Inspection
The first step is to inspect the entire car, the moving and non-moving components. Look the under garage and replace or enhance anything that can be changed. For example, if you know of a better-performing motor, replacing the existing motor of your slot car is a good idea.
Check all car parts. Inspect how they fit with one another. If they're loose, tighten them. If they're very tight, loosen them up a bit. Take a mental note of all the parts and test drive the car. If it performs according to your expectations, you're done with inspection. If not, make some more adjustments.
Motor Burn-In Like in any car, real or miniature, burning-in the motor is critical to the car's performance. Some drivers like to do it the conventional way – that is racing a few laps; some prefer to do it underwater. If you are leaning towards the latter, follow the steps below:
First, remove the car's shell then attach the power source to the car's braids and submerge it underwater. You can use a bowl of distilled water for this. Run the car in the water for approximately 20 minutes while changing the voltage from lowest to the maximum speed the transformer could give. Hold the speed at slow, mid and high for about 5 minutes each. Now, for the final part, simulate the actual speed you run during an actual race.
Drying and Lubrication
The next step is to remove the water from every nook and cranny of the car then lubricating it. Use a spray lube on the motor, a door opener lube on the gears and light lube on the axles and bushings.
Wheel and Tire Tuning
Truing the tire, a process that involves polishing the surface of the tire on sandpaper, is a process that shouldn’t be missed when fine tuning a slot car.
Do this by first removing the tires from the rims and run these on 220 grit sandpaper. This should remove any burr that is created by the mold. Sand the cars down until the general profile becomes similar. For further polishing, use 220 to 800 grit sandpaper. You can see that they are ready for racing once they shine.
Braid and Guide Tuning
Inspect the guide and braids and remove them when you see that they need some polishing. The key here is to make these components as optimized for racing as possible by allowing them better contact with the groove on the track.
Axle Polishing and Gear Meshing
Before fixing the axles and the gears, it is advisable to glue the motor in place to prevent it from moving while on the track. Once you're done with that, you can look to the car's axles and gears and see where improvements can be made.
Now you're ready for the race. Put all the disassembled components of the car back in place and test-drive it. Learn how you can best control it by making further changes on its setting.
Slot car racing, by the name itself, is focused on controlling the car while on the track. The name 'slot' itself refers to the grooves in the racetrack that prevents the cars from falling off of the track. But slot car racing needs more than grooves for total control. Drivers need to have something in their hands to have full control over the acceleration, breaking and general performance of their slot car. They need the slot car controller.
Analog Slot Car Controllers Analog slot car controllers are handheld devices that distribute the desired amount of voltage to the slot car on the track. A trigger, a common part of the controller, is connected to an electrical contact that is then connected to a resistor. When this trigger is squeezed, the track sends more voltage to the car, thereby causing it to pick up speed. When released, the reverse happens and the car slows down. The resistance of the controller is measured in ohms which should be noted as changes in the resistance positively affect the response time of the car.
But analog slot car controllers provide more than better manageability of the voltage received by the car. Without this, drivers would have lesser ability to make turns when needed or to follow a straight path where there are long straight sections on the track.
Modifications in the extent of control controllers provide have somewhat emerged in recent years. As opposed to the older system of squeezing and releasing the trigger to speed up or slow down the car, newer controllers now provide at-the-push-of-the-button breaking system. These controllers come with an integrated button which sends negative voltage (remember the positive effect of resistance on response time?) to the slot car's electric motor. This action then causes the car to stop.
Improvements in analog slot car controllers have also paved the way for even better control on the breaking system. More advanced controllers are not equipped with a highly accurate system of controlling breaking power which lends these newer controllers a decent advantage over drivers during turns in the track.
Electronic Slot Car Controllers Electronic slot car controllers, on the other hand, pick up where their older counterparts left off. Unlike analog controllers, these do not use the same system of power delivery to the grooves on the track. Instead, these use an electronic circuit that distributes the precise voltage amount needed by the car. This also offers better car performance, improved control of the car, and better command with virtually all motor setups. These also work very well with cars that have different magnet setups.
Getting Yourself A Slot Car Controller Choosing between an analog and electric slot car controllers is basically a matter of preference. Most slot car drivers begin with analog slot car controllers. These are relatively much cheaper than electronic ones and do not require much know-how and electronic savvy. Enthusiasts, on the other hand, prefer the more complex system used in electronic slot cars.
Electronic controllers allow better power manageability and excellent breaking systems which make it very easy for drivers to control their cars on the racetrack.
