# Plan for my track, advice?



## tom750 (Mar 6, 2007)

Hey guys

I am planning to build my first track. As some of you may know I am pretty young, I just turned 15 so any help I could get would be awsome.

my track design is attached and it took me about a week to come up with it and i am pleased. If there are any major flaws to it please let me know.

As part of my school project I will be designing and making all the scenary so that will be good

Thanks for you help

Tom


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## Scafremon (Dec 11, 2006)

Tom,

The gaps between the tracks is interesting. I'm guessing you did that intentionally, and wondering why. Not that it is a bad thing - it's just different from what I mostly see. If you run non-magnet cars though, you may find that cars deslot when they slide around the turn and the rear wheels fall into the gap. 

Here is a thought that I have been considering for my track (or my next track) and one you might be interested in. Since you are 15, and mentioned that part of the track build will be for a school project, and if you learning geometry, then you might impress your math teacher as a bonus.

The idea is to give the perception that the cars are taking the 'inside line' when they go around corners. Look at the track slots on the following pic:



(PS: More pics of this awesome track can be found here http://www.f1specialties.com/main/racetrack/racetrack.html - thanks Crimnick!)

I'm wondering if we can get the same perception across by painting borders around the track, and not painting the track itself. 

Four lanes of track is 6" wide. If you make a 'virtual' track that is 9" wide, and then vary the extra 3" on the inside and outside, you can accomplish this. 

I did a scale version (ala Sed6) of one of my track turns to test this idea.

Here is the actual turn:



Here is a one third scale version on paper:



And here is the same scale turn, except made with a virtual track that is 3" wider.



Painting red/white stripes on the inside corner like Cordoba has done here also helps the concept.










If I would have adjusted the straights entering and exiting the turn it would have looked better. In addition, if I would have altered the virtual 'apex' of the corner in relation to the fixed plastic track corner apex, it would sell the idea better. The geometry came into play as I calculated the radius of the circles.

Just a thought....might be more work then you (or I for that matter) want to do, but I think it could be interesting.


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## tom750 (Mar 6, 2007)

Thanks a lot ill think about doing that, I am still deciding the theme of my track but i think I want the long straight to be in the town and the back part to be in the country.

The gaps in the road is by accident, the track builder I was using (ultimate racer 3.0) but them in there by it self and I tried for a couple of hours to stop it, in the end I figured there was something wrong with the program and the track wouldnt do that.

Please if anybody has any more comments or advice please share

Tom


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## Slott V (Feb 3, 2005)

Tom- That layout offers a good even exchange of inside and outside turns for the gutter lanes.

Scaf- that's a great idea I've always wanted to incorporate. I want to do a track in a city like Montreal or the Long Beach GP and paint it to look like a temp circuit on streets and make the corners to look as if the drivers line apex's the inside.

Again, another Jason Boye track sets the mark:


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## BewstdGT (Jan 4, 2005)

Thanks for posting that link Jeff, that portugal track is flat out amazing! Clearly someone has too much free time haha. I dont have that kind of patience.

I like the layout he has going. Its different and gives tons of room for scenery. And since thats his objective....go for it!!


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## bubbahotep7 (Mar 13, 2007)

tom750:
What did you use to design that layout in your above post?

Also:
Any more pics of that Jason Boye track? Is that HO scale? Wow.


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## tom750 (Mar 6, 2007)

I used Ultimate Racer 3.0


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## wm_brant (Nov 21, 2004)

Bubbahotep:

That Jason Boyle track was called Le Monzaco. It was a *very* accurate HO scale representation of the Monaco track, including real water in the marina, sound in the tunnel, and much, much more. Unfortunately, the track was torn down (it was not designed to be moved), although I have heard that someone bought the track and has it in storage.

Interestingly enough, the entire track was built from plastic track. They cut/filled/whatever to make the track do what they wanted it to do. In retrospect, they felt they should have routed it; it would have been a lot less work.

The track has been featured in print several times; in Robert Schleicher's books (sorry, can't remember which one or ones) and magazine (Model Car Racing), and in Scale Auto's HO Slot Car Journal #5 (B&W) #9 (color). Both issues are still available - $5 for #5, $10 for #9.

-- Bill


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## Slott V (Feb 3, 2005)

I have a couple of magazines that featured LeMonzaco. I can't remember all of them but I think Scale Auto Racing News had it on the cover years back. Supposedly the track is on "film" too, meaning possibly a video out there somewhere. If someone has it they should "YouTube" it!  

More places to find information on LeMonzaco: This track was the biggest incentive for me to do a realistic slot car track back in 1990.  I think there are a couple of back issues with articles if you dig around the site:
http://www.modelcarracingmag.com/20040320/Pages/yourtrack.html

** OK, threadjack over~! **


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## BradsTracks (Dec 11, 2007)

*LeMonzaco and me*

Hello fellow racing enthusiasts, I found this thread about LeMonzaco. Jason is a friend of mine and I helped him build parts of LeMonzaco. Jason is very passionate about scale, and calling his track "HO" would infuriate him. OK so,.... "so called 'HO' scale" slot cars can run it, but if I remember correctly, he built it to 1/55th size. (Not 1/87th, HO scale) This is because the trucks and figurines he could get out of Europe (at the time) were this size.
I keep saying "size" because you shouldn't say "scale" when referring to a fractional number. It's OK to say "N" scale or "HO" scale but not when it's a fraction.
None of our current slot cars are anywhere close to HO scale. Most of them are closer to 1/64th size. There are some folks out there that aren't that concerned about scale, but for those who are, you should build the scenery on your "so called HO" track to that size (1/64th). That's the size we built the Katz-Spa-Ring to.
Keep it in the slot, www.bradstracks.com


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## rudykizuty (Aug 16, 2007)

Glad to see this thread got bumped to the top, as I do not believe I have seen it before. Only been here since August. Anyway....

Tom, please tell us how the project worked out or is coming along. Do you have any pics?


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## Crimnick (May 28, 2006)

WOW...welcome Brad.....dude...you are like a rock star in the slot world...

I just want to say how impressed I am with all your work and I hope one day to purchase one of your tracks... :thumbsup:


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## 1976Cordoba (Sep 20, 2000)

Crimnick said:


> WOW...welcome Brad.....dude...you are like a rock star in the slot world...
> 
> I just want to say how impressed I am with all your work and I hope one day to purchase one of your tracks... :thumbsup:


Ditto to what he said -- and WELCOME!

Be sure to drop by regularly now :wave:


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## coach61 (Sep 6, 2004)

Crimnick said:


> WOW...welcome Brad.....dude...you are like a rock star in the slot world...
> 
> I just want to say how impressed I am with all your work and I hope one day to purchase one of your tracks... :thumbsup:



I also have to agree, and to make you feel right at home and one of the Ht gang, send me your tracks I will take of them for you...lol...


Coach! :wave:


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## Grandcheapskate (Jan 5, 2006)

tom750 said:


> The gaps in the road is by accident, the track builder I was using (ultimate racer 3.0) but them in there by it self and I tried for a couple of hours to stop it, in the end I figured there was something wrong with the program and the track wouldnt do that.
> 
> Tom


Tom,
Ultimate Racer 3.0 has a bug in it that causes the gap in between embedded curves. There is a support forum on www.slotcarillustrated.com for this program. I had the same problem with the program and the designer confirmed the error. I designed a four lane track and when I connected the last piece, the layout lost al it's shape. I ended up saving the layout without the last piece in place; it's the only way to avoid the bug.

Joe


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