# Your Thoughts and Experiences Requested.



## NTxSlotCars (May 27, 2008)

Hey Folks,

I'm building a new track here...
http://www.hobbytalk.com/bbs1/showthread.php?t=290693&page=7

It's portable, and I'm looking for the simplest, least complex, least parts needed build.

What I am asking you about is your thoughts on lap counters.

I really like this lap counter...
http://cgi.ebay.com/Tyco-Mattel-Pro...pt=Slot_Cars&hash=item1c0e147e01#ht_766wt_936

I used to have one of these and really liked the ease of operation.
It counts down from a 25 max laps, which means you can have 10 lap heats, and 25 lap features.
The downside, of course, is that this is a two lane lap counter, and I would have
to modify the mechanics on one to make it work on a 4 lane, if that is possible.
Or I could use one of these on the outside lanes...
http://cgi.ebay.com/Tyco-HO-Slot-Ca...pt=Slot_Cars&hash=item43a29fad3b#ht_484wt_951
but it doesn't count the same, and I would still have to modify one lane.

Another possibility for a stock lap counter is the AFX/Tomy grandstand counter...
http://cgi.ebay.com/AFX-Tomy-ELCONT...pt=Slot_Cars&hash=item2a0b5be7a4#ht_484wt_951
but that's kinda pricey for me.

I love the variety of cheap computerized lap counters today, but I hate to build a set up for a portable track.
The switches I was working on are crap, none I have will work.
Then there's the _reed switch vs. dead strip_ debate.

I have a track with IR sensors, works great, but don't want a bridge on this track.
I have seen some homemade mechanical setups.

You have any wild ideas??


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## Dslot (Sep 2, 2007)

Okay, Rich. Here's something I haven't mentioned because I haven't done any long term testing on it. Preliminary testing worked well. But you asked for wild ideas, so here's one that won't cost much to try.

Go down to Dollar Tree and get each lane a $1 pedometer (that doodad that perspiration-junkies use to count the steps when they jog) 








Get an extra one in case one is a dog; they're a buck.

There's a little pendulum inside that swings when you take a step and momentarily closes a switch between the battery and the counting circuit/LCD display. Disable the pendulum and run a wire from it to one side of the lane's reed switch. Find the point that the pendulum would hit to close the switch and run a wire from it to the other side of the lane's reed switch. You've now substituted the reed switch for the pendulum switch.

Every time the reed switch closes (which should be every time a car goes over) the counter circuit gets a little blip of power and the display goes up by one. Use the normal reset button to take the counter back to 0.

Test it until you establish that it works for you. If you don't want to have to keep replacing the wafer-batteries, you can take them out and just hook the battery contacts for all the counters up to a wall-wart or single AA battery pack of the same voltage as the little battery. Keep track of the polarity when hooking up the wires.

The displays are light and compact - ideal for a portable layout. You can easily put them into a driver's station, or just glue them onto the side of the layout. Or you could set them into a trackside building as a 'scoreboard.' 










In fact, you could do both - one reed switch could easily drive two display units (pedometers) in parallel. You could have a lap counter on each driver's station *and* a public scoreboard with counters for all the lanes for spectators or judges.

I got the pedometer idea from an earlier post on this Forum; as with a great many good ideas, I think it was *Swamper Gene*'s concept.

-- D


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## Dslot (Sep 2, 2007)

I think the ideal pedometer for lap counting would be the *Sportline 363*. It's a "count up-count down" pedometer - something you don't see every day. You can set it for the number of laps in the race - and it will count down and beep an alarm when it reaches Zero, or count up until it reaches a preset 'goal,' announcing the end of the race. 

These used to be around $8.00. I'd occasionally check sporting-goods departments hoping for a clearance at a price that was more 4-lane-friendly. Now they seem to go for $15+ and availability is way down. Ratz! I must have missed the clearout phase.

-- D


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## NTxSlotCars (May 27, 2008)

That is out there. I like the one that counts down.


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## eastside johnny (May 13, 2008)

Dslot said:


> Okay, Rich. Here's something I haven't mentioned because I haven't done any long term testing on it. Preliminary testing worked well. But you asked for wild ideas, so here's one that won't cost much to try.
> 
> Go down to Dollar Tree and get each lane a $1 pedometer (that doodad that perspiration-junkies use to count the steps when they jog)
> 
> ...


Has anyone ever tried this with a dead strip?


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## resinmonger (Mar 5, 2008)

Dslot, you're illustration skillz and ingenuity never cease to amaze me! :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup:


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## pshoe64 (Jun 10, 2008)

I used Slot Race Manager and some $4 radio shack photo cells and a $5 LED light from Wal mart. Did an oval and drag strip using this method and traveled to all 8 school districts in KY with no issues or skips. A cheap laptop and FreeDos to operate. Took me about 2 hours to get working the first time and sets up easy on location. It worked with Tomy AFX SRT, Mega Gs, X2s in the races and some magnet cars I demo'd for the kids and worked flawlessly. Has a great timer too in 1/1000ths of a second.

Here's some coverage of the events we set up at.

http://sites.google.com/site/wrrspeedinc/home/ky-stlp-race-to-the-future/past-racing-to-the-future-events

-Paul


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## Dslot (Sep 2, 2007)

> _*Resinmonger* sez:_ Dslot, you're illustration skillz and ingenuity never cease to amaze me! :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup:


Thanks, Russ. 

And your sense of humor is one of the things that _*makes*_ this forum, as far as I'm concerned.

This illo was done a long time ago, and shows the old-style mechanical counters. It may have been a thread of *PShoe*'s about mechanical counters that I did it for. Can't remember for sure. Same principle ought to work for the pedometers, except the digital numbers don't look like the old hanging-numbers scoreboards, so the HO guy "hanging" the number in the picture wouldn't work for the pedometers.

-- D


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## NTxSlotCars (May 27, 2008)

Some great stuff goin on here guys. :thumbsup:



pshoe64 said:


> Here's some coverage of the events we set up at.
> 
> http://sites.google.com/site/wrrspeedinc/home/ky-stlp-race-to-the-future/past-racing-to-the-future-events
> 
> -Paul


Paul, nice coverage of the events. What a turnout!!
Just goes to show, kids will flock to these events if someone will just set them up.


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## cwbam (Feb 8, 2010)

Has anybody modified a CARRERA DIGITAL LAP COUNTER -- 71590 ?


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## NTxSlotCars (May 27, 2008)

I was looking at one of those on ePay, and wondering myself.


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## NTxSlotCars (May 27, 2008)

Any other ideas on lap counters?


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