Slot car thread - EDF Forum

villagio · 06-03-2010, 07:57 PM

Anyone here into slot cars (we call it Scalextric here in the UK)? I've recently bought a set now my boys are old enough (although my 1 yr old girl is pretty good too actually). Reliving my youth mainly (I'll be having my midlife crisis in 10yrs or so

).

I'm pretty surprised how good some of the cars are now, there's some manufacturers I never knew existed making decent stuff. It was only Scalextric (the brand) as I was growing up, and they still dominate in toyshops, but Slot.it (to name 1) make cracking cars.

Anyway I'm not sure of the current level of interest in slot cars in the US (they've made a comeback in the UK thanks to a TV show with James May, Top Gear presenter), but if anyone's into them, or has fond memories of them, please contribute.

villagio · 07-12-2010, 02:44 PM

Bump for pics of my latest cars.

My new pride and joy, NSR Ford P68:

$100 for a slot car?! Totally worth it though.

Slot.It Mclaren F1 GTR Gulf:

villagio · 07-12-2010, 05:50 PM

Mercedes SLR:

Jaguar XJR9:

Steve Mcqueen's Mustang from Bullitt:

Ferrari F60 (Felipe Massa):

Aston Martin DBR9:

Batmobile:

Maserati 250f (most beautiful car I've ever seen IRL):

steamraise · 07-12-2010, 06:29 PM

This is what I used to call slot cars.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqGvX...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2QTtg...eature=related

I also used to race cobalt magnet HO cars.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTyj6...eature=related

villagio · 07-12-2010, 06:55 PM

That last video sped up?! I'd hate to see the state of them when they crash if not. Sweet track in the first 2. Tempted to build a routed wood track in my garage.

I've started going magless with some of my cars, and got into tuning a bit too. The cheaper makes tend to prefer the magnets in though. Designed for kids to just hold down the throttle. The NSR below is a lot of fun magless.

Fixed the pics from 2nd post:

NSR Ford P68:

Slot.It Mclaren F1:

GDF · 07-12-2010, 06:57 PM

wow slot cars sure have changed.. i use to race them and they were like steam's pic, wings and all.

those look badass.

**citanul** · 07-13-2010, 01:44 PM

i used to race the cheaper looking plastic things posted above. that video is not sped up, and yes, if you flew off a corner you could wreck the body of the car pretty badly or even possibly mess up the guts of the machine. i don't know anything about these magnets? never seen any of these crazy awesome looking cars though.

PokerRon247 · 07-13-2010, 06:52 PM

I always wanted a Scalextric when I was a kid but was always denied by my parents ("We'll pay for it, you'll use it once and never touch it again"). I'm just waiting for that day when I buy a house with a loft/basement where I can set one of these babies up.

highhustla · 07-13-2010, 07:28 PM

I had a blast playing w/ AFX (HO scale) as a kid.

That looks way more hardcore though.

villagio · 07-14-2010, 05:35 AM

Yeah the cars have improved a lot since I had them as a kid. More manufacturers in competition so they've had to. The Steve Mcqueen Mustang is the first car from a new company and is quality.

These are 1:32 scale cars, the most widely sold in the UK (Micro Scalextric is 1:43, HO scale is 1:64 I think). I think 1:32 is the best compromise between space needed, cost, looks and availability for me. There is 1:24 scale now too (metal chassis, more powerful motors) but I'd need new track and more space.

I haven't gone digital yet though. With digital you can have up to 6 cars on 2 lanes, and crossovers for overtaking (by pushing a button on the controller). I bought a digital set a few years ago and it didn't work very well so took it back. There's a new digital powerbase coming out soon so I might consider it then.

villagio · 02-05-2012, 09:21 AM

Bump.

A few of the cars I've had since forgetting about this thread:

Slot.It Jaguar XJR6

Scalextric Lotus 49:

MRRC Chrome Cobra:

Autoart Scooby:

Ltd edition Collector's club Jaguar XKR:

I also won one of these in a forum competition, and sold it for £150 (!):

villagio · 02-05-2012, 09:25 AM

I started going to a local slot car club, but haven't been for a while. I was worried that they'd be too competitive but they don't take the racing too seriously. They run different classes of cars each week, none of which I own, so they let me borrow cars to race with.

Their track: