New Scalextric Street Sliderz set

New Scalextric Gallardo

New SCX 550 Ferrari and STCC Volvo

Artin Bomber Series Builders Guide

Wanted to share with the readers of SCN an article on how we go about building a Saturday Night Bomber car using the Artin Chassis as a platform. Home Racers across the country have been building these for quite some time now and the popularity of them seems to keep growing.

Soon an Artin Stocker Series will be organized Nationwide where several classes of Artin Stockers will be raced along with this class of Bombers.

So if you enjoy good old American Saturday Night dirt track racing, we hope this article will help you create your very own bomber!

CLICK HERE FOR FULL ARTICLE

- Harry

Nascar's ready for Martinsville

Raid Slot World - video

Somehow I think I've missed out on a really great aspect of slot racing every time I see a cool rally slot video like this one. I saw it on Raid Slot World and I just couldn't resist posting it.

New archive and new contributors

I've begun to reorganize the archives a bit. Now if you look near the bottom of the page you will see a "How To" archive has been added. Articles are going to be linked there so they're not lost in the shuffle of all the news posts. Since Steve Sawtelle (Slot Car Corner) has joined Slot Car News as a contributing writer, it makes sense to have a How To archive as its own distinct section.

Steve will be writing on a number of topics as well as posting the news that he has from his own line of niche products that he produces... products BTW that are made here in the US.

Philippe Marchand has joined Slot Car News as well. Philippe is a respected 1/43 enthusiast... as well as a fan of the larger scales as well, eh Philippe?

And...Harry Wise of Home Racing World has joined as well! Harry's contributions to the world of slot cars here in the US is, to say the least, substantial.

Soon more writers will be added to Slot Car News to add to the range of slot-voices heard here.

Dave Kennedy
Publisher, Slot Car News

SCX SEAT 131 - more photos

More photos to show today of the SCX SEAT.

SCX Nascar Road Enduro...Hello Louisville!

Louisville's Bullitt Speedway is hosting a race. Info from the thread posted on Home Racing World:

"SCX NASCAR Road Course Enduro and Tri-Oval Race at their tracks on this Saturday, March 29 - track opens at 8 AM, qualifying at 11 AM, and plans to wrap up in early evening (6 PM-ish). A $15 entry fee applies for each of the two races. No cars are necessary to bring - the races will be run IROC style, with the cars supplied by Bullitt Speedway, staying on each lane while drivers rotate, so it will be a test of driving style, and no laborious car setup before race day. An SCX representative will be present to provide support and observe the success of such events (so show up and support it!), with prizes given out, plaques, and lots of stuff. The 155 foot, 8 lane Blue King wood road course will be run using 2-man teams (fast and slowest qualifiers teamed together), with the 110 ft. wood High-Banked 8-Lane Tri-Oval run solo.

If you have any questions, you can call the Speedway at (502) 955-5509. "

SCX's own Bryan Young will be there doing demo's and showing photos of the latest Nascars too.

DaveK

Bushing Alignment

Steve Sawtelle of Slot Car Corner has put together a video which demonstrates how to install and align aftermarket bushings into a plastic 1/32 RTR chassis. Proper bushing alignment is an example of a "little thing" which when combined with other "little things" can make a big difference in how well your car performs. The bushing alignment procedure shown in this article can be performed by virtually all 1/32 slot car racers - no special skills are required. The whole process takes just a few minutes to perform and there is minimal one-time investment required to purchase a burr bit and pin gage like those shown in the article.

The chassis used for this demonstration is a Scalextric Monte Carlo (Nascar); however, this same technique can be applied to a wide variety of 1/32 slot cars which come stock with Scalextric-style nylon or brass bushings.

For those of you who prefer the convenience of a pre-packaged kit, you can purchase bushing alignment kits in the Slot Car Corner Online Store.

Note: The video is broken down into 3 segments because of length restrictions imposed by YouTube.

Bushing Alignment - Part 1




Bushing Alignment - Part 2




Bushing Alignment - Part 3

New SCX Nascars

Slot City commercial

Not news but a neat commercial posted on Slot Forum originally.

Profiling SuperTires

Steve Sawtelle from Slot Car Corner has put together a brief video which demonstrates how to put a smooth, rounded profile on Super Tires ®. The profiling technique demonstrated in the video is VERY easy, quick (once you get the hang of it, you can profile both edges of a tire in 1-2 minutes) and yields excellent results. Note the same technique can also be used for the recently introduced "Yellow Dog" Super Tires (R).

Slot Car Corner is an authorized distributor of the Super Tires ®. The complete line of Super Tires ® and Yellow Dog Super Tires are available for purchase in the Slot Car Corner Online Store.

New SCX Montoya Nascar - Aero body

Photos of new SCX Juan Pablo Montoya's Nascar to show today.

Slot MiniAuto 42

COMUNICADO DE PRENSA

SLOT MINIAUTO 42 - ABRIL


La edición del mes de Abril de la revista Slot MiniAuto, dedica la portada al nuevo Porsche 911 GT3 Cup de Scalextric. Además de la prueba de este coche, en el interior se puede encontrar las pruebas en pista del Lamborghini Gallardo de Ninco, Gordini T32 de Cartrix, Chevrolet Camaro Concept de Carrera y los nuevos Dream Slot Car del fabricante italiano Ostorero.
Este mes Slot MiniAuto inaugura dos secciones nuevas, una dedicada a los MINISLOT, el slot de escalas menores (1:43 y H0) y otra, LOS 10 PRINCIPALES, en la que cada mes se publicará un ranking con los coches más vendidos en España el mes anterior.
La revista se completa con las secciones habituales de técnica, coleccionismo, kit de montaje, novedades, noticias y competición.
PRESS RELEASE

SLOT MINIAUTO 42 - APRIL

Slot MiniAuto magazine edition of April, dedicate the cover to the new SCX’s Porsche 911 GT3 Cup. In addition to this car test, inside can be found the Ninco’s Lamborghini Gallardo track test, the same as Gordini T32 Cartrix, Chevrolet Camaro Concept of Carrera and the new Dream Slot Car from Italian Manufacturer Ostorero.
This month, Slot MiniAuto introduce two new sections, one of them dedicated to “MINISLOT”, 1:43 and H0 slot scales, and the other “THE TOP 10”. It will publish a list of the top selling cars in Spain in the previous month.
The magazine is with the usual sections, technical, collecting, mounting kit, novelties, news and competition completed.COMUNICATO STAMPA

SLOT MINIAUTO 42 - APRILE

La edizione di aprile da Slot MiniAuto, dedica la sua copertina al nuovo Porsche 911 GT3 Cup di SCX. In aggiunta al test di questa macchina, può essere trovata all'interno la prova in pista della Lamborghini Gallardo di Ninco, la stessa di Gordini T32 Cartrix, Chevrolet Camaro Concept di Carrera e de la nuova Dream Slot Car di Ostorero.
Questo mese, Slot MiniAuto introdurre due nuove sezioni, una delle quali dedicata a "MINISLOT", slot scale (1:43 e H0) e gli altri "TOP 10". Essa pubblicherà un elenco delle auto top di vendita in Spagna nel mese precedente.
La rivista è completata con la sezioni di tecnica, collezionismo, kit di montaggio, novità, notizie slot e la competizione.PRESSEMITTEILUNG

SLOT MINIAUTO 42 - ÄPRIL

Spanisches Slot MiniAuto Magazin Ausgabe von April, gewidmet seine Titelseite auf den neuen SCX-Porsche 911 GT3 Cup. Zusätzlich zu diesem Auto test finden Sie in, der Lamborghini Gallardo Ninco-Track-Test, die gleichen wie Gordini T32 Cartrix, Chevrolet Camaro Konzept von Carrera und der neuen Dream Slot Car aus italienischen Hersteller Ostorero.
Zwei neue Abschnitte präsentiert Slot MiniAuto diesen Monat. Einer, "MINISLOT", für 1:43 und H0 Slot, der andere, "TOP 10". Es wird eine Liste der Beste Verkäufer Autos in Spanien im Vormonat.
Die Zeitschrift ist mit den üblichen Sektionen, technik, Sammlung, Montagekit, Neuheiten, Nachrichten und Wettbewerb abgeschlossen.

NSR Mosler fact sheet

This brochure showed up in my email the other day. While it's not news, it's certainly good reference.

New Smith Scale Speedway/TomCat Dirt Modified bodies

From the Smith Scale Speedway website:

We are really happy to have hooked with a brand new source for slot car bodies. Tom Bryner of TomCat Dirt Bodies is producing these awesome laminated paper dirt modifieds. A lot of folks are skeptical about laminated, folded bodies. We were too until we saw these. Tom did a great job of engineering an easy to install, sturdy slot car body. We compared these bodies to pictures we found of dirt modifieds, and they look right. He eliminated all the usual open seam joints, and weak sections that used to be typical with this type of body. The nose section is notched to drop into an Artin chassis perfectly. The rear section slides into the nose with a tab and tapes or Velcro's to the side of the Artin. Click the pics to enlarge.

Finally...Nationwide Series slot car commercial

New SCX SEAT 131

Bantuslot is showing the latest SCX Fiat (edit, SEAT) 131...click on the photo to be taken to Bantuslot.

Massa's on the pole, Hamilton's in the doghouse.

AutoArt news March/April

Estimated product availability - March 2008

80609 1/18 ASTON MARTIN DBR9 "RED BULL" SPA 2006 #33
80706 1/18 ASTON MARTIN DBR9 LEMANS GT1 CLASS WINNER 2007 D.BRABHAM/R.RYDELL/D.TURNER #009
89381 1/18 NISSAN SKYLINE GT-R(R32) GROUP A 1993 BP OIL TRAMPIO GT-R(SHIFT)(LIMITED EDITION 3000PCS WORLDWIDE)
80786 1/18 PORSCHE 911(997) GT3 RSR PLAIN BODY VERSION (WHITE)
80787 1/18 PORSCHE 911(997) GT3 RSR PLAIN BODY VERSION (BLACK)
80499 1/18 HONDA NSX JGTC 2004 EPSON #32
75362 1/18 LOTUS EXIGE (ORANGE)
76211 1/18 MERCEDES-BENZ 500 SEC COUPE 1986 (BLACK)
76212 1/18 MERCEDES-BENZ 500 SEC COUPE 1986 (SILVER)
76197 1/18 MERCEDES- BENZ 600 LWB PULLMAN (BLACK)
76103 1/18 MERCEDES-BENZ G MODEL 90'S LWB (WHITE)
76246 1/18 MERCEDES-BENZ G55 AMG VERSION （BLACK）
76247 1/18 MERCEDES-BENZ G55 AMG VERSION (SILVER)
76266 1/18 MERCEDES-BENZ C-KLASSE T-MODELL (S204) ELEGANCE (SILVER)
76267 1/18 MERCEDES-BENZ C-KLASSE T-MODELL (S204) AVANTGARDE(BLACK)
73072 1/18 FORD SHELBY GR-1 CONCEPT(SILVER METALLIC/TUNGSTEN GREY METALLIC STRIPES)
73073 1/18 FORD SHELBY GR-1 CONCEPT(GUARDSMAN BLUE/WHITE STIPRES)

56116 1/43 MERCEDES-BENZ G55 AMG (SILVER)
56117 1/43 MERCEDES-BENZ G55 AMG (BLACK)

Estimated product availability - April 2008

89378 1/18 NISSAN SKYLINE GT-R(R32) GROUP A 1993 UNISIA JECS SKYLINE 1# (HASEMT MOTORSPOT) (LIMITED EDITION 5000PCS WORLDWIDE)
80773 1/18 PORSCHE RS SPYDER LEMANS 2007 (CARBON FIBER LIVERY)
80771 1/18 PORSCHE 911(997) GT3 RSR LEMANS GT2 CLASS WINNER 2007 R.LIETZ/P.LONG/R.NARAC #76
80788 1/18 PORSCHE 911(997) GT3 RSR ALMS 2007 FLYING LIZARD #44
80497 1/18 HONDA NSX JGTC 2004 RAYBRING #100
80498 1/18 HONDA NSX JGTC 2004 TAKATA DOME #18
78062 1/18 PORSCHE CAYENNE TURBO (BLACK)
78061 1/18 PORSCHE CAYENNE TURBO (GREY METALLIC)

56206 1/43 MERCEDES-BENZ S63 AMG (SILVER)
56207 1/43 MERCEDES-BENZ S63 AMG (BLACK)
56246 1/43 MERCEDES-BENZ CL63 AMG (SILVER)
56247 1/43 MERCEDES-BENZ CL63 AMG (BLACK)

Racer's "Sideways" website is up!

Well Racer's Sideways website is up, it's not completely functional yet. These should be quite an exciting slot car for the US market. To be taken to the website click on the photo.

Hamilton's ready for the heat...

Will Lewis get a much needed shower of cooling Champagne after enduring the heat in Malaysia?Photo copyright McLaren.com.

Fly Poly Cars

News today from REH about Fly's new "Poly" cars. Click on the photos to read them and make them larger.

HRS chassis testing

Torquemadslot's blog has a review of the HRS at this link. And I've added a link to this blog in the sidebar links.

Sepang heat - F1 preview & Indy Car signings

Slot MiniAuto Yearbook 2008

COMUNICADO DE PRENSA

ANUARIO SLOT MINIAUTO YEARBOOK 2008

Un año más, Slot MiniAuto presenta su edición del Anuario Slot. Un recopilatorio de todos los modelos de Slot, en escala 1:32 y 1:24 aparecidos a lo largo del año 2007. Con 400 fotografías a color de todas las referencias de todos los fabricantes y la ficha técnica de todos los modelos nuevos.
El Anuario Slot MiniAuto se edita sólo en Español y se distribuye en todo el mundo. Una herramienta exclusiva e imprescindible para todos los aficionados al slot.
A la venta a partir del 28 de marzo.


PRESS RELEASE

ANUARIO SLOT MINIAUTO YEARBOOK 2008

Once again, Slot MiniAuto presents its edition of the Slot Car Yearbook. A compilation of all slot car models, at 1:32 and 1:24 scale, appearing along the year 2007. With 400 full color pictures of all references to all manufacturers and data sheets for all new 2007 models.
The Slot MiniAuto Yearbook is published only in Spanish and is distributed worldwide. A unique and indispensable tool for all slot fans.
From March 28 on sale.


COMUNICATO STAMPA

ANUARIO SLOT MINIAUTO ANNUARIO

Ancora una volta, Slot MiniAuto presenta la sua edizione del Annuario Slot. Una compilazione di tutti i automodelli di slot, in scala 1:32 e 1:24 prodotto durante l'anno 2007. 400 immagini a colori con di tutti i riferimenti a tutti i produttori e per le schede di dati di tutti i nuovi modelli 2007.
Il Annuario Slot MiniAuto è pubblicato solo in spagnolo, ed è distribuito in tutto il mondo. Un unico e indispensabile strumento per tutti gli appassionati di slot.
In vendita dal 28 di Marzo.PRESSEMITTEILUNG

ANUARIO SLOT MINIAUTO JAHRBUCH

Slot MiniAuto präsentiert seine Ausgabe der Slot-Car-Jahrbuch. Eine Zusammenstellung aller Slot Auto-Modelle, die auf dem Maßstab 1:32 und 1:24 des gesamten Jahres 2007 erscheinen während. Mit 400 Farbbilder aller Verweise auf alle Hersteller und Datenblätter für alle 2007 neuen Modelle.
Die Slot-MiniAuto Jahrbuch erscheint nur auf Spanisch und wird weltweit vertrieben. Ein einzigartiges und unverzichtbares Werkzeug für alle Slotfans.
Vom 28. März zum Verkauf.

Sloter Rally Opel Manta's reviewed

I have to admit the arrival of a pair of Opel Manta rally cars from Sloter was a bit of a head scratcher for me. I'm not a huge rally kinda guy. I've done a lot of staring at them and I must admit they've grown on me. This is a pretty straight forward slot car, no lights, no crazy motor pod, and no "science experiment" type of chassis to tune. One slot racer described Sloter cars as "simple and elegant"... in this case I'd have to agree that the simplicity of these cars is nice.

There's something sort of charming about these cars they're maybe not the most racy looking car, forgive me if you're a huge fan of Opel's and you've grown up loving them, but as I said Opel's aren't exactly a household name in North America.

It's sort of sad really that rally is nearly impossible to see on TV in the US. There's something cool about rally racing and its rock spewing, power sliding around corners while trying to avoid the trees and, more often than not, overeager spectators lining the race course...heck, what's not to like?
Printing on these cars is well done, it's straightforward with no blemishes. Some area's, like over the rear wheels, the printing looked a bit thin but still sharp. But on most of the car the white printing is nice and opaque, which as any painter will tell you is a tricky thing to do.
The white plastic wheels are sort of blocky looking. They're decent models of the originals, if somewhat shallower in the rear than they should be.
Under that huge back window there's a fire extinguisher and you can see the roll cage and the half-pan interior. There is something sort of pleasing about the blocky, squareness of this car.

Given my ignorance of all things rally you might not find it surprising that I was very surprised to see an SCX motor mounted as an anglewinder. Not that the motor being there itself was all that much of a shock, but rather an anglewinder?

I'd heard while in Spain that SCX motors are favored due to their torque for rally racing. And since the open can SCX Pro Speed motor does seem to have a fair amount of torque I guess it makes it a good choice rather than the standard Sloter FC130 Mabuchi. And haven't I heard that if you mount an open can motor as an anglewinder you get more magnetic downforce for, um..."non magnetic" racing? So I guess I've talked myself in a circle...

The motor is not in a pod but rather is held tightly with a screw at the driven end which helps hold the motor in place firmly (seen two photos below). And there's a 10-tooth pinion on the end to drive the 27-tooth gear.
Here's a shot of the front of the chassis where you can see the arrangement that Sloter has done with the body mount and drop arm guide. The two screws (pointing up) and are threaded into the chassis from the bottom seem to be there for making the chassis more flatly set against the body. The small screw in the center (threaded down towards the guide) seems to be a guide stop (maybe) but it's not the whole way through the chassis and I'm honestly not sure of the function of this. The screw in the center of the chassis (pointing up) is the body mount screw. I know that Sloter had some issues with these chassis this car seems to work just fine, so I don't think this is one of the effected chassis that they replaced.

One thing worth noting is that for some reason this car, even with the same running gear as SCX cars, this car doesn't have that same sort of thumpy magnetic feel that SCX's do. The gears feel quite smooth and are really very quiet.Well how does the car do on the track? Well... um... let's say it needs weight. On my SCX test track the 79 gram car lacked grip and tended to be quite bouncy (maybe the sprung guide helped the lightweight body along with this too). Laps were inconsistent because of this lack of grip. The tires seemed quite sticky I just think out of the box the boxy Opel just needs to gain a few grams to stick it down.

On the smooth wood test track the story was a bit better. With the car sticking a bit better but still lacking in grip. Other Sloter's have pretty good stock tires but these feel a bit less sticky.

To get the most from this car I'd think it will take weight so I'd think this car would best be suited for an experienced slot racer who likes to tune.

If you'd like to see even more photos of this slot car (and far better one's I might add)...check out the entry on DemoSlot's blog.



Dave Kennedy
Publisher, Slot Car News