and poor braking. Slot.it have engineered a cure. This two stage inline gearbox is extremely robust, whisper quiet, and creates an amount of braking not achievable with a simple pinion and crown arrangement. Combined with their high revving motor, these cars are very impressive to drive, especially on large tracks with no traction magnet. You can alter gear ratios with the aftermarket alternate axle gears in stock - or using a change of pinion.

Tune and Track Test ScaleAuto Porsche I have taken two examples of the latest models of Porsche 911 GT cars.

The livery I chose is one of only 300 from this year's Limited Edition from the XXII Campeonato de Slot De Espana, JUST because I can, and I like it.

Take the paper protector off the underside of the box, you can then remove the clear top, and remove the 2 screws securing the car to the base. load.

+1 ScaleAuto have altered their plastics composition in the past two years, and the result is more rigid chassis which are better for wood racing.

Then I noticed another almost hidden item. Don't throw them away.

4 Tune and Track Test ScaleAuto Porsche I have taken two examples of the latest models of Porsche 911 GT cars. This month I am opening up a "Home Series" car, to see what you get for slightly less than what a basic Scalextric will cost you. The livery I chose is one of only 300 from this year's Limited Edition from the XXII Campeonato de Slot De Espana, JUST because I can, and I like it. This is a huge racing event which I attended last year with around 500 competitors. Take the paper protector off the underside of the box, you can then remove the clear top, and remove the 2 screws securing the car to the base. load. It is much preferable to my thinking than the bell-end drive we see so often. +1 ScaleAuto have altered their plastics composition in the past two years, and the result is more rigid chassis which are better for wood racing. Almost hidden under the rear of the motor is a small magnet, which gives medium down-force, but not as much as a Scaley. There is a matching pocket forward of the motor. Then I noticed another almost hidden item. Don't throw them away. These are the same screws as used to secure the body to the chassis, and they are "half-smooth shaft", to eliminate "catching" of the chassis when setting up the body for "float". - what a useful idea. Point the first +1 to ScaleAuto There is a screw securing the motor into the pod, turning it into a bracing element for the chassis. +1 Mr ScaleAuto The car sits nice and low, and has great detail in the photo etched parts. +1 Look at those two part body latches. They look like they swivel to open. The body is nice and light, keeping the COG low. +1 Now to the things that propel it forward. Above you can see the simple nylon pinion and spur, they mesh nicely, but there is also a small dob of red grease smeared on the chassis right where the gears meet, and as I started the car up at 3 volts, the white pinion turned pink at the contact point. +1 for this. The wheels are press fit plastic, I tried turning them, but they felt very tight and I was fortunate I didn't snap one as I applied a lot of force trying to move it. Then I pulled - AHA. Off it came. The body is a 2-screw mount, using those smooth half shaft screws, and rocks nicely, with no apparent obstructions. Under the lid we have a sidewinder setup with a 20k S-can. It is a regular FC-130, with a bell at one end - BUT, it is a "Can-end" drive. Driving from the Can end where you have a brass bush set into the metal gives a more robust structure for taking the The rear wheels have an axle with a large "flat" keyed into it, as has the wheel. This prevents the wheel ever slipping on the smooth shaft, and I think is a better alternative than knurled axle ends. +1 In this case it is also absolutely necessary, as there is ZERO slop where the axle passes through the bush in the chassis.

I see "claws" - you know, claws, like on a Slot.it pod. And yes, inside those claws, guess what we find. Yep. self aligning bushes, just like the Slot.it ones. +1 hhmmm... I wonder.

Yes, they slide exactly onto the ScaleAuto axle, as does the ScaleAuto one onto a Slot.it axle. No slop, equal fit. CLICK, and yes, the Slot.it ones fit perfectly into the claws in the chassis.

Note that the axle has a reduced diameter through the centre section to provide sidewinder motor clearance and make it lighter +1 The wee red things are 1.

+1 look what else we have, holes for M2 grub screws either side for setting front axle ride height and eliminate axle slop.

5 I see "claws" - you know, claws, like on a Slot.it pod. And yes, inside those claws, guess what we find. Yep. self aligning bushes, just like the Slot.it ones. +1 hhmmm... I wonder. Into my war chest, out with a Slot.it axle and a selection of the older brass and new version sintered bronze bushes. Yes, they slide exactly onto the ScaleAuto axle, as does the ScaleAuto one onto a Slot.it axle. No slop, equal fit. CLICK, and yes, the Slot.it ones fit perfectly into the claws in the chassis. That's handy. We now know the axles, and these bushes are interchangeable with Slot.it parts. +1 Therefore so are both brands of wheels. Note that the axle has a reduced diameter through the centre section to provide sidewinder motor clearance and make it lighter +1 The wee red things are 1.5mm nylon spacers to set the drive train width and eliminate sideways movement of the axle. It is the same as we go up front, more spacers to set the track width there. +1 look what else we have, holes for M2 grub screws either side for setting front axle ride height and eliminate axle slop. There are matching holes underneath, so into the war chest for some M2 3mm long grub screws - it only needs 3mm ones; and so I set the ride height with these and took out the slop. +1 I have opted to remove those small axle holders and use just the grub screws, as I prefer the way the axle spins very freely with this method. Others may want to retain those holders, and use only lower grub screws to lift the axle enough to fully lower the guide into the slot. You do however risk the axle holders tramping up under corner load and sticking. The lead wires are pretty thin, similar to Scaley ones, but then the motor isn't exactly cranking amps. They are neatly routed up the sides, secured by clips, and under the axle for safety. +1 The guide is a typical press-fit job with brass eyelets. The braid is too stiff for my liking, and a bit thick. I will swap that out. No score here. The front wheels are not keyed. I guess as they don't have to bear the load of rotational stress. Ah, the tyres, low profile as needed with these big 17mm wheels, the fronts look fine. The rears are a soft "rubber" but of the kind that feels like a silicon tyre. They will be fine for plastic track racing, but will need swapping out for wood racing. That is a score of 14 good things I consider ScaleAuto have done in the developing these "Home Series" cars The chassis seems fairly flat, but one front wheel looks slightly high, so I will give the chassis bath to flatten it. Oh Oh and $(&#% I took out the motor screw and just twisted and pushed. "CRACK" Snapped the chassis right where the motor screw goes through. Lesson for all - do this bit carefully and don't twist the chassis. I haven't any spares yet, so out comes the "gel" superglue; a quick repair is done. It should hold, this gel glue is very strong, like a welding element. Into the hot bath it goes for a couple of hours slow cooling. As you see in the bottom of the picture above, there are chassis holes, which are to make it compatible for the main digital systems - Scalextric, Slot.it and Carrera. +1 Just inside the main axle posts are two movable and removable axle holders that have axle size holes to prevent vetical play. But

Bath done, I cracked it again refitting the motor, so re-glued with the motor in place and added a brass strap along the edge of the motor to hold the front and back of the motor mount rigid.

I have kept the original front tyres, which were easy to true, less than 5 minutes each.

6 Bath done, I cracked it again refitting the motor, so re-glued with the motor in place and added a brass strap along the edge of the motor to hold the front and back of the motor mount rigid. I have fitted Slot.it 1172 N22 tyres to the rear hubs, glued and trued as I forgot to go to the warehouse and grab the ScaleAuto ones from stock. I have kept the original front tyres, which were easy to true, less than 5 minutes each. another 2-3 grams behind the front axe; and I will need to add a dot of glue to one rear wheel as all my assembling and disassembling has left it with a not very tight fit on the axle and it began to work loose under cornering load. Everything reassembled, front axle height set, about 6 grams of lead added just behind the guide as first estimate, It spins up very smoothly on my static bench, and on the resistance board it shows no signs of anything untoward under load. Ready for a track test. Where The Rubber Meets The Road Thanks to Peter for the use of Circuito Bahia Vista for testing the Porsche. All in all, the car is pretty competitive with only the addition of some better rubber, soft braid, and a swap to grub screws for setting the front axle height. I am pleased with what can be achieved with a Home Series car and a bit of track tuning. Tech Article Thanks to "NonFractal" (Alan Wilkinson) of Slot Forum International for permission to reproduce the following article As always "your mileage may vary". Some will see this subject differently. But as a summary of factors, this is the most complete I have come across. Thanks Alan! Circuito Bahia Vista is a very technical 20 metre track with about 10 turns, and only two places you can open the throttle - briefly. The car sits nice & low, and first laps told me it is easy to drive. It was pretty smooth first up, and my only fiddling was with the amount of body float. Once I had familiarised myself with the handling on track I was able to go sub 7 seconds, ending up with a 6.8. The only things I think it needs now are a little more weight up front - I think Motor formats - Advantages and disadvantages of each layout Visiting different clubs and running different classes of racing has given me some new insights into the various advantages and disadvantages of the three major motor layouts, inline, sidewinder and angle winder. Sidewinder Advantages Zero longitudinal loads (trying to load the right of left of the car on acceleration and braking) Most efficient gearing with lowest gear-on-gear "slipping" and "grinding" Gears held in place by the axle and motor bearings No sideways loading on any bearings Smaller motors means less weight. S-Can motors in any configuration, but especially for sidewinder, produce less torque stress to distort chassis endto-end, and thus reduce or eliminate "springing" of chassis under load. On wood, sidewinder S-Cans with less power than an anglewinder, in a given car, will often be much better

7 Inline Advantages Crown Gearing is of fixed pitch often leading to the better meshing of the pinion to crown gears. The layout moves the C of G forward in the car eliminating power de-slot behaviour Has a longer leverage on the rear axle eliminating power deslot behaviour Supports the most powerful long can motors and also supports small can motors Shorter motor leads that do not need to follow a contorted route to the guide The centre of the motor mass is further away from the axle lowering the effective un-sprung weight and making pod suspension systems more effective. No special gears required to support offset pods. For some cars, the inline crown can be fitted on the left of right, allowing the motor to be fitted in the way it runs best (clockwise or anti clockwise) Angle-winder Advantages Produces very limited longitudinal force on the car Supports the most powerful long can motors Very little sideways loading on the axle and bearings (but not zero) No special gears required to support "offset pods" (Slot.it and MRRC do make inline crown gears optimised for 1mm & 2mm offset respectively) Disadvantages of each layout: Sidewinder Disadvantages Gears vary in pitch in order to keep the gear diameters the same often leading to rougher meshing and inefficient power transmission. Only smaller can motors can be fitted in this layout Not all sidewinder motors will fit all sidewinder pods and some combinations will require motor can modification or specialist axles. Motor can only be run in one direction Inline Disadvantages Can cause skewing of the car under hard braking and hard acceleration due to longitudinal forces that the motor creates The power transmission goes through a 90 degree delivery lowering transmission efficiency. Inline motors have the largest "sliding" of crown teeth over pinion teeth, lowering transmission efficiency. Inline crowns have angled teeth so the beginning and the end of the cycle of the pinion are not properly aligned and are inefficient. Motor shaft is typically used to centre the crown and grinds against the inner surface of the crown alignment slot. Axle clamps/collars can mitigate the grinding but introduces sideways loads on the axle bearings. Lowering the motor in the car (via offset pods > 0.5mm) requires offset gears Angle-winder Disadvantages Can produce enough to power (concentric to the axle) to lift the front of the car clean out of the slot. - Known as "power de-slot" A lot of the weight is close to the rear axle which can cause the "pendulum effect". The car can become tail-end happy. The heavy long can motor is right up against the rear axle increasing the effective un-sprung weight and lowering the effectiveness of pod suspension systems. Variable pitch gearing (in order to keep the diameters the same) leading to rough and often inefficient power transmission. The Motor can only be run in one direction. In summary, there is no "best" layout. Each has advantages and disadvantages and those come into play as different tracks test the cars in different ways. All manufacturers seem to angle motors slightly differently. The NSR angle is lot less steep than the Ninco angle. Some manufacturers even sit sidewinders in at a noticeable angle. (The Thunder Slot "side winder" is quite steeply angled) I have found that inline setups seem to be able to handle much more powerful motors than angle winders but if you look to BRSCA, they run hugely powerful angle winders without power de-slot issues. In Closing Next month I will be testing the "R" version - Racing version - of the same model ScaleAuto Porsche as tested in "Home Series" configuration this month. Also to come in February, part one of an article on gluing and truing tyres. Meanwhile I wish you all an excellent resumption of normal life; and for those in clubs and racing groups, a successful return to "hostilities" on the track. May you increase your laps, reduce your deslots, and enjoy the tinkering to sweep all before you.

The DINO files: Ford GT40 set-up

The DINO files: Ford GT40 set-up Start removing the body and take a look to the motor mount. Using the axle with has a reduced section in the middle, we'll improve clearance between axle and motor can,