# Answers to many questions concerning Round2 Corp and the future slot car business



## motorcitytoyz (Oct 11, 2002)

Here is a letter from Tom Lowe that will answer many of the questions that have been emailed to Round2 Corp. I received the letter via email this afternoon.





> Greetings from Round 2, the new home of *"Auto World"* Thunderjet and X-Traction slot cars! This is Thomas Lowe, Founder and President of Round 2. Although the Round 2 website is under construction, I thought I would answer a few questions that many of you seem to have on your minds:
> 
> *
> [*]What is Round 2?* I sold Playing Mantis to RC2 in June of 2004. Playing Mantis manufactured and sold Johnny Lightning die-cast cars, Polar Lights model kits, Memory Lane action figures and Thunderjet and X-Traction slot cars. My employment contract with RC2 ended in June 2005 and it was at that time that RC2 offered to sell me the slot car line back. So I purchased the line back and started a new company and called it Round 2. The office and warehouse are located in Mishawaka, Indiana.
> ...




*Please note that Motor City Toyz will carry the full line of "Auto World" slot cars and we will have our web site updated with the new items within 48 hours.*

*Please check out my web site and online store for further updates and new items as they are released.*


*Thanks for your time!*

*Jeff Clemence*


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## 1976Cordoba (Sep 20, 2000)

Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy Oh boy!!!!!!


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## JordanZ870 (Nov 25, 2004)

*drool*


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## ParkRNDL (Mar 20, 2002)

need I say it again?


WOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOO!


I guess it wasn't the Thunderjet name he couldn't use, it was the Johnny Lightning name... when he bought the line back, he bought the Thunderjet and X-Traction names with them?

Auto World.... COOL! I kinda missed out on that the first time around. I was only born in 1969, wasn't old enough to order from catalogs till the '80s...

I think the deal with buying stuff off the site after 120 days is pretty cool too...

VERY exciting stuff here...

--rick


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## Mike(^RacerX^) (Mar 15, 2003)

Wow!!!!! This is some great news.Three new chassis!!!!! I wonder what they'll be.There's a few that I am hoping for.

I think it's great that he's bringing back the "Auto World" name.Man,those catalogs were such a big part of when I was growing up.My brother and I would read them until they literally wore out.

Mike


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## hefer (Sep 18, 1999)

Sealing the cases is a great idea. Tampering was a big concern with WTs.


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## AfxToo (Aug 29, 2003)

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## DACSIGNS (Aug 18, 2004)

Very cool! 
Auto World and Oscar K was the Bomb, man. I have been makin repro AW stickers just for old time sake, and now the name is comin back! Hopefully the collectors. runners racers and most of all Tom benefits here because its a no brainer if he cant make money none of us can benefit from the buisiness he has going.

Great news---Circle Track DAC


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## ParkRNDL (Mar 20, 2002)

I'm betting that one of the chassis will be the old G-Plus, figuring that Round 2 already has all the X-Traction bodies to fit it. Isn't the Super G-Plus what Tomy currently makes? or was there one in between?

--rick


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## mamilligan (Feb 1, 2003)

There was an Aurora Super G+ back in the day. It was just an update to the original design.


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## car guy (Nov 22, 2003)

Most excellent news, looking forward to some new product.


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## AfxToo (Aug 29, 2003)

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## Al Markin (May 17, 2003)

Made my night, Nothing but a positive direction, I can't wait!


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## Mike(^RacerX^) (Mar 15, 2003)

Man,I HOPE that one of the chassis will be an original G+!!!!!

I have a couple of the originals that I mess around with.To me,they're a LOT of fun to run!!!!!!

Lately I have a fascination with the brass pan" cars of the '70's.I wouldn;t mind seeing them do something along those libes either.

One can only wait and hope for the best I guess.

Mike


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## Captain Fred (Feb 19, 2000)

All Right!

This is great news! :thumbsup:


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## Montoya1 (May 14, 2004)

Mike(^RacerX^) said:


> Man,I HOPE that one of the chassis will be an original G+!!!!!
> 
> I have a couple of the originals that I mess around with.To me,they're a LOT of fun to run!!!!!!
> 
> ...


My guess is that the three chassis will be:

A remake of an older Tyco or Aurora in-line chassis









A brass chassis remake, such a this one










And an all out in-line screamer with adjustable traction magnets


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## Mike(^RacerX^) (Mar 15, 2003)

Montoya1 said:


> My guess is that the three chassis will be:
> 
> A remake of an older Tyco or Aurora in-line chassis
> 
> ...



Your KILLIN'me over here.That would be great if they were to do those.

BTW,what is that brass chassis car???? I have been studting these lately,and I don;t think I have run across one of those yet.
Is it a Cobramite????

Mike


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## Montoya1 (May 14, 2004)

Mike(^RacerX^) said:


> Your KILLIN'me over here.That would be great if they were to do those.
> 
> BTW,what is that brass chassis car???? I have been studting these lately,and I don;t think I have run across one of those yet.
> Is it a Cobramite????
> ...


I'm stretching here but I think it is a dynabrute that never made production.

As for the all-out racer with adjustable traction magnets:


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## AfxToo (Aug 29, 2003)

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## Wyatt (Jul 21, 1999)

I'll bet some of those great, but laid off employees will be back as well! Great news!


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## AfxToo (Aug 29, 2003)

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## SCJ (Jul 15, 1999)

AfxToo said:


> The world really needs a much smaller scale HO slot car motor so the formula cars can be modeled to-scale.....Somebody needs to shake up and challenge the HO slot car world.


How about a motor that isn't a motor, not a conventional one anyway.....imagine a circuit board thin type propulsion device (read motor) using a few existing electronic tricks, it all amounts to expense.

Talk about scale cars!


----------------------------
www.SlotCarJohnnnies.com


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## AfxToo (Aug 29, 2003)

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## Montoya1 (May 14, 2004)

AfxToo said:


> Maybe something like a pager motor would be worth experimenting with? Finding gears would be a challenge.
> 
> http://www.hobbyengineering.com/CatMTINY.html
> 
> A reciprocating device might work too. Bring the vibe into the 21st century!


The same type of motor, but a lot more powerful, is used in those really small RC cars. You get a pinion too.

The big problem is the voltage and amperage but I know a guy who is working on that.


dw


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## zanza (Sep 23, 2005)

*Tomy Bit Char-G remote control cars*

Just visit this japanese site:
http://kpl.sakura.ne.jp/bcgp78.html 

The cars are really well done (especially with such tiny scale)
And their paper tracks are funny and so small

Cars are not that fast, see this movie


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## Montoya1 (May 14, 2004)

zanza said:


> Just visit this japanese site:
> http://kpl.sakura.ne.jp/bcgp78.html
> 
> The cars are really well done (especially with such tiny scale)
> ...


I do find the Japanease way of doing things funny! Every Zip-Zap looks scrunched up, just because they could go that small doesn't mean it is a good idea to do it!

I agree the RC cars are slow but I have seen ones twice a fast as that (same size), maybe someone someday will crack using these motors in slot cars.

I know a lot of people would like that because you could do more accurate cars, not least open-wheelers. In that event speed becomes secondary?


dw


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## zanza (Sep 23, 2005)

*The fastest RC Nitro car....200 mph*

Montoya if you have seen the so small track I'm putting up in my new appartment, you will see that speed is not my main concern LOL 
I was just saying and commenting the japanes movie....And I agree that a smaller motor could help for more accurate and using other source for bodies, like the Formula One Ferreari you were showing in another thread...

As I was browsing I just fell by accident on this video....Not exactly slotcar in fact but simply (as they say), the fastest RC Nitro car....200 mph !!!

HERE


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## sethndaddy (Dec 4, 2004)

3 new chassis? wow, I was happy with 2 .


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## vaBcHRog (Feb 19, 2003)

A new chassis that takes a very small motor like a pager motor. Low skinny and adjustable wheelbase so we can make some TJET scale Vintage F1's and Indy and Sprint cars. ALso a realistic TJET scale Vintage CAN AMS and Vinatge Lemans. Plus 30 and 40s american cars. Yep Yep yep Also lots and lots of bnew wheels

Roger Corrie


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## Montoya1 (May 14, 2004)

vaBcHRog said:


> A new chassis that takes a very small motor like a pager motor. Low skinny and adjustable wheelbase so we can make some TJET scale Vintage F1's and Indy and Sprint cars. ALso a realistic TJET scale Vintage CAN AMS and Vinatge Lemans. Plus 30 and 40s american cars. Yep Yep yep Also lots and lots of bnew wheels
> 
> Roger Corrie


I know that there is a guy one these boards (''Lenny''?) who had a motor ready to go. It was an open frame type like you get in a Tomy Turbo but with some cool mods.

If he has the those kind of connections maybe you casting chaps could invest with him and get a bunch of zip-zap type motors made with stronger internal magnets and made for typical slot car voltage and amperage.

Just a thought.

I have been trying to find out what kind of power output the zip-zap motors give. The latest ones are known as 4.2, which might mean 42000rpm but might just mean version 4.2 
But I suspect they would all fry if they were run on 12-16v. I know they get used a lot in the flying world but usually in conjunction with 5v batteries.....


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## ParkRNDL (Mar 20, 2002)

vaBcHRog said:


> ...a very small motor like a pager motor.


http://www.howorld.net/archives/howto/stclair/67vette.html

http://www.howorld.net/archives/howto/stclair/part2/conv.html

this was 2001... wonder how the motor held up...

--rick


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## Mike(^RacerX^) (Mar 15, 2003)

Couldn't you save a lot of space by using one of those sqaure "can motors" in a chassis where it was lying on its side rather then lying flat???? By doing that,you could make the car considerably narrower,great for F1 cars I would think.

Mike


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## Montoya1 (May 14, 2004)

Mike(^RacerX^) said:


> Couldn't you save a lot of space by using one of those sqaure "can motors" in a chassis where it was lying on its side rather then lying flat???? By doing that,you could make the car considerably narrower,great for F1 cars I would think.
> 
> Mike


I think that would work out too high for F1 cars and the COG would be so high the handling would be shot to hell, but kudos to ya for thinking outside the box!


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## ParkRNDL (Mar 20, 2002)

i think it would be narrow enough, but then way too tall...

On a similar note... Lifelike's "T" chassis has magnets that look like flat plates. While I know the chassis itself gets no love in the slot car world, it's still quite fast, from what I'm told... couldn't magnets like that be utilized to make a much narrower F1 style chassis?

--rick


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## lenny (Feb 29, 2000)

AfxToo said:


> The world really needs a much smaller scale HO slot car motor so the formula cars can be modeled to-scale and the relative speed of all HO cars brought down. Racers need to be challenged to get more speed out of cars without resorting to massive downforce magnets. A smaller and lower torque motor could never tolerate poly or neo magnets. Somebody needs to shake up and challenge the HO slot car world.


 I'm not so sure you'll achieve your goal of reducing the relative speed by switching to a smaller motor. My gram scale is 'on the fritz' right now but if I recall right, the open frame type motors that Tomy uses weigh in at around 12 grams. I have a can motor whose body measures about 15mm L x 12mm W x 9mm H and that weighs about 1/3 of the Tyco motor. At 3V it'll spin about 12,000 rpm. I hooked it up to 18V and it really screamed. It also really got hot...

Anyway, you'd be reducing the weight of the motor by about 8 grams without sacrificing much if anything on the RPM scale. With a smaller motor, there may be less 'infrastructure' in the chassis which may reduce the weight even further. The chassis may end up looking more like the Life Like 'T' chassis. And since the motor is so much smaller with less mass, it'll help to keep the weight in the center of the chassis which should help the car handle better.

So a car with this type of motor and a lexan shell could weigh in at around 10 grams. The cars may actually be faster...

Dan


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## Montoya1 (May 14, 2004)

ParkRNDL said:


> i think it would be narrow enough, but then way too tall...
> 
> On a similar note... Lifelike's "T" chassis has magnets that look like flat plates. While I know the chassis itself gets no love in the slot car world, it's still quite fast, from what I'm told... couldn't magnets like that be utilized to make a much narrower F1 style chassis?
> 
> --rick


The trouble with the T magnets is they are very powerful but have too small a diameter, making the handling very knife-edge even by HO standards.

But I have alwayf felt the T chassis would be perfect for F1. The motor is low & narrow and a lot of the chassis can be removed without affecting the structural integrity.

OK, so you might lose the area where the traction magnets where but you could fit some elsewhere, maybe into the accurate-as-all-getup F1 body itself?


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## Mad Matt (Dec 16, 2004)

_What about 2006? Any new product? You bet…a TON! At least 12 new Thunderjet and 12 new X-Traction bodies will be released in 2006. In addition, I am working on 3 new chassis. Plus, I am looking into making track sets aimed at the kids market and I might make a couple of Limited Edition sets aimed at the collector market in a given year. Stop by the website from time to time too as I will be announcing more new product here._


I Like hearing the 's' word...and this one isn't even four letters!!!!
Seriously..Im glad at hearing Round2 talk about making Track Sets....
Oh happy day !!!!!


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## AfxToo (Aug 29, 2003)

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## AfxToo (Aug 29, 2003)

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## hefer (Sep 18, 1999)

How about track pieces with four lanes?


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## mamilligan (Feb 1, 2003)

If Round 2 invests in a track system, please make it compatible with Lionel/Atlas. This hands down is the best design in HO slots. Most folks in slots today have never experienced the design freedom of the 3" intersection and a fout lane criss cross.


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