# Eldon Ferrari



## cody6268 (Oct 31, 2013)

I bought this Eldon Ferrari for $8.50 shipped, thinking it was a Scalextric (which the seller said it was, until I looked at the tires, should have paid a little more attention!). Normally I use HO, but this was bought as a display piece for my diecast collection. 

I'd like to know what year it was made.  

It doesn't run, but I plan to tinker with it and get it running. And I might even make a few upgrades while I'm at it, like adding a higher powered motor. Luckily Eldon track is cheap, so I might build a layout for this one, and then buy another Eldon so I can race. 

The seller only gives a vague range of when they bought it, back in the '60s or early '70s, and they appear to have been the original owner. However, that isn't specific enough for me, who enjoys the history of what I collect. 

I've only found one other on Ebay, and the added decals make this one unique. 

Can I get parts for it? specifically the braids, as I think that's what's wrong with it. 

Did I overpay? This was the cheapest I've paid for a slot car, though.


----------



## asennafan (Jan 19, 2013)

If you bought because you like it, then you can't have overpaid. If you bought it as an investment, that's another story, but anybody who buys slot cars thinking they are good investments is crazy.


----------



## Rich Dumas (Sep 3, 2008)

It was hard to find any specific information about this car. It is not actually a Ferrari, I think it comes from a Gold Cup set dating back to 1962 or so. Does the car have worm gear drive? Hint: If a car has worm gear drive you will not be able to turn the rear wheels by hand.


----------



## cody6268 (Oct 31, 2013)

Rich Dumas said:


> It was hard to find any specific information about this car. It is not actually a Ferrari, I think it comes from a Gold Cup set dating back to 1962 or so. Does the car have worm gear drive? Hint: If a car has worm gear drive you will not be able to turn the rear wheels by hand.


 To check, I'll have to disassemble it when it comes here, which could be as late as a week from today.


----------



## kriket (Feb 15, 2013)

cody6268 said:


> I bought this Eldon Ferrari for $8.50 shipped, thinking it was a Scalextric (which the seller said it was, until I looked at the tires, should have paid a little more attention!). Normally I use HO, but this was bought as a display piece for my diecast collection.
> 
> I'd like to know what year it was made.
> 
> ...


I have those same cars, thay are not worm gears . has a crown and pinion gear and if i remember correctly they ran on 6 volt and those are the early eldon set cars. They dont run or handle very well.


----------



## TheRockinator (May 16, 2007)

I have many Eldon cars. $8.50 is not out of line for one. You can use pretty much any 1/32 braid but you may have to trim it to match size wise. Tires are available. When I find the link I can post it but search eBay for Eldon Tires and you will probably find the guy that makes them. Many have dissed the Eldons being "blobs" But I have seen some nicely detailed that look really good. I'd be wary of putting a high powered motor in one. The plastic is old and brittle. The first thing you will do with too high powered of a motor is strip the gears. Next the rear axles will break out of the plastic that holds them in. As for track, you don't need Eldon, though it is cheap. Any modern 1/32 track will do as long as you can hook up power to it and it will be better made and have a greater variety of track pieces as well as being able to handle newer 1/32 cars. The Eldon track was known to have a very shallow guide slot.

Later The I've even been thinking of "chipping" an Eldon car to run on my digital Scalextric track Rockinator


----------



## Rich Dumas (Sep 3, 2008)

I found this old Eldon advertisement, they did call the car a Ferrari. I suppose that it does somewhat resemble a 375MM of 1953. The ad is from 1963. As I mentioned just turning the rear wheels will tell you if it is worm drive. Super Tires has silicone tires that fit double flange wheels. If you cut those down they should fit the Eldon wheels. Perhaps there are Ortmann tires to fit those wheels. With decent tires these should run fairly well on a modern track. Eldon track had a very shallow slot, you probably would not want to modify the car to use a guide flag, but you may be able to extend the guide pin.


----------



## a110alpine (Oct 30, 2012)

that is a neat pic?? where did you get it??? maybe boy's life?. eldon was a cheap company.. they did not like to pay for advertising in the model magazines. i just found a ad in the 63 car model slot racing handbook. but those same magazines would do articles about them on how to improve performance. over the years eldon sometime would make the covers . if you can get the 66 model car and track racing handbook you can see eldon cars next to revell cars on the famous mesac club track. also a eldon porsche rsk is pictured on top. right on the cover. if they did refer to this car as a ferrari they changed the name to deluxe when they released their ferrari 196 my favorite slot car of all time. i had a relative who retired from eldon in 65. he told me that this deluxe car was a real car that raced in the early 60's. in those days there were a lot of one of a kind race cars. anyway it took 50 years but i think i have found it. it is a kelchev. 
when you get your car take it apart and soak the body in **** and span for a couple of weeks. after that bath the body will look like it just left the factory. in the meantime lightly oil the motor bushings and run it on a 1.5 battery. clean the tires with soap and water and then with some sun tan lotion or goop hand cleaner. clean the gears and maybe replace the motor wires. add some new braid and you are off and running. i would run this on a eldon power source. 4.5 to 6volts max. if you don't you will be on the forum asking where you can get a motor replacement.


----------



## Rich Dumas (Sep 3, 2008)

The picture that I posted was from Boy's Life.


----------



## Bubba 123 (Sep 10, 2010)

a110alpine said:


> that is a neat pic?? where did you get it??? maybe boy's life?. eldon was a cheap company.. they did not like to pay for advertising in the model magazines. i just found a ad in the 63 car model slot racing handbook. but those same magazines would do articles about them on how to improve performance. over the years eldon sometime would make the covers . if you can get the 66 model car and track racing handbook you can see eldon cars next to revell cars on the famous mesac club track. also a eldon porsche rsk is pictured on top. right on the cover. if they did refer to this car as a ferrari they changed the name to deluxe when they released their ferrari 196 my favorite slot car of all time. i had a relative who retired from eldon in 65. he told me that this deluxe car was a real car that raced in the early 60's. in those days there were a lot of one of a kind race cars. anyway it took 50 years but i think i have found it. it is a kelchev.
> when you get your car take it apart and soak the body in **** and span for a couple of weeks. after that bath the body will look like it just left the factory. in the meantime lightly oil the motor bushings and run it on a 1.5 battery. clean the tires with soap and water and then with some sun tan lotion or goop hand cleaner. clean the gears and maybe replace the motor wires. add some new braid and you are off and running. i would run this on a eldon power source. 4.5 to 6volts max. if you don't you will be on the forum asking where you can get a motor replacement.


PM me, if U want 2-trade on an Eldon 1/32 transformer... I'll look , but I remember having several (working of course)...
these are VERY-Rare... only about a dozen+ on ebay @ any given time :freak:

Bubba 123 :thumbsup::wave:


----------



## cody6268 (Oct 31, 2013)

Other than a good cleaning with soap and water to remove dirt and/ or dried oil (and it has a slight tinge of mildew), the body is staying as is, except eventually I might try to remove the "55" on the hood, as it looks a little sloppy where it is right over the red racing stripes. 


It has the same kind of drive as most other slot cars I own with a pinion gear on crown gear. 

It appears as though it will fit on my Carrera 1/43 track. Still though I think I need to save up for a 1/32 track, as it's a tad too big to fit on the Carerra track. 

Tires are hard as rocks, they're more like plastic than rubber, so if I do run it, they'll have to be changed out. I'll try tire dressing first to see if it softens the rubber, as to save a little money. 

And great news, I tested it on my Carrera 1/43 (Go! analog) track and it ran well when I just pushed down the trigger and didn't push the "turbo" button on my controller (when I pushed the "turbo" button it just sputtered and didn't run). Seller didn't even test it! I didn't notice that untilI read the description today. So this turned out to be a bargain, as I got a running car for a non-running price.

Though I'm keeping it, (I never buy anything to resell, I hate the "picker" types who rip people off ), what are these worth in running shape? 

I opened it up, and noticed instead of easily removable pickup braids, the braids are crimped to the bare ends of the motor wires, so how do I change them?, even though it isn't looking necessary right now.


It looks like 1/32 is a good scale to work with. Used vintage cars are cheap, and there's a ton of bodies for them. Track will, of course be, Scalextric. I'll likely be buying a few Scalextric cars in addition to whatever brand I find cheap as soon as I get the track.


----------

