# "toughest" cars?



## billcj (Jun 19, 2012)

Hi all... I've read many threads about the "best" cars, but I need info. on the most durable....I intend to start a HO club at the middle school I teach in, and there will be a high potential for the cars to crash and fall approx. 4 ft to a very hard floor...Which brand/type do you think would be the best under these circumstances? I'll take all the precautions I can think of, but these will be 12-14 year-old kids and I'm pretty sure the worst will happen!
Thanks for your opinions and information..
Bill


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## Pomfish (Oct 25, 2003)

Life Like T Chassis cars.
The Nascar ones have no removable glass, are one piece and can take a thrashing.
They are the ultimate "Rental Slot Car"

Good luck
Keith


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## Dragula (Jun 27, 2003)

billcj said:


> Hi all... I've read many threads about the "best" cars, but I need info. on the most durable....I intend to start a HO club at the middle school I teach in, and there will be a high potential for the cars to crash and fall approx. 4 ft to a very hard floor...Which brand/type do you think would be the best under these circumstances? I'll take all the precautions I can think of, but these will be 12-14 year-old kids and I'm pretty sure the worst will happen!
> Thanks for your opinions and information..
> Bill


I may have 4 new in package LL stockers you can have,we use 'em for door stops.
Dragula


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## billcj (Jun 19, 2012)

thanks dragula...that made my day!!! (doorstops!)
on another site, the tyco 440x2 were recommended..
any thoughts on these?


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## plymouth71 (Dec 14, 2009)

The Life Likes are nice because they have a life time warranty. The tyco's are cheap about $4.00. 

I gave my church youth group a tyco set and some cars. They haven't reported any problems yet. I'm currently building them a permanent 4 lane track which you can follow on this thread if you are interested. ---> *HERE*


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## Hornet (Dec 1, 2005)

At 4 bucks a pop,the tyco's are hard to beat.
Lots of aftermarket hop-up parts are still available for it,if you ever want to show the kids how to hop one up.

The ones i've had though,usually come with a low ohming arm,most have been in the low 4's for ohmage.
If you're running on a track with good power,you'll have to keep that in mind if you're buying aftermarket controllers like the venerable old Parma's.

PShoe and Tossedman are both teachers,so you'll probably want to butter them up,especially Pshoe,i think Pauls re-writing the teaching manual,lol :thumbsup::wave:


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## slotcarman12078 (Oct 3, 2008)

One other thing to think about is servicing these cars. Not to put down inline chassis, but I myself have never been able to take one apart to service it without breaking something. The old reliable pancake cars are way easier to fix, though from the start might be a challenge to get running right. The inline type chassis are serviceable, but there are tricks to doing so. I'm sure there's plenty of guys here who can talk you through the process if necessary. I don't run them, so I never bothered to figure them out.


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## billcj (Jun 19, 2012)

Thanks Plymouth71...yep, I'm going to use a HC door and a layout from Greg Braun's site..no landscaping planned, but it might be something to consider down the road..like I said, I'm just getting started and don't know if there will even be any interest, yet...
I was given a link to a site that has the Mattel rolling chassis for $4, but I will need bodies, too..


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## billcj (Jun 19, 2012)

Hornet said:


> At 4 bucks a pop,the tyco's are hard to beat.
> Lots of aftermarket hop-up parts are still available for it,if you ever want to show the kids how to hop one up.
> 
> The ones i've had though,usually come with a low ohming arm,most have been in the low 4's for ohmage.
> ...


thanks, hornet...I'm planning on using TPP warts at school, so will stock Tomy contollers be ok with the tyco's @ 8 and 12v? No way will I use 22v with these kids!!
Now where did I put that butter...hmmmm:thumbsup:


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## Pomfish (Oct 25, 2003)

Stick with can motors, they don't fly apart after heavy damage.
Tomy turbos use the can motor but the rear gears on those are weak.

Old Marchon's are strong with can motors as well.


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## Grandcheapskate (Jan 5, 2006)

My first suggestion would be to get some kind of wall around the table to prevent the cars from hitting the floor. I remember when I didn't have any walls on the table and it was almost certain destruction whenever something hit the floor.

My choice for an "indestructable" chassis? The Tyco HP-7. Problem is they are no longer in production, but can be found used.

Why, you ask?

1. No small springs - in fact, no springs at all.
2. Runs right out of the box.
3. Can be assembled and disassembled without tools.

While I am a pancake guy rather than an inline guy, if I was starting someone out in this hobby, the HP-7 would be my choice for them. Then I would move them into the pancake world once they get the hang of it.

The other thing to remember is it's not just the chassis that's going to "explode" when a car hits the floor. Not a lot of bodies will survive long under those conditions.

Joe


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## Dragula (Jun 27, 2003)

I have literally ran T chassis LL with no shoes for track cleaners,there tough,cheap and easily serviceable for young kids,and really dont need much servicing.Tycos tend to fly apart when smacked hard but are decent to,tough to argue with the downforce of a t-chassis ll though.JMHO


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## plymouth71 (Dec 14, 2009)

And they are pretty darn fast Too ! I have two of them that are great for drag racing


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## alpink (Aug 22, 2010)

billcj, let me know what you are going to do and maybe PM your mailing address, I have some bodies to fit TYCO chassis and some to fit LifeLike chassis.
always interested in helping get todays youth into slot racing, some will progress into slot drag racing then. 
LOL


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## billcj (Jun 19, 2012)

*thanks !!*

hey Al...thanks for the offer !! looks like I'll be going the Mattel rolling chassis route ($4 each is hard to beat) and getting some tires as well...I'm trying to keep the expense as low as possible for the kids...2 weeks until school starts, then first Club day will probably be in Sept...
LOL on the drag-racing converts !! I have room to put up a 40 footer if I want to (and had enough straights!!)...thought about a smaller one at some point during the year to change things up...


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## billcj (Jun 19, 2012)

Grandcheapskate said:


> My first suggestion would be to get some kind of wall around the table to prevent the cars from hitting the floor. I remember when I didn't have any walls on the table and it was almost certain destruction whenever something hit the floor.
> 
> My choice for an "indestructable" chassis? The Tyco HP-7. Problem is they are no longer in production, but can be found used.
> 
> ...


hey Joe..thanks for the input...yep, the door track will have a catch fence around it and I plan to have scrap carpet around the area, too, but with this age group, well, I kinda am expecting the worst!! as to expanding into pancakes I'll have to wait and see...the only ones I have available now are my originals that I have from the 60's and NO WAY are they getting access to them !!  as to the HP's, the ones I see online seem to be a bit too expensive for what I want....I'm trying to keep expenses as low as possible...


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## videojimmy (Jan 12, 2006)

I think for kids and newbies, hands down, Life Like is the best. Those are cars a fast, really stick to the track and almost unbreakable. You have to take a hammer to them.


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## ruralradio (Mar 11, 2011)

LL's on 12v are great for kids and newbies, still fast enough to be interesting, but very drivable for rookies. Pancake motors don't like the lower voltage.


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## madsapper (Jan 25, 2001)

I am a pancake motor guy myself, I like the tweeking part of the hobby. However when the kids want to race, or when the track needs cleaning, I run the lifelikes. They run for a while with minimum maintanance, and are cheap enough to replace when they burn up...


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## beast1624 (Mar 28, 2009)

I agree with what everyone has said: the can motors are pretty bullet proof. I use the Tomy SRT for my grand kids set at about 7-12 volts (they have better traction magnets that the Tomy Turbo). The pick ups can pop off easily but at lower voltage that becomes less of a problem.

Tyco 440-X2 are great also. Only problem I have had is the body pops off easily in a wreck but a small piece of tape on the tabs really helps. With some after marke (Wizzard) pickup shoes and double look springs I have noticed they are really tough.

While the Super G+ and new Mega-G are great for racing and can really be tuned to stick and run fast they are a bit fragile and finicky for newbies to play with. Also these don't seem to me to like the 12 volts or less range as much as the ones above.

Have not run LifeLike very much so I don't have as much experience with them but they seem pretty tough too.


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## Peteb (Aug 11, 2012)

First post here. Hello everybody.

I was surprised to see lifelike model T described as durable.

I got back into slot cars this past year with the purchase of a life like set.


I immediately had problems with the spring plates of the model T.

Where do you get replacement spring plates? Can you even get them?



I switched over to lifelike model M cars, mostly because of the springs that are like the cars I used as a kid, and are available, not that I have needed to replace them, and have found the model m to work well.

On both of the model T cars that came with the set the spring plate is irreparably damaged, the cars are no longer usable.


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## LeeRoy98 (Jul 8, 2005)

I have a large number of the LL T chassis cars and have had no real problems. I do really like the 440X2/Mattel chassis but one of the problems with buying the Mattel chassis is that you now will also have the expense of bodies for them. Just something to consider. 
The LL M chassis is an excellent choice also if you can find sufficient quantities for your needs. 

Gary
AKA LeeRoy98
www.marioncountyraceway.com


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## Grandcheapskate (Jan 5, 2006)

LeeRoy98 said:


> II do really like the 440X2/Mattel chassis but one of the problems with buying the Mattel chassis is that you now will also have the expense of bodies for them. Just something to consider.


Figure you will also have to replace the track-eating, plastic-melting tires if you buy the cheap Mattel replacement chassis. The other factor with the Mattel chassis is it is designed for 4-D battery power, which is a 6v source.

Joe


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## billcj (Jun 19, 2012)

hey guys...sorry I haven't responded to any posts for a while....had a hacking attempt that caused some issues that had to be addressed...
thanks for all the input and I have checked out a lot of different options...latest possibility are complete SRT's for less than $12..only drawback being they are all the same paint scheme, but that opens up the possibility of painting cars and detailing to the kids' own livery!! Now I'll start looking at threads on how best to strip factory paint!!

Alpink...thanks for the offer on the tyco bodies, I appreciate that...if I end up going that route, I'll be in touch...


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## alpink (Aug 22, 2010)

Bill, I have some LL bodies and maybe some bodies to fit the SRT chassis too. let me know what you decide and I'll see if I can help you.


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## Grandcheapskate (Jan 5, 2006)

billcj said:


> latest possibility are complete SRT's for less than $12..only drawback being they are all the same paint scheme


 Getting bodies for SRTs is easy. You should be able to use a JL pullback body or any of the JL/AW X-Traction bodies. You should be able to find these for a few bucks a piece.

Joe


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## sidejobjon (Jun 3, 2010)

*can`t fall off*

This may fit here or maybe not.
Tyco made a set the guide pin was like a c shape, wraped inside a t shape rail could not lift out. There was like one spot on track were car had to be taken on or off. I gave this to a customer`s son who was like 4 who loved Match box cars & Hotwheels.
Parents said he would sit for hours full blast cars spining.
Anyone recall name of this? Also what i remember was the car was a 440 with a differant Guide pin only but needed special track.
SJJ


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## billcj (Jun 19, 2012)

:thumbsup:
The decision has been made...The wonderful folks at Racemasters have hooked me up with SRT's (Thunderbird) at a great price point.... These will not require a bunch of after-market upgrades to make them usable and the kids will be able to paint to their own style...Additional body styles are readily available at fairly reasonable prices, if some want to go that route...
Now I have to check the local builder supply stores for a door and start assembling the track and catch fences...Thanks for everybodies' input :wave:

:woohoo::woohoo: Many thanks to Racemasters...everybody I communicated with was extremely helpful and willing to go that extra step that made the decision and transaction quick and easy !!!


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