An Introduction To The World Of Slot Cars
An Introduction To The World Of Slot Cars
When you are new to the hobby of slot car racing or shopping for a set for your children it can be confusing with all the different sizes and makes. In this article I explain what you need to know to have better idea all about slot cars.
There are two types of slot cars, there is the analog cars and the new digital ones. The traditional or analog slot cars are those that you might remember from your younger days. This is where it was one car per slot and the car had to stay in that slot for the whole race.
With digital sets another dimension has been added to the racing action. You can race more than one car per slot and change lanes, make passing moves or blocking moves, program in pits tops, ghost cars, yellow flags etc. A lot more like the full size sport. There are sets where you can race 8 cars at the same time on a 2 lane slot car set. They are more expensive than the analog sets.
Digital slot cars can generally work on analog sets but analog cars will not work on digital sets with out a digital plug upgrade.
Slot cars also come in different sizes. The smallest size is HO or 1:64 scale. Initially they made to work with model train sets but they are now definitely made for racing - they are quick and can race over some fantastic track layouts. The next size up is 1:43 scale and is designed for the younger racer with many fun features and character cars. The 1:32 scale is a popular size car for racing at home and there is a wide selection of sets. The biggest size car is in the 1:24 and is commonly found racing at slot car raceway clubs.
Cars from different scale will not work well on tracks of a different scale as they are designed to work on the same scale track (except for Carrera has 1:32 scale cars that race on 1:24 scale track).
Slot cars of the same scale from different manufacturers can race on the same scale track. But, track made by different makers can usually only be put together with use of special adapter track which will have to purchased..
There are several different makers of slot cars. The most popular ones are Scalextric, Carrera, AFX, Life Like, Revell and SCX. Sets for these makes are available from hobby stores, large dept stores and from online shopping sites including Amazon and eBay. The widest selection of cars and sets are made by Scalextric and Carrera.
One of the areas of slot car racing that can be frustrating to someone new to the hobby is that the cars will come off the track if they are driven too fast around the curves or too slow through some of the obstacles. The majority of people master this skill in no time.
To help with keeping the cars in the manufacturers have added traction magnets to the car to exert downward force thereby allowing cars to stay on the track at faster speeds. Because of the magnets the cars can climb vertically and race upside down for a time.
For the younger beginners and those without much space the Carrera Go range will make a good place to get started. There is an interesting selection of cars and being 1:43 scale you can fit a lot of action into a relatively small area. They are an analog slot car set and this helps to keep the cost more affordable.
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In this brief article we have given you the basics of slot car racing. If you want to know more and read in depth slot car reviews check out http://www.myslotcarracing.com
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