# Matchbox Slot Cars



## zanza (Sep 23, 2005)

As I was looking for some info for a Matchbox Porsche which I bought recently (in fact haven't received yet), I found this quite useful webpage guess where? On Wikipedia, yes !

Matchbox Slot 

Full of pictures, sets and a lot of interesting infos, Matchbox related only of course

Oh and by the way, the car I bought (PP-131) is a rare one, lucky I am :thumbsup:


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## Montoya1 (May 14, 2004)

I always wanted Roger C or one the other resin guys who knows how to shrink and copy to make those for modern chassis, especially the F1 cars and the Porsche 936 & Renault Alpine.


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## ParkRNDL (Mar 20, 2002)

wow, that's pretty comprehensive... someone ought to do an Aurora wiki like that!

I have the yellow Jag XJ body downstairs in a box somewhere... it's missing some piece or other, i think the grille, but without looking at it I can't exactly recall...

--rick


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## T-jetjim (Sep 12, 2005)

Nice link Zanzaman. I am surprised that Matchbox did that many sets and vehicles. I had no idea. I picked up the Catch Me Funny Car somewhere in my eebbaayy purchases. The pick up shoes are too narrow to run on regular track and I haven't gotten around to converting them yet. So, I have no idea how well it runs.
Jim


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## zanza (Sep 23, 2005)

Only the Powertrack PLUS cars (PP- ) could directly run on conventional HO tracks.

The one you are referring Jim are the Powertrack "Standard" cars (PT- ), their pcikup are narrower than normal and normally, they run only under 6 volts, not 12 volts or more.


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## Montoya1 (May 14, 2004)

I did not know that.
But the bodies are still too big, both in looks and for the 34mm ''rule''?


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## T-jetjim (Sep 12, 2005)

Zanza- I'll still widen the pickups and run her til she pops!

Jim


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## videojimmy (Jan 12, 2006)

Matchbox has a few cool cars, and with a slight modification, they run well on standard HO track. I've put a HP-& motor in a vette and the thing HAULS butt


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## Montoya1 (May 14, 2004)

Tell us more VJ....

How wide are they?


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## videojimmy (Jan 12, 2006)

The bodies are a a bit larger than Tycos... the pick ups are really narrow, but with a little modification, they can be made wider enough to run on Tomy track. I them them, but then again... I like them all. You can use AFX speciality tires for replacements

Matchbox released another chassis version towards the end of their run that already had a 12 volt motor and wider pick ups, so they could be used on any track. They even added traction magnets too. 

I think tubtrack still has a few for sale on his ebay store. Pick one up... you'll be glad you did.


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## grungerockjeepe (Jan 8, 2007)

The best way to convert the pickups is to use Tyco TCR pickups. You'll have to do just a little modification though. Dremel the rear of the pickup where it hooks in to the chassis, narrowing it just slightly so it'll fit the pivot, then dremel the retainers on the ends of the chassis and youre all set. 

Most of the MB stuff sold here is the 6 volt variety, so you'll need to either swap the motor entirely or at least take off the front of the motor and install a piece with actual barrell brushes. But I have found some on the bay that were already set up to run off of 12v power. The powertrack plus stuff is the best. Green wire HP-7 type motors have LOTS of power and the pickups are already plenty wide. I remove that traction magnet since it sits to one side anyway.

The bodies are a bit wide, but they'll fit side by side on any HO track. I like to use the MB chassis for my resin casts since they allow a lot of mounting options and you can fit some pretty big tires front and rear for jeeps, trucks, and 4x4s.


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## red73mustang (Aug 20, 2001)

Man that is amazing! I'm not sure how complete that entry is, but that's more information and pictures of Matchbox slots than I've ever seen. May just shame(or inspire) me into starting that much talked about Life Like / Amrack collector guide .


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## zanza (Sep 23, 2005)

You may say it.... after discovering this link, I thought exactly the same about your project of LifeLike / Amrac cataloging. The interesting part of the wiki is that it can be made by more than one people (the wiki concept)


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## 1scalevolvo (Feb 5, 2004)

grungerockjeepe said:


> The best way to convert the pickups is to use Tyco TCR pickups. You'll have to do just a little modification though. Dremel the rear of the pickup where it hooks in to the chassis, narrowing it just slightly so it'll fit the pivot, then dremel the retainers on the ends of the chassis and youre all set.
> 
> Most of the MB stuff sold here is the 6 volt variety, so you'll need to either swap the motor entirely or at least take off the front of the motor and install a piece with actual barrell brushes. But I have found some on the bay that were already set up to run off of 12v power. The powertrack plus stuff is the best. Green wire HP-7 type motors have LOTS of power and the pickups are already plenty wide. I remove that traction magnet since it sits to one side anyway.
> 
> The bodies are a bit wide, but they'll fit side by side on any HO track. I like to use the MB chassis for my resin casts since they allow a lot of mounting options and you can fit some pretty big tires front and rear for jeeps, trucks, and 4x4s.


 :wave: Dear all;

I have done that in the past myself but I find that it is more efficent to simply replace the originaL chassis with either a TOMY G+ of TYCO 440-X2 depending on the width.On the MatchBox Pontiac Police cruiser I adapted a Life-Like chassis.I used plastruct & a junk chassis as a jig.Now my Matchbox cars are real screamers down the track & handle great. The FIAT ,Jaguar, BMW & Porsche' use a TOMY G+ chassis.The Renault Alpine uses a TYCO 440-X2 chassis. I have almost all of the Matchbox speedtrack cars & modified them to the better chassis.I did the same thing with the TCR p/u's but later just gave the chassis's to a friend as I am much more happier with the modren chassis's


Neal :dude:


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## bobhch (Apr 22, 2007)

T-jetjim said:


> Zanza- I'll still widen the pickups and run her til she pops!
> 
> Jim


Man that reminds me of being a kid in the 70s and putting windex on my track. Would put the hammer down and let the rear wheels spin. For some weird reason the smell of a burnt AFX pancake armature was just heaven to me. 

Could this be the reason for so many Parts Lots on the bay or was it just me that loved to burn a car up once in a while?  

Bob


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## grungerockjeepe (Jan 8, 2007)

volvo1:1 said:


> :wave: Dear all;
> 
> I have done that in the past myself but I find that it is more efficent to simply replace the originaL chassis with either a TOMY G+ of TYCO 440-X2 depending on the width.On the MatchBox Pontiac Police cruiser I adapted a Life-Like chassis.I used plastruct & a junk chassis as a jig.Now my Matchbox cars are real screamers down the track & handle great. The FIAT ,Jaguar, BMW & Porsche' use a TOMY G+ chassis.The Renault Alpine uses a TYCO 440-X2 chassis. I have almost all of the Matchbox speedtrack cars & modified them to the better chassis.I did the same thing with the TCR p/u's but later just gave the chassis's to a friend as I am much more happier with the modren chassis's
> 
> ...


Dude, you threw away the best part! Seriously, those MB chassis are more fun than any other that ive owned. They slide and fishtail in ways that would put a t-jet to shame. But then, I guess its all in what you like. Just wish you'd have given the MBs to me...


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## Montoya1 (May 14, 2004)

Anyone got a picture of the 12V chassis?


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## zanza (Sep 23, 2005)

Montoya, check it here: http://www.modelmotorist.com/web-content/mbx2l.jsp



and for comparison, the narrow brushes (and usually 6V) chassis:
http://www.modelmotorist.com/web-content/mbx1l.jsp


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## roadrner (Jul 21, 1999)

volvo1:1 said:


> :wave: Dear all;
> 
> I have done that in the past myself but I find that it is more efficent to simply replace the originaL chassis with either a TOMY G+ of TYCO 440-X2 depending on the width.On the MatchBox Pontiac Police cruiser I adapted a Life-Like chassis.I used plastruct & a junk chassis as a jig.Now my Matchbox cars are real screamers down the track & handle great. The FIAT ,Jaguar, BMW & Porsche' use a TOMY G+ chassis.The Renault Alpine uses a TYCO 440-X2 chassis. I have almost all of the Matchbox speedtrack cars & modified them to the better chassis.I did the same thing with the TCR p/u's but later just gave the chassis's to a friend as I am much more happier with the modren chassis's
> 
> ...


 
Great lookers. Definitely nice to see the pix of the real thing instead of the box art.

Thanks volvo! :thumbsup: rr


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## Grandcheapskate (Jan 5, 2006)

I've actually got quite a bit of new Matchbox track along with a couple unopened sets. Although I've been half-heartedly collecting Matchbox cars, I don't know when or if I'll ever get around to setting up a Matchbox layout. I'll probably end up selling the Matchbox track to someone who can use it.
I've also got two other lesser known brands in the display case - Ideal slotted and Majorette.

Joe


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## videojimmy (Jan 12, 2006)

Majorettes are also kinda cool. I have a few of them. Fast, simular to Marchon


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## videojimmy (Jan 12, 2006)

zan-man.... nice post


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## Grandcheapskate (Jan 5, 2006)

videojimmy said:


> Majorettes are also kinda cool. I have a few of them. Fast, simular to Marchon


 Although they've got a very large guide pin and it will not fit in a standard size slot.
Did that sound dirty?
I thought they might do well on Artin 1/43rd track.

Joe


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## zanza (Sep 23, 2005)

Grandcheapskate said:


> Although they've got a very large guide pin and it will not fit in a standard size slot.
> Did that sound dirty?
> I thought they might do well on Artin 1/43rd track.
> 
> Joe


In case of the thick metal guide, just remove the guide pin and put it in your Dremel. Hold it in one hand and use a filer in the other hand...You'll remove easily the unecessary metal and your guidepin will then perfectly fit on a standard HO track... All my Majorette cars have been treated this way and it works perfectly


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## WesJY (Mar 4, 2004)

zanza said:


> In case of the thick metal guide, just remove the guide pin and put it in your Dremel. Hold it in one hand and use a filer in the other hand...You'll remove easily the unecessary metal and your guidepin will then perfectly fit on a standard HO track... All my Majorette cars have been treated this way and it works perfectly


hmm thanks for the info on this. i ll give it a try. 

thanks
Wes


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## videojimmy (Jan 12, 2006)

yeah, I did the same thing with my Majorettes. I kept one all original, being a collector... but the others I grinded down the pin

no biggie


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## 22tall (Jul 28, 2002)

zanza, you an email.


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## grungerockjeepe (Jan 8, 2007)

I just ditch the majorette guide pin altogether and superglue on a T-jet piece. Setting the pin a bit farther back helps out handling. They run pretty good, but the rear gearsets arent made too good...


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## red73mustang (Aug 20, 2001)

Guys, for the Majorette guides just swap in a metal Gplus or a Tyco HP7. One of them fit perfectly so no need for gluing or grinding. They run great.


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## zanza (Sep 23, 2005)

...as ong as you have supply for these guides, it's a neat idea too, sure. 
But here as I can't find anything HO slot related, I must rely on what I've got, so the grinding method is the only elegant solution (as I always try to avoid the glue)


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