Help:: slot cars

[savagefan04]

hey guys, i need some help. my sister is picking up a slot car set for my nephew, so it will only be a matter of time before my boys ask for a set. my boys are 5 and 3.5 so i need a relatively 'forgiving' set that will not break the bank but has replaceable parts.

what scale should a get? what type of car, stock, TC etc? which maker?

help i'm lost.

thanks

 

[Lessen]

Well, if you're looking at hobby grade then not breaking the bank is significantly harder to do. However, a good set is very forgiving. My 19 month old has a tendency to walk on the track all the time despite my attempts to keep her off of it. I bought an SCX set for my boy when he was 3 I think. I've been very happy with it. Durability is great. We have the non-digital type which is significantl less expensive and just fine for fun. Digital is overkill and unecessary for little little ones IMO. I have a small variety of cars including stock cars, sports cars and Formula 1 cars. The stock cars are longer and they have a lot of roll to them. They don't handle as well and they don't like hairpin turns very much. If you go to slow the will drop the inside rear wheel off the track and get stuck. Formula 1 cars look awesome but they are delicate and significantly harder to drive. I won't let my boy use the F1 cars yet. Sports cars are great all around cars. They handle well and are pretty durable except for spoilers and mirrors and such. Pretty much all of our sports cars have lost their wings. The boy doesn't care though and frankly neither do I. They have fun with it and that's all I really care about. It works everytime I bring it out and If something does go wrong I can get replacement parts. Also, if you like to Ebay, you can generally pick up lots of used track for very cheap. Especially considering the new digital stuff that is out you can find the standard analog track parts used for a lot less than you'd spend retail.

 

[savagefan04]

J - thank you. you the man SCX it is.

 

[Lessen]

What I really like about SCX is that they have a track builder on their website. You can virtually build a track and print it out. It will also give a listing of the different track parts used and how many of each. Anytime I build a layout that I really like I go to the website and re-create it. I print it out and put it with the set so I can build it again at a later time.

 

[NCNitro]

So, you guys still running slot cars? I just acquired a set myself. I took a ride to my friends house so he could pick up some of his stuff after his divorce, while we were there I saw the slot car box and asked what he was gonna do with that. He said his kids used it like 3 times and completely lost interest in it, so he said if I wanted it I could have it. I don't know much about slot cars, but I was really in to them when I was a kid, I had the old AFX and Tyco tracks, so I was stoked to get this one. After getting it home and doing some research I found this is the Scaletric 1/32 scale A1 Formula one digital set, you can race four cars at once on the two lanes, and has digital lane changing and braking too. They even make a 6 car power supply where you can race 6 cars. Unfortunately the cars were not with it, but he said he would see if he could find them. After looking around I see the digital cars for this track aint cheap. 99% of the rest of the set is there in the original box, and it's all like brand new. So hopefully he can find the cars soon so I can start messing around with the track.

 

[Lessen]

Yep, every here and then Chase wants to play with the slot cars so we pull the boxes out of the closet and clear the living room. He enjoys them and I like 'em too.

Yes, digital sets are not cheap. That's quite a new set since digital really hasn't been around very long at all.

 

[NCNitro]

So you recommend sport cars for my sons? I see you said they handle better than the F-1 cars. Gonna have to sell off some of my die cast so I can get a few cars for my kids. Are the track sections from the analog tracks the same as the digital? of course with the exception of the lane changing track sections .I can't believe how much bigger the track is than the old stuff I ran as a kid, it should make for a nice set up in my basement for me and my boys to run, especially during the winter.

 

[slowngreen]

I got into them last year after Christmas and they were fun for a bit but I lost interest pretty quick and then they just took up room. Prolly get it going again this winter though.

 

[Lessen]

Yes, I would definitly stick with sports cars. The F1 cars look awesome but they are delicate and harder to drive. They require more skill to drive as they tend to be quite touchy on throttle off corner exit. They will spin out much easier than sports cars. No the tracks are different. Analog tracks won't hook up to the digital pieces. I decided not to go digital due to the cost difference.

 

[slowngreen]

They will spin out much easier than sports cars.

Really? Thats what I lost interest in it for was because my cars wreck super easy. Maybe I'll look into a couple new cars.

 

[Lessen]

You can also adjust the magnet on the bottom of the car. Turning the screws out will bring the magnet closer to the track creating more grip. Likewise, turning the screws in will raise the magnet and provide less traction.

 

[NitroRC4Life]

Wow a bunch of other guys are into slot cars as well. I have been into them for about 2 years now and I have a bunch of them downstairs i have about 20 of them. My two favorite brands/sizes are Carrera and Scalextric 1/32 cars. I have F1's, sports cars, stock cars, and the big trucks too. Carerra cars are not the best racers, but have A LOT of detail and look exactly like the real thing. Then you have scalextric, they are great racers, all of mine are loaded with aftermarket parts, motors, wheels, tires, magents.

Carerra is a very good brand, and I think for your nephew one of their sets would be perfect. Does he like any certain kind of car? I wouldn't recommend a stock car set as they flip very easily. Something like the corvette, or VW Rabbit both are great cars. They have a lot of sets to choose from, and all of them come with different cars. Go for analog too, not digital. For beginners it is not a fun thing to mess with programming the track and everything like that.

SCX is a good brand too, I don't have a lot of experience with them, but their tracks looks to be a bit more durable, but not as quality like a carerra, or scalextric. I hope this helped and tell us what your sister ends up buying! Thanks..

 

[NCNitro]

What set do you have Lloyd?

No the tracks are different. Analog tracks won't hook up to the digital pieces.

Well that sucks.

 

[Lessen]

What set do you have Lloyd?



Well that sucks.

I can only say specifically for the SCX brand though. That's what we have.

 

[NCNitro]

I'll have to look in to it for the scalextric set. I am a total noob to these type of slot car tracks, so thanks for the help.

 

[slowngreen]

Mines a Tyco track if I remember right. Prolly not as good as what you guys run though.

 

[NCNitro]

I had Tyco back in the day, TCR if I remember correctly. But I aint running anything at the moment, I don't have any cars, lol

I have just been looking at cars, Carrera has a much larger selection with a greater variety of cars, will the digital Carrera cars work on a scalextric digital track?