Customizing Slot Cars
Slot cars intrigue me because you mix and match parts to make the ultimate vehicle. If the car is slow, try putting a different gear on it. If that doesn’t work, replace it with a new motor. The number of performance optimizations that can be done, depending on racing style, is truly unlimited.
Getting Started with Slot Cars
Slot cars run on electricity powered by a wall outlet. There are battery-powered models geared towards young kids. Regardless, the way you accelerate or brake is the same. To accelerate, push the button or trigger down; to slow down or stop, release it.
There are plenty of ready-to-race slot car sets available. You can purchase them at Walmart, Target, Amazon, or any hobby store. To easily find them, go online and search for slot car race tracks. The basic track will be a two-car set, but more advanced sets have up to six cars.
Slot Car Brands and Manufacturers
Smaller-scale cars like HO are good for those with limited space. Good HO scales are AFX and Auto World. Scalextric makes some of these cars, but they call them micro.
Speaking of Scalextric, they make the 1:32 scale, which is bigger. You’ll need a bedroom size to run the track on, but the cars will be more detailed. Carrera Toys also makes 1:32 and would be a direct competitor to Scalextric.
Slot Car Parts and Accessories
Slot car accessories are available for every model. There’s an unlimited amount of slot car parts out there. You won’t be disappointed if you purchase them new or on eBay. There are many segmented accessories, such as slot car drag strips. Those are also available if you are looking for something specific, like pit kits.
Slot Car Racing
Things have changed a lot with slot car racing in the past. Few facilities remain where you can go and pay to play. Many manufacturers started to build computerized racing into the tracks to combat this. An example would be with the Dragster model kits. They purposely built dragster return loops to make it easy for you to retrieve the car. Slot car systems have digital lap counters and computerized slot car chassis.
