LEGION REGION

Making The Old New....Kinda

2010-09-12T14:22:00.000-04:00

Matt, who single handedly made my crowd come to life also gave me these old, knock off figurers.
I wanted a photographer for my scenery and the closest thing I had was a guy using old school binoculars.
These are the kind that wrapped around the face and were a box. So, I decided to try and bring him into the modern era with a camera with a zoom lense.

As you can see above these knock offs were rough. The hat and binoculars were almost one piece. There was a ton of flashing and extra material around the hear. Well, it was more of a blob than a head. I did a lot of cutting away of this extra material to give it more definition. Next, I sanded the binoculars sticking out in front of the hands down to the same level of the man's hands. This would be the beginning of the camera body. However, it wasn't tall enough for the right look. I grabbed some model part trees. The stuff we usually thow away after building a model. The thin part # tab was perfect. I cut two pieces to fit the dimensions of the sanded down binoculars and glued them in place.

Next, I needed a zoom lense. Again, I looked at the model parts tree. I found two different diameter pieces and cut / sanded them down to size. Glue them together and then to the newly created camera body. Finally, out came the paint and brush. I think it turned out nice and it looks even better in place on the track.

The non-Huntchback head.

Before and after

Next, I had to make a proper home for him on the track. I cut out a section of the Ninco fence and used some thing jewelry wire to hindge it to the fence. So, he had a clear view of the track for his photos now.

Plus, it's cool to see him peeking through the fence from the other side.

Something Grew Overnight @ LRS...

2010-06-01T19:25:00.001-04:00

The small, practice session sized crowd almost reached capacity overnight. Matt's generosity put another nail in my coffin. My family and a couple of my daughter's friends went over to Matt's for a cookout. We had good food, fun with our small cars and a big car, rockets, fishing, etc. Plus, he put 3 packs of 21 Carrera figures in my hands to help save my eyes and to make the LRS crowd more respectible. I will still paint some of the new ones for more variety. However, painting a shirt or hair will be a lot easier than painting them completely from a blank white figure like the MRRC figures.

He owns my soul so much. He does say on occassion, "The Devil comes in various forms." I'm waiting for the day that Soul Contract shows up in one hand with a pen in the other. Thanks again and again Buddy.

A Small Gathering @ LRS...

2010-05-30T21:05:00.001-04:00

Well, I've slowly and I emphasis slowly painting some MRRC figures to fill the recently aquired Carrera double-decker grandstands. I go on record now by saying, "Painting little plastic figures absolutely sucks!!!" I really need a light magnifier to do these. However, they are decent enough for now. Later, I might do the additional washes to bring out the detail more. This already represents hours of my life that have gone by.

I used a toothpick to do the eyes and lens of the shades.

I also mixed my own colors for the clothing and accesories.

I did do a wash of sorts on the Grease Monkey. He had to be dirty.

The Marshalls and yes, every corner has a yellow flag. The 4 right flags were made from a piece of wire and a print our of color on the PC. It works for me.

I got a long way to go for a good sized crowd. A club memeber said that I've got the Practice Session crowd right now. The good thing is they can be added little by little. I see pre-painted Carrera figures in my future to save the cross-eyed headache of painting them myself.

I also used the same self-stick vinyl as I did on the grandstand to do a finish line effect with 1/2 inch white squares. I like the look and hope they hold up to the cars and guides rolling over them.

Long Time, No Updates...

2010-05-15T10:08:00.001-04:00

I've slowly been working on scenery items and deciding how I want to do those scenery items. I finished painting the table top green. I decided on a Carrera Grandstand. The double decker with the VIP Box up top. I've figured out where the pits are going to eventually be and will be aquiring the double door Carrera Garages and the VIP Boxes that fit on top of them down the road.

I got lucky with the bottom 1/2 since it was given to me by my buddy Shawn and the top 1/2 was a great deal at $25 shipped. I had planned on painting them because they're just too white for my tastes. Luckily, Shawn had already painted the one he gave me grey as I planned on do them to begin with. However, he used the small can of Testors primer to do it. So, I had to either repaint it or bite the bullet and match it with the Testors at $4.00 a can. I hit Michael's 3 nights in a row coming home from work with one of their 40% off coupons each time. Every dollar saved adds up in the long run. I also lucked into about 5 cans of Testors in various colors in the clearance section at $1.49 each. Bonus!!!

Moving on to the issue with these Grandstands. I hate the seat stickers that came with them and Shawn's had faded big time and wouldn't have matched the new section. Plus, I don't have too many people. (Thanks Matt for what I do have) So, how can I jazz them up with a smaller crowd? I went to the real world for inspiration or madness depending upon your outlook. I purchased some white self stick vinyl for the Cricut machine the Mrs. has with the thinking it was going to do the cutting of 178 1 inch squares for me. She already had the black vinyl. Figured out where this is heading yet? Checkered flag seats!!!

The problem was that the cutting blade and matt that holds the vinyl in place needed to be replaced and that was another $20. I opted and chose to do it by hand. So, using the straight line cutter she had for her crafting projects I cut the 178 squares. I then had to remove the stickers from the one Shawn gave me and it was a pain in the ass. Then out came the tweezers and a very sharp Xacto knife to cut the vinyl from around the stair section. 2 days and who knows how many hours later, I ended up with this.

I still need to paint the sides of the roof grey to match and I'm thinking about paint the roof a flat red. It will need custom Welcome to Legion Region Speedway stickers for the advertising space too. Plus, all the little people I still have to paint by hand...UGH!!!

Then with the help of my Dad these came into play next. What are they? A little support, that's what they are. I have Ninco walls with the fencing and wanted to add them to my layout. They look great, but more importantly they work. The problem is that I'm running Scaley Sport track. So, the tabs that lock them into place don't work. I also, didn't want to damage the walls with nails or screws to hold them in place.

So, we came up with the wooden supports that have a groove that allows 2 wall ends to slide into the groove and be held in place by clear silicone. Then it was just a matter of screwing the support to the table.

Tell me that doesn't look cool. I dare you!!!

It will look even better once the trees are put behind it.

Layering = Visual Depth...pure and simple.

Here's the overall shot as it looks today. I still need to decide on how I'm going to make my other walls around the track. I want to paint a track logo in the big open green area in front of the grandstand. The monitor is where the grandstand will end up once it's replace with a LCD TV/Monitor. It's slowly getting there folks.

Opening Night...

2010-03-27T23:50:00.005-04:00

On March 20, 2010 my Legion Region Speedway went live with it's first offical race night for our club. We even had special guest Kurt Moser. He's a 2 time Team USA memeber for the Ninco World Finals and recently part of Team Slingshot who just blew away a world record in Chicago. The 24 Hours of Chicago saw Team Slingshot drive a RTR plastic chassis slot car 233.3 miles in 24 hours. They broke this record with around an hour left in the race. We also were graced with Kurt's better half Jenny the Nerf Queen.

We only had about half the club make it, but we got 2 new racers who joined us for the Ninco IROC Race and it's always great to get new folks running with the club. We ran a Ninco Bowler Raid, Porsche 997, Ferrari and Mercedes DTM. The cars were assigned to their own lane and controller. This way everyone
ran with the same conditions in the race. Since the track still had a lot of dirt in it we ended up running them with magnets. We ran 3 minute heats and 2 total segments and added those laps together for the finishing order.

Everyone loved the IROC format and running the Ninco cars. I think the Bowler surprised a good number of the members with how well it ran. However, it did have 3 trips to the basement floor and almost had another 3 or 4 more. It kept the marshalls in the last turn of the track on their toes. At the end of the night it was looking rough, but nothing that couldn't be fixed.

The other 3 cars managed to finish the night with no damage. We didn't have any real problems either. The Carlson Timing Track, Trackmate Software / Interface and the track call swith worked flawlessly. We did have a fluke with on of the cars motor lead coming undone at the motor, but it was Sebastian quick with a propane soldiering iron that got it back to racing in about 5 minutes. Then we thought the Porsche found an issue with Lane #3 through the Meat Grinder. However, after a braid adjustment the problem was gone. So, no track issues what so ever. Oops!!! We blew a fuse when the Porches' braids got bent on a re-slot and blew a fuse. Sadly, we thought it was the car and didn't think of the fuse until it was too late. It had an effect on the final standings explained later.

Here's the Legion Region Speedway Hellava Lap Board. After each race segment the Fastest Lap Times for each lane were posted and the name of the driver who accomplished it too. The best thing is that after the next segment of heats if there is a change that driver has the pleasure of erasing the previous record. It makes for some friendly jabs at one another.

Ninco IROC Series
Final Standings

1. Kurt 223

2. Pat 217

3. Legion 209

4. Shawn 206

5. Joel 203

6. Sebastian 202

7. Jenny 200

8. Eric 199

9. Dave 198

10. Steve 196

Hellava Lap Times

Lane 1 / Bowler Raid Truck was Shawn 6.446

Lane 2 / Porsche was Legion 5.523

Lane 3 / Ferrari was Kurt 5.450

Lane 4 / DTM Mercedes was Kurt 6.256

*NOTE: Shawn was the one running when the fuse blew and we thought it had to be the car and kept starting and stopping the race within the last 30 seconds of the heat before we looked at the fuses. So, I came in 3rd Place and if that hadn't had happened he would have most likely beat me by 2-3 laps. However, I'm still claiming the podium...LOL. I'll take 3rd or 4th any day behind Kurt, Pat and Shawn. They're very good drivers. Hell, 3rd to Kurt with his history...hecks yeah!!!

Here's a self-made panoramic shot of the race I made from several photos.

It was a very successful track opening and everyone really enjoyed the IROC format. Here's too race #2!!!

LRS is about to go LIVE...

2010-03-20T01:11:00.003-04:00

Legion Region Speedway's 1st Club Race for the Cincy Slot Rods
Club is happening tomorrow. Well, looking at the clock it will be
happening in 16 hours. (Man I need to get to bed) I just wanted
to drop a quick little note that the blog will start to become more
regular again.

I've got the track "race ready" for now, but will have much more
done to it in the future. I plan on painting the whole table, some
decorating of it one way or another, walls, etc. This first race
should point out what all needs to be done in regards to walls
and such.

Sadly, only about half the club is able to come. However,
we'll have special guest in the Legion Region.
Mr. Kurt Moser of Ninco Team USA fame and now as
part of the 24 Hour Distance Record Breaking Team.
233.3 Miles!!! I did some quick math and if I ran one of the
middle lanes of my track I would roughly have to do 22,368
laps in 24 hours. No, I'm not going for it.

I'll post pix of the track, and the event on Sunday.
So, stay tuned.

So Close I Can Taste It...

2010-03-04T16:00:00.001-05:00

I finally got everything I need to finish the track this week. The Carlson timing track and the Trackmate interface. The rest of the needed Sport borders arrived today along with a Slot It controller I picked up from the same guy at a great price.

My buddy is coming over this Saturday to get all the timing stuff installed which also includes a track call button. Hopefully, we get it all working without a hitch.

Then all I have to do is cut the wood to raise the infield areas up to track level and also act as the inside borders for the cars. Also, marking the lanes with a touch of color with my buddy's pin stripping tool.

Then it will be all about getting the rest of the basement organized and clean up for make room for all the racers.

March 20th is right around the corner. This will be the first race night for our club on my track.
I'm hosting an all Ninco IROC Race.

The following cars will be run...
Porsche 997 with NC5
N1 Series Corvette with NC11
Mercedes DTM with NC2
and
Pro Truck with NC7.

Yes, you read that right. We're racing the truck. I think it will determine who the winner is too.
It will be interesting with the various motors too.

I've Been Lazy...

2010-02-23T20:08:00.000-05:00

Man, nothing since the holiday. Well, the club has been doing a lot of running together lately and I'm loving it.
I have gotten back into Slot It cars and have added a Ninco Xlot F430 Ferrari to the stable. These are absolutely great running cars regardless of the price. I got mine via a trade that resulted in mine traveling from Down Under...but it is was worth it all.

What about the track, right?
I've got me Carlson timing track and have the Trackmate interface in route to me as I write this. I also have the last of the Sport borders coming soon to finish the outside of the track. I'm using 2 layers of 3/16" masonite to fill in the infield areas. This matches up to the height of the Sport track perfectly.

My first race night is set for March 20th and will involve some special guests from out of town. We're going to run a Ninco IROC series. The cars will stay in their lane and the drivers will move from car to car and lane to lane. The person who adapts to each car and lane the best will come out on top.

So, it's coming soon....very soon.

Happy Holidays...

2009-12-27T19:55:00.000-05:00

Thanks God it's over. I need a weekend to recoupe from my weekend. I don't want to see another piece of ham any time soon either. I had four Christmas get togethers in the past week and 3 out of the 4 resulting in eating baked ham. I good for a while in regards to eating pork.

The good news is that I did get cold hard cash as presents and will be moving on to the next phase of making my track race worthy. I'll be buying some wood to fill in areas and creating borders in other areas around the track. This will make all 4 lanes ready for racing.

Plus, with the remaining cash I will have a good start to getting my Carlson timing system. $110 total. So, if all goes to plan I'll be able to run in each lane very soon and able to order the timing system sometime in January.

Hope all went well for you this holiday season and here's to a brighter New Year for all of us.

Wiring IS Golden...

2009-12-06T17:42:00.013-05:00

What an ordeal it was getting the Legion Region Speedway wired and running. After Matt and I spent a Saturday wiring the whole track we thought we were good to go. I only had to run wire to link all the wiring blocks and taps. I did everything that needed to be done. I got the driver stations all made and installed. Hooked up the Professor Motor controllers and pulled the trigger. "OH CRAP!"

It just couldn't be that easy. The sensitivity of the trigger was too much. I barely pulled the trigger and the car was flying done the track and forget about getting the car through the esses and hairpins without it deslotting.

Oh yeah, lanes 1 and 4 had power glitches, slow down and dead stop areas. "WHAT THE !#@%*!" was heard coming from the basement on several occassions as my wife retold me later.

So, I switched some track pieces. Lane 1 stopped having the glitches. "YES!, oh crap." The glitch just moved further down the lane. Everything I did just caused me problems. I even add 2 more power taps at each end of the main str8. "This should take care of it." NOPE!

I put a post on our local club's site and our crazy scientist of the group sent me this link about issues with Scaley Sport track and how to solve them.

http://www.slotforum.com/forums/index.php?autocom=custom&page=SLAP-03

I just did the tab part of the above link and it solves all my issues. The PM's work just fine and each lane has perfect power all the way around them. I highly suggest anyone putting a Scaley Sport track together do the tab fix to all their track pieces whether they're brand new or used. If I had known to do it before hand it would have saved all the effort Matt and I put into it today.

We took 136 pieces of track apart, bent 8 tabs on each piece of track and reassembled it all. That's 1088 tabs that had to be tweeked. However, the end result was perfect power in all lanes. It was just a, "magnificent pain in the ass," as Matt put it on our club site.

Matt is my electronics savior and I owe him big time for all the work, assistance and wire he donated to the cause of getting my track up and running.

Next, comes the borders, walls and guardrails to keep the cars on the track and off the concrete floor.

Here's a video of Matt taking a lap after all our hard work. The track was filthy, but we ran the hell out of it after we were done fixing it all.

http://s635.photobucket.com/albums/uu72/noigelfoeno/?action=view&current=MattLapAfterFix.flv

One more wall climbed and hopefully the rest are just the walls that go around the track...lol

Wiring Is 95% Done...

2009-11-25T22:28:00.000-05:00

I got the last of the driver stations installed the other night. I think they look really nice. I'm glad I mounted them to the inside of the side of the table. This keeps them back away from things the could bump them or get snagged on the bolts.

The only issue I'm having left is with the main str8. We put a jumper in the middle of the 11' str8 thinking this was the ideal location for it. However, when a car hits the str8 before and after the power tapped section of track they slow down. Also, it is only happening on the inside and outside lanes. It has me scratching my head. So, it looks like I will be adding a jumpers to the very beginning and end of the main str8.

Yeah, 16 more wires to cut, crimp, run, tack to the bottom of the table and solder to the underside of the track pieces. It couldn't be easy...could it?

Driver Stations Viva Las Vegas...

2009-11-20T19:22:00.001-05:00

I know you can buy the plastic colored fender washers online to show which colored wire clips to which post on your driver stations. I figure it's $10.00 I could use elsewhere and I like to be different from the standard. I looked and looked for something white, black and red that I could use to mark the controller posts. I'd find enough white and red of this or just enough black and red of something else. However, never enough of all 3 colors.

Then I remembered I had a cheap card players kit with 2 decks of playing cards, a stack of yellow, white, red and...YES, BLA....uhhh blue poker chips. I didn't let the lack of black chips stop me and out came the black Sharpie marker. Very soon a white poker chip became a black one. I think they look pretty good and still give you a little chuckle at the same time. I only wish I thought of this last week, because I know someone who took a trip to Vegas. They could have picked me up some better looking chips to use.

Viva Las Vegas (with my upper lip twitching)

ALWAYS DOUBLE DOWN

I Forged Ahead & Into The Night...

2009-11-15T10:12:00.001-05:00

I ended up staying up until 2:30 AM Sunday morning getting all 24 jumper wires run, cut, crimped and installed on the distribution blocks. I just have the driver stations to finish now. Our backs and necks are sore today. My right hand it toast and swollen from all the crimping. However, it's a sweet pain since it means I'm that much closer to being club racing ready. Soon folks...soon.

It's Alive...

2009-11-14T22:50:00.001-05:00

Well, thanks to our club's newest member Matt and his electronics experience the Legion Region Speedway has REAL power now. No more wall warts here or stock controllers. MG variable power supply and PM controllers all around.

I just need to jump wires from the main power block to the other 2 jumper blocks and finish up the driver stations. We simply hooked up a controller to the driver station wires to check that all was working properly.

My daughter even got into the act and became Matt's little helper. He even taught her about what wires do what and this and that, etc. She still probably knows more about wiring a track than I do.

Thanks so much. I'm gonna pay you back one way or another for everything. It's very close folks. Can you taste it? I can.

Wiring Finally...

2009-11-13T21:18:00.005-05:00

Tomorrow with the aid of our newest club member my track will start getting wired. It's been a long wait for this step due to illness, doctor visits and money going to medicines. So, if all goes well I'll be fully powered by the end of weekend. Then it will be onto the borders, guardrailing, tire walls and all the other things to help keep the cars off the concrete floor.

I have been doing some serious car trading. I've been aquiring various Ninco brand cars since I've come to love how they run non-mag. Just add a bit of weight here and there and they are burning up the track.

Above, is Ninco 1st Lightning Series release. The Vortrom Mosler!!! Simply a beautifully finished car and with all the Pro Parts needed for a smooth and fast driving slot car. This car's chassis is actually molded in a white plastic instead of black like normal release cars. I made a killer trade to get this beast and it out performs my NSR Mosler on my track, as well as, the local commerial wood track.

Below, is the Ninco Patron Acura LMP that I've been wanting for a long time and couldn't find anyone wanting to trade for it. I ended up settling for the Lowe's version in an early trade made with the same member of our club that traded me the Vortrom.

It is actually modified with Slot It axles, wheels, tires and a yellow crown gear. It was already set up like this when I traded for it. This car is super smooth and is currently the fastest non-mag car that I own.

I highly recommend the Ninco Acuras. There is also a XM Radio Lightning version. I could of had it instead of the Patron, but I think the Patron car is the best looking of the 3. I wish Ninco would release some newer version LMP cars to pair with the Acuras.

I've Been Lazy...

2009-10-25T20:10:00.002-04:00

Well, no real progress on the track. However, at the first race at one of our club memeber's new 3 lane woodie I finally got the "missing" R4 curve to complete the layout. I still have no idea where it disappeared to in the basement.

I plan on getting the parts list together this week for the wiring. Then it's getting the cash from the Boss to buy it all. I can also do it now since the landlord was nice enough to get power outlets installed in the basement for me this week. 20 amps...I think I'll be covered.

I can however, post a picture of what I've been doing the past month. I've been wheeling and dealing like crazy to get cars I've been wanting and some that I didn't want but were presented and I agreed to taking in trade. I've been on a Ninco kick...big time. They are great non-magnet runners with just a little weight behind the front axle and some sanding and profiling of the rear wheels. I still can't afford to by them, but trading is a whole other ballgame.

Left Row

Slot It Totip F40 Ferrari (super smooth runner)

Ninco Gulf Mosler (stock)

Ninco Lambo (NC2 / I love this car)

Middle Row

Ninco BMW V12 "Art Car" (I posted this one already)

Racer DP (b-e-a-utiful)

Slot It Audi RAW "Racing Version" (putting it together was a pain..small parts vs big fingers)

Right Row

Fly Ferrari 512 (I posted this already...unicorn captured)

Ninco Lowes Acura LMP (I wanted the Patron, but this will due for now)

MRRC Chappy (need to find new rears, but a great looking car)

I still got a Ninco Vortrom "Lightening" Mosler coming and another car yet to be determinded from a member of our local club.

I've been a Ninco whore...wonder what brand we'll be running on my track when it's done? More posts to come sooner than later. I promise.

Power Slot Lola Review Update...

2009-09-25T19:31:00.002-04:00

PPR Super Tires held a contest on a slot car site I lurk in and gave away 4 sets of custom painted PPR Super Wheels. He had painted a blue, pearl white, yellow and lime green set of wheels a while back with the intent to sell them. The painting process turned out to be more than expected to get the paint to stay on the wheels. If I remember correctly it was a 6 or 7 step process. They turned out great, but I can understand why he didn't continue to do them. Also, when he put them up in the For Sale Forum they didn't sell. Although I wanted the yellow pair, but didn't have the funds to buy them.

So, PPR held a custom car contest. At first, only one person posted pictures of cars that he used PPR's wheels and tires to customize them. Nobody else was posting pictures and I commented that I didn't have any PPR stuff to use and get into the contest myself. PPR quickly responded and posted that any car that you've paint, done decals, wheels and tires or any other type of customizing too was eligible to enter the contest. That was all I needed.

I entered the following cars for consideration.

First, my Skru'd Death Race Car. Artin Chassis, $5.00 model kit and hardware. This was made to run on a live figure 8 four lane wood track at a local weekend event a couple years back. Due to too much beverage consumption by most of the Death Race racers...it didn't happen and thus my car stayed intact and is now a shelf queen.

Click on the picture below to enlarge. Yes, the driver is flipping the bird. Just letting the other drivers know how he feels.

I hand painted everything inside and out except for the flat black color of the Chevy.

Secondly, is my Control Freak 1/24 Cheetah 2 powered slot car sponsored by Direct TV. Yes, I does work and better than most would expect it to do too. This one took a lot of planning and massaging to make it a reality. I took the garbage out at an apartment complex I use to live at and someone threw 3 of these remotes away in various conditions. I picked one up and held it at arm's length. Those lines are a race car I thought to myself. I took all 3 remotes back to my place and about a year later pulled them out and came up with the Control Freak.

Thirdly, I posted this picture of the Power Slot Lola I had just finished reviewing and is further down on this blog. I had robbed my NSR Mosler's wheels and tires since the stock wheels had issues. I also said that if I won that the lime green PPR wheels would be perfect for the Lola.

Well, my Death Race car got a couple of votes from other people posting on the forum or as they said, "A vote from the peanut gallery if that means anything." I guess it worked because I took 3rd place. The only thing left was to hope that 1st and 2nd place picked a different color than the lime green wheels. I got what I wanted and they are a perfect fit and fix for the stock Lola wheels that had issues. Plus, they go with the graphics painted on the car. I think they finished the Lola. Plus, the Lola is not only up to par, but surpassing it on the track.

FYI...PPR sent the wheels before I could get a chance to buy of his tires. These are Slot It tires and they are hooking up on the Scaley Sport track very nicely.

My Unicorn Is Finally Captured...

2009-09-21T19:10:00.003-04:00

Today a 2 yr safari came to an end. Those who know me know of my love for yellow cars. Funny thing is I've never owned a yellow car. However, there's a big difference from being able to own a yellow Ferrari, Vette or Mustang Boss than there is a $50 slot car version of these cars.

I fell in love with the Fly Classic Ferrari 512S Berlinetta #23 2 yrs ago and could never afford to get it. Did I mention it is yellow? This car has gone for over $100 on eBay. Needless to say, I wasn't in a position to pay that kind of green for it.

I'd keep a vigil on the For Sale/Trade Forums of several slot car sites. Lurking, waiting and ready to strike. In 2 yrs, I've seen this unicorn up for sale or trade 4 or 5 times. Each time I was too late, didn't have the funds or trade car that would bring it my way once and for all.

That all changed when I lucked into a Limited Edition Spanish Ninco Nissan 350Z from a trade with a fellow in Spain. I say I was lucky because all he wanted in trade for it was a Scalextric Dewalt Nascar. I jumped on that deal. This is when I was wanting to add some Ninco cars to my stable after years of frowning upon them. Basically, like I did Fly cars and that has obviously changed over the years.

As you can see above, it had more than enough yellow for my taste. The picture doesn't do it justice. Plus, it was # 21 out of 750.

After getting the Z in the mail I posted pix of it and showed it to Kurt. He loves Ninco and has been on the Ninco USA World Championship Team twice. I knew he had my unicorn held up in his dungeon and this might be the damsil he'd take for it's release. He quickly agreed to the trade and today the mystical beauty was waiting for me on the coffee table when I arrived home from work.

This version has the best looking rear end in my opinion. I think I'm in love. Kurt, did you run this thing? I can tell it's been around the track, but it must have been under the control of the Pace Car.

I did some parade laps with her and then back in the case she went for safe keeping. Those mirrors would be the first thing to go in a race. I'm torn if she will be raced in our local club events or not. She might be a private runner for when it's just her, me and my choice of 4 lanes. Simply awesome. Kurt thank you so much. It feels weird now. Who will I stalk now?

NOTE: I do love my wife...just to set the record straight...LOL.

NOTE: Kurt doesn't...I repeat...doesn't drink the Kool Aid.

Power Slot Lola T-298 Review

2009-09-13T18:51:00.032-04:00

Power Slot came on the slot scene a couple of years ago as a small start up slot producer of car models not readily made by other brands. They started off rocky with quality control issues. However, they seemed to be listening to the slot masses as to what they needed to improve on their cars. I’ve reviewed PS’s Quad, 350Z and Opel releases. Each one has had its share of surprises both good and bad. This year Power Slot’s new selling point was their “Setup” chassis system. It consisted of a motor pod that allowed for the adjustment of the gear mesh and suspension of the rear axle assembly. However, I’ve yet to get a production release of a “Setup” chassis with all the parts needed to make an honest and complete analysis of its functionality.

I guess it was around the end of 2008 when I got word of the 2009 release of Power Slot’s Lola T-298. The prototype photos look very promising and I was immediately drawn to the Banco Occidental version of the car. I waited for months just like everyone else. I answered numerous emails or site posts as to when the Lola would be released.

I was just as hyped up about them and all those folks inquiring about them. Then the release date came and no Lola showed up. EMI was on vacation and I eventually got the Lola close to a month after its release to the slotting public. This is where I advise all readers that as with the “Setup” Nissan 350Z I last reviewed…the Lola was a sample car and not a production release.

So, as the title shot asks...
“Was it worth the wait or a washout?”

THE LOLA’S LOOKS

Personally, I love the paint job on the Banco Occidental Lola. It’s bright, vibrant and won’t be missed on the track. The paint overall is good, but could still be better. There is still obvious paint overspray with the white and lime green graphics.

The driver seems out of proportion. His helmet is almost even with the roll bar. That can easily be remedied with a Fly driver as I intend to do with mine. Plus, the Fly driver will improve the overall looks of the Lola. You’ll see what I’m talking about later.

The Power Slot Lola appears to be larger in profile and maybe also in length after viewing some pictures of the real life versions. The driver is without a doubt too big and tall. So, some scale issues seem to be present on PS’s recreation of it.

Looking down upon the T-298 you see the graphics running front to back on it. The open cockpit is well done. The roll bar, stacks and a vent on the rear deck are painted silver. As you can see on the vent, the silver paint was missed in some areas and the roll bar has some rough spots on it.

This is where I’ll point out the holes on each side of the cockpit. It almost seems like PS planned to have mirrors in those locations, but didn’t follow through with the plan. The real car did have the mirror in the position that PS supplied us with, but they also had a side mirror located in the positions I pointed out.

I didn’t find a picture of the real deal with mirrors in all 3 positions. However, almost every picture had an extra mirror on the driver’s side of the cockpit in addition to the mirror PS supplied on the Lola. I don’t know for sure, but maybe depending on the track the real race car moved the side mirrors to one location or the other.

Above is a close up of the primary graphics of the Lola up front. Looking this close shows the issues I’ve already mentioned about the overspray and some logo line up issues in the graphic above the Banco Occidental lettering. They still got work to do folks.

Sliding around to the rear of my Lola I was a bit puzzled and my first thoughts where, “The body post is in plain sight…what the heck!” I searched and search for a picture of the backend of this car on the web. I finally found a picture form a site overseas and low and behold my sample car didn’t appear to be missing a piece as I originally suspected.

This is poor design to me. The inside body post shouldn’t be visible from outside of the Lola.

Note: If I’m wrong about this opening and my car is in fact missing a piece let me know.

This shot also shows the short comings of my sample version Lola. All the pieces that should painted silver are not entirely painted silver. The body pieces on each side of the engine details are suppose to be a continuation of the body color and yet they are black like the rest of the car’s chassis. Yes, I can fix all these problems myself. I’m just saying once again, these are reasons for needing an actual finished production car for reviews. The supplied engine detail and tail light lenses are enough for looks under the large rear wing.

Speaking of the large wing on the T-298, it is solidly constructed and should survive most hard hits or off track excursions. However, more paint issues reside under it. The blobbed silver paint is obviously residue from the painter brush touching the bottom of the wing while he or she painted the engine details. Luckily, unless you flip the Lola over it will go unseen.

Let’s take a look inside the cockpit. They did a pretty good job inside the Lola with the extra details, but let us turn our attention to Jean Claude. What did I say the first time I saw the driver up close? “It’s a Playmobil guy.”

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!
If a race car driver’s eyes are this wide and scared looking he shouldn’t be behind the wheel of a Lola, let along a Yugo. The driver just doesn’t work for me in scale and appearance. PS dropped the ball here in my opinion.

What about the shoes? I like the appearance of the Lola wheels with the deep lip and contrasting colors. However, if the wheels and rubber are not right on any car it becomes obvious before you finish the first lap. The T-298 reared its ugly head in this department.

The rims themselves are pretty true and free of flashing. The inserts are rough and as you can see one of mine is broken from going onto the axle too far. Where the rims have serious issues is being drilled off center. One of the rear wheels wobbled like a bobble head on the dash of a Hummer going off road. The rubber like the majority of Power Slots’ cars was the biggest issue. They had excess flashing from the mold that prevents them from seating properly on the wheels. I had also heard that axle ends where smashed when they were cut off. This also can lead to a wheel not fitting the axle properly and causing a wobbling wheel during assembly at the factory. My axle ends had the smashed ends too.

The tires are a reoccurring issue with Power Slot releases I have in my review stable. The Quad tires fit fine. The non-setup chassis 350Z had bad tires and I replaced them w/Ninco Pros. The Opel had much improved tires. They didn’t fit perfect, but I didn’t have to replace them. The “Setup” 350 Z had the same wheels and tires as the original release. Though I think the actual release had tires more like the Opel. Again, a sample car that wasn’t complete as the car was released to the public. Those got replaced with Slot It set screw rims and tires all around. 2 out of 4 releases had acceptable tires that didn’t end up getting replaced by me. Well, make that 2 out of 5 releases.

PERFORMANCE

This was my solution to the major issue on the Lola. I temporarily robbed my NSR Mosler of its shoes. They fit pretty close to the original parts of the Lola. Sadly, this requires another $40 to $50 to purchase the NSR parts. This cost on top of a car already in the $70 range is insane. $110 to $120 could buy a NSR, or 2 Slot Its or 3 Carrera cars.

I’ve also seen people use Slot It wheels and tires, Slotting Plus stuff, etc.

Below is a shot of the “Setup” chassis. If you reviewed the link above you will get a hint of what you have to do to get the motor pod working correctly. PS is trying what Slot It has perfected over the years and I give them credit for it, but they’re not quite there yet.

The PS-3 motor is 25K RPM at 14V and turns a 12 tooth brass pinion and 30 tooth aluminum set screw gear. The sidewinder setup does produce a good amount of torque just like the last Nissan 350Z I reviewed a while back. There is also a set screw axle stop which is another nice touch.

The guide caught me off guard when I first saw it. Almost thought it got turned around the wrong way by its appearance. I’m not sure about the significance of its shape and didn’t really notice a benefit to it on the track either. (shrugging my shoulders)

I didn’t get a shot of it, but the front axle has set screws in the top of the axle posts and in the bottom of the chassis that allow you to control the up and down movement of the front axle. I’ve heard some folks say that it’s still not enough to control the slop completely to their taste. I didn’t seem to have an issue, but can say there was still plenty of play up and down even after taking the set screws to their maximum settings.

TRACK TIME

This is where my testing is going to be inadequate because of the Lola’s original wheels and tires having the issues I mentioned earlier in the review. I ran it with the NSR parts and it ran pretty good. The PS-3 motor in the sidewinder position gives able torque and speed as their Nissan 350 Z previously reviewed. No track times since my track was dismantled and I had just setup a smaller test track for this review. This car finally came after I started building my monster track table. Sorry folks.

JUDGEMENT DAY

I asked the question at the beginning of the review…”Was it worth the wait or a washout?”

Personally, I would not pay $70 for this car knowing what I know about it now. Power Slot has quality issues with the most important part of any slot car...the wheels and tires.

They have very good parts in the pinion, gear, axle stop and bushing departments. However, I think PS needs to seriously consider doing wheels like Slot It has available on their cars. Other brands are using them or parts similar to them because they get the job done.

I also took into consideration that I got what appeared to me to be a sample version of the Lola for my review. I thought, “Maybe it’s just my sample.” However, I got my Lola about a month after it was released to the public and after reading some of the posts on various slot car sites my thoughts were proven wrong.

Every post I read hit on the poor quality of the Lola’s wheels and tires. One unhappy guy even mentioned how it will be a shelf queen until he can afford to replace the wheels and tires on his. That is just unacceptable after dropping that kind of cash on a car by any brand on the market. Sadly, I have to say the same thing about my Lola and until I can put together the money for the NSR stuff…mine will have to sit too. However, I got lucky in the fact that I didn’t have to drop the initial $70 to get mine.

Protect me from what I want...

2009-09-11T23:37:00.011-04:00

I've always thought this was the best version of Ninco's BMW V12 LMR series. It is better known as The Art Car. I've had several chances to get in over the years, but either didn't have the cash or something else came up that was more important. I got a really good deal on it. Sadly, the best deal I ever saw was $20.00 shipped, however, someone beat me to the punch....not this time.

The best part... all the sayings in the Beemers paint job. They're probably out of some secret racers rule book.

It's powered by the good old NC2 motor... which is a great all around motor. The challenge will be making it a solid and controlled non-magnet racer.

New Carrera Front Magnet

2009-09-09T21:11:00.005-04:00

I took the front magnets...oops magnet out tonight. It appears to be 2 magnets from the bottom of the chassis. When in fact, it is a single long magnet that stretches from side to side of the chassis. It also has a metal shime on top of it. I assume you could put it on the bottom to slightly raise the magnet in the chassis, but doubt you would notice a difference with the car. I removed the front magnet and it freed up extra speed in the Plus 8. The rear magnet was still plenty enough for keeping the car on lock down.

In order to remove the front magnet you have to unscrew the chip and remove a post sleeve with a flange on the bottom it. This flange holds the magnet in its pocket when the chip is replaced and screwed down. The removal of the rear magent appears that you will have to remove the rear axle assembly and maybe even the motor since the pinion resides directly of it.

I can also see why analog runners yank all the "guts" because getting them all back into place so the body fits properly can be a royal pain in the keyster.

Carrera Morgan Plus 8 Review

2009-09-08T23:11:00.019-04:00

Let's step back into time when things were simple and classy. The Morgan Plus 8 is an elegant roadster with flowing curves and style. Carrera easily captured the Morgan's class with a detailed eye. This is a great looking car and will make the classic car folks very happy.

The overall appearance and finish of the Plus 8 is almost flawless. I can't say I saw anything that stood out or needed to have a finger pointed at in a negative fashion. Which surprised me since there is so much to take in on this small car.

The front end of the Morgan is simply stunning. Like the chrome grill (hey, there you go something to point a negative finger at) with a minor imperfection in the upper left of the grill that I'm only pointing out because no car can be perfect. Plus, I just noticed it in the closeup shot of it. The best part are all the car badges from various car rallies or shows our driver has participate in with his pride and joy. I just wish the lights worked!!!

Turing our attention to the back side of the Plus 8 it is just as detailed and well done as the front of the car. Yes, that's an actual rubber tire for a spare. Carrera following the lead of Ninco with their rally cars and Fly with their Classics. Besides, a molded plastic spare would just ruin the overall appearance of this car. Again, I wish the lights worked on this beauty. I will say this about the front and rear bumpers of the car...possible breakage in hard collisions wouldn't surprise me. Simply because of the way their made to achieve the correct look of the car.

Above, you see a mass of details...3 wiper blades, the cover with all its silver painted snaps, various vents and a molded in hood strap. Excellent work on Carrera's part. Below, a close up of the lucky owner and driver. He's smiling...I wonder why?

The driver's wardrobe and hat are nicely done and even though the interior isn't much Carrera still put in gauge details behind the steering wheel.

The wheels and tires are molded to perfection. The front end just has so much to take in and enjoy viewing...doesn't it? The chrome details on top of the front fenders are sturdy to the touch but could be prone to breaking under the right scenario.

Take of look at this underbelly. The Morgan Plus 8 is both a digital and analog car all in one package. The white arrow points to the digital optic. The green arrow is the directional switch. A good number of drivers yank all of that out. Personally, I like being able to driver the other direction with a simple flip of the switch. The yellow arrows point to the 4 screws that hold the body in place. Finally, the red arrows point to the new front magnet system on Carrera cars going forward. Well, front side magnet system now. In the rear is also more details with the dual mufflers that are part of the chassis.

Also, above you see that imfamous huge guide. It looks rough for a reason. I took a sanding block to it. It still needs work and the length has to be reduced too. The length of the Carrera guides has been a constant debate and/or complaint from many folks. My problem was the length on the tighter R1 Scalextric curves which is easily fixed with a snip to the end of the guide. However, this time my biggest guide issue was the width or thickness of the guide material. The Morgan got stuck in a straight section of my Scalextric Sport track. Again, patience and a sanding block can solve this issue too.

Above, the one thing that hasn't changed is the mess of wires or as I like to call them "guts" that appear whenever removing the body from a modern Carrera car. Perhaps another reason for the lack of working lights.

Since this is a digital car and the short length of the Morgan the front axle consists of 2 indepenent stub axles. However, this is where Carrera didn't follow in the footsteps of Fly. They use brass bushings w/metal stubs instead of plastic like Fly uses in their cars. Thumbs Up!!!

The Morgan Plus 8 ran very smooth once the guide issue was corrected. Magnet runners will be happy to know that the new magnet configuration hasn't affected the magnet downforce. Personally, I'd rather see it with a lower RPM motor, but that's just thinking from the perspective of running it with my other Ninco Classic powered cars. I didn't get around to running it without the magnets, but I have no doubt it will make a great non-mag car on plastic and probably more so on wood tracks.

I give it a 4.5 out of 5 folks

No work done this weekend...

2009-09-07T17:52:00.003-04:00

I had hoped to mess with the track elevation(s) this 4 day weekend, but that didn't happen. Friday had guest until around 3 am Sat morning. Saturday had a pig roast and bonfire. Sunday had the big fireworks festival. Today...recovery.

However, Dan says he's found a couple of R4 curves to cover the AWOL curve.
Should get more going on the track this week.

2009-09-05T23:18:00.003-04:00

Preliminary search and rescue for the missing R4 curve...came up empty handed. Suspect gremlin taking piece to piss me off since I was finally getting to build after all this time.

Track down...

2009-09-02T22:15:00.003-04:00

Later on the night that I got the lights bought and hung I pulled out all the track pieces and started getting it laid out on the table. It was so much easier putting the track together standing up. I didn't miss being hunched over or on my knees on the concrete floor.

I actually gave my Dad the wrong length for the table when he drew it all up. It was suppose to be only 17' long. However, the extra foot on the end in picture #1 below will allow me to place my monitor in the left corner of the table for the timing system. So, a mistake that paid off for once.

I plan on trying to create an elevation(s) somewhere within the layout. I've got a couple of ideas swirling around, but until I actually do it and run a car around to see how it will actually work...they remain just ideas.

Photo #1

See anything wrong in Photo #1? I put all this track in a box and upon taking it all back out to build the layout I had a R4 curve go AWOL on me. It couldn't be a piece that I had 5 extras of...could it?

The box did end up on the side of the basement that everything was piled up in and I'm sure it fell out into the mess. I'll have to do a search and rescue. Unless, the track gremlins are playing a nasty trick on me. However, Dan, one of our club members, said he might have one laying around his basement for me.

Photo #2

I'm thinking the outer section of this end might become the elevated section of the track.

So, next the big task of wiring the 4 driver stations, the track for the variable power supply and who knows how many power taps around the track. I'm not looking forward to this part, but I've got several of our local Cincy Slot Rods Club boyz ready to help. I just need to get the funds for the supplies together.

About 2 weeks later...LET THERE BE LIGHT!!!

2009-09-02T21:46:00.003-04:00

I seriously needed to improve the lighting in the basement. A single light bulb wasn't going to cut it. Unless, I planned to do nothing but night racing.

My Dad recommended the same 75 watt 8 foot dual bulb fluorescent lights that he had in his for woodworking. He also advised me to get nothing less than the daylight bulbs for them.
I checked them out at Home Depot where he got his and about choked. If I got two of these lights with the more expensive daylight bulbs...I'd be spending more than I just dropped on the table.

So, they had 4 foot versions of the same light, but only at 32 watts. Then I found out they didn't come with a power cord because they were meant to be hard wired. That put another $15.00 on the tab for 2 power cords to connect to them.

I just could do it by the cost and decided to by 2 of the best 4 foot shop lights that Home Depot carried and the daylight bulbs. The shop lights came with a plug and all the needed parts to hang them other than the hooks I screwed into the floor joist.

Below it the BEFORE with just the one light bulb.

Below is the AFTER with the 2 shop lights fired up.

It turned out that the choice I made not only worked great, but kept around $60.00 in my wallet too over getting the 2 8 footers. The picture doesn't capture the night and day-light (pun intended) difference that these daylight bulbs make in the basement.

DO NOT SELL YOURSELF SHORT ON YOUR FLUORESCENT BULBS!!!!

Pay the extra couple of bucks for the daylight bulbs. Anything less is just that...less light. If the bulbs don't say Daylight Bulbs on the packaging look for the Color Rating. It should be 6500K or K6500. I can't remember the number / letter order. If the bulb has this rating it is the same thing as the daylight bulbs.

The 2 lights are good enough for my taste, but I may add a third one in between the 2 I have now down the road.

Day 2

2009-09-02T21:20:00.003-04:00

(alarm ringing in the background)

I roll over and turn it off.

Stretching..."!#$&@! that hurts!"

(phone rings)

Dad: You alive?

Me: Barely.

Dad: We doing this or not?

Me: Hell yeah!!!

I had waited this long that I wasn't about to stop and let my body tell my head, "Are you freaking crazy!?!" "You want to move today?"

Once my Dad arrived we got started on the legs and got them all in place. We thought having the frame up off the floor and on top of a couple of saw horses and a pair of bar stools would make it easier on the aching bodies. Wrong!!! It was crawling under, stepping over, and squatting here and there even with the frame up off the ground.

After all the legs were done and a nice homemade lunch by the wife we snaked all the OSB pieces down stairs. Which confirmed that there was no way in hell a 4'x8' sheet would snake around the bend of the staircase.

Now this table was huge and getting it as square as possible was like watching a Three Stooges movie minus Larry. The table measured 7.5' x 18' and a light shove on this corner and that corner was a chore without going too far with the shove. However, after 10 minutes or so we called it close enough and started laying all the top pieces and clamping them into place. After lining them up the best we could we screwed done one end and called it a day.

We packed up all the tools except for the drill and clamps. Got everything into the backseat and trunk of my Dad's car and he left. I got in a hot shower to try and easy my aches and pains, but more importantly to get the stank off of me.

I did nothing to the table on Monday, but over Tuesday and Wednesday got all the top pieces drilled, countersunk and screwed into place. I figure the whole table has around 180 or so screws in it. The table is rock solid and my big ass can crawl on my hands and knees across it from one end to the other without an issue.

The best thing about being done was that neither of was had a mishap. Well, except for the drill bit I broke off in one of the 2"x4"s. Sorry Dad.

Day 1

2009-09-02T20:46:00.004-04:00

Everything on the side of the basement where the track was going to be built got shoved to the other side of the basement. Can anyone say, Yard Sale?

My Dad had taken my doodle for my idea of the framing for the table and made it stronger, better and cheaper. He's a draftsman and woodworker...need I say more?

He drafted out the framing of the table to be the most sound table using the least amount of wood. He had the parts list down to...10 @ 2"x4"x96", 4 @ 2"x4"x12' and so on.

He used 3 different length screws and knew how many of each we needed. He figured out how the 4'x8' sheets of OSB had to be cut so they would not only cover the framing, but would fit down the stairs to the basement since they double back.

All of the above was great and ended up saving me money from not buying more wood that what was actually needed. He even figured what pieces were to be cut from which length of 2"x4" to make the cut waste as small as possible.

I picked him up around 9 am on a Saturday morning and we headed for Lowe's with his list in hand. We had to get their rental truck to get this all home and figured an early start would get the truck without a problem. However, the truck was already out and not expected back for around 50 minutes. That wasn't a problem because it would take that long to inspect and choose all those 2"x4"s for straightness. Plus, I had to get the boys to cut down 4 sheets of OSB to the correct sizes we needed. It also gave my Dad some time to help a couple of younger guys make sure that they picked the right wood for a project they were working on that day. He said, "I don't work here, but I can give you my opinion and if I was wrong that's okay because I won't be there." The guys gave a good laugh and were glad for the help.

All the wood picked, cut and loaded on the truck we headed home. We unloaded all of it into the garage and took the truck back. We headed over to a Sears Hardware store for the screws. It pays to shop around folks. Lowe's had the best deal on the wood because of a sale going on that week, but they couldn't come close on the screws. They didn't have a box of screws under $7.00, but Sears had what we needed for under $5 per box.

Once we got back home we unloaded all of my Dad's tools and setup his chop saw. We slid all the 2"x4"s via the basement window and attacked. No nails on this job. Everything was drilled, countersunk and screwed together for strength and easier dismantling if needed down the road.

We put in 7 to 8 hours that day getting the frame work done minus the legs. In the picture below we had aleady used around 100 screws. However, the knees, ankles, legs and backs were killing us at this point and so we called it a day. The plan was to call each other around 10 am Sunday to see if either of us could still move and if so we would continue with the build.

It began with an idea...

2009-09-02T19:42:00.003-04:00

I got the Scalextric Track Designer that came with the Scalextric RMS Timing System. Little did I know that the RMS System has issues and I'd end up chucking it. However, the designer program kept my hopes alive as I collected more and more track. I'd revise and revise again. Until, I came up with this 4 lane layout that I really liked on paper. So, the adventure was on to get all the pieces I would need to create the big track.

At first, I really wanted the Scalextric Classic Chicane Squeeze sections (black area of track) to make for some interesting racing. Who will chicken out and check up on their speed?

Who would go balls to the wall and hope for the best?

However, when I got all the pieces and set it up on the basement floor these classic pieces became an issue. No, not because of the possible carnage, (I planned on that...lol) but because of the depth of the slot. I had too many cars with guides that drug and chattered through that section. The worst was when I put my Slot It Lancia on the track. The front of the chassis caught the edge of the Classic track and flipped end over end. At that point those pieces were out of the picture.

I ended up replacing them with the Scalextric Sport Chicane pieces that are not nearly as extreme, but will still require a decision to be made by the drivers at that point of the track.

Plus, the guide depth issue disappeared.

In the beginning...

2009-08-31T22:10:00.002-04:00

I got into slot cars around 5 yrs ago and by accident. While searching the web I came across a website that sold 1/32 scale slot cars. It was a flashback to my childhood of playing with my AFX HO track set. I started searching for as much info about them as I could and eventually made the decision to buy a track set.

I went to eBay in search of a good deal. I ended up having the winning bid on a Scalextric Classic track set. However, I didn't bother to consider it's overall size when it was set up. A quick measurement of the area I planned to make its home showed the error of my ways. Luckily, the seller was very understanding and offered 2 other sets he had of equal value and that had a smaller footprint.

I had just become a fan of the WRC or World Rally Championship while flipping past the Speed Channel late one night. After watching that first night I was hooked and watched every single race religiously going forward. So, I chose a Scalextric Sport Rally set pictured at the top of this post.

It was great getting that package in the mail. It didn't take long to get it set up on the floor and the cars speeding around the elongated figure 8 layout. Thus, the addiction was born and

I started hunting eBay for slot car deals.

Soon our lease was up and we started looking into getting a home of our own. However, we were not in a position to buy right away and decided to give the rent 2 own option a try. The wife found a home in a nice area, great school system and closer to work than where we were currently renting.

The deposit $ was paid and papers signed, knowing if it didn't work out it would all be lost. We had 30 days notice at the rental to insure getting the deposit back and we began collecting boxes for the move.

I had been battling a really bad cold prior to all this. I had been to the family doctor and I was sent for a chest x-ray to make sure my lungs were clear. The next day after I had a routine visit with my thyroid doctor since I had thyroid cancer 7 yrs prior. This all happened in the week leading up to the signing of the paperwork to move in with the intent to buy the home down the road.

1, 2, 3 days after the ink was dry I got a call at work. It was my family doctor with the results of the x-rays. "Are you having trouble breathing?" I replied, "No, why?" She responded, "I'm afraid there's a 10 cm. mass in your chest and it's either this type of cancer or this type of cancer depending on future testing."

That change everything. We tried to get out of the deal based on what we expected to come medically and they wouldn't budge. The upcoming weeks resulted in tests, scans, surgery to remove a growth in my neck and still having to pack and get ready for a move into the house.

The kicker...my first chemo treatment was 2 days before the move date. It knocked me on my ass and I basically sleep through the move. Luckily, family and friends made it all happen. I was down and out for 6 months and in and out of the hospital. However, we beat it and life started to get back to normal.

Sadly, the expense killed us and bills became a mountain. Our happy home was a prison for me the first 6 months and we lost the whole joy of trying to make it our home. At the end of the first year of renting we made the hard decision to take the loss and move into an apartment. The slot car room gone and now no room in the apartment...my track only saw the light of day when my nephew spent the night. We would stay up to 2 or 3 am racing each other on the living room floor and that time was still worth holding onto the track and cars.

We lived there for 3 yrs and I still held onto hope and collected cars and track to build "The Big One" somewhere down the road. I ended up coming across a website and in the For Sale section a guy was selling some cars. I asked if he was up for a trade and we decided on the deal. It turned out to be a local guy. I met Shawn at the local slot car track to make the swap.

He was quick to answer my questions and was the nicest guy someone could ever hope to meet for the first time. He told me about his site he did slot car reviews for...Slot Car Garage. I joined and got turned onto another site Home Racing World. I started showing up at the local track when he was able to get there himself, etc.

Long story short (as if this isn't long already)...we became good friends, I ran on his track when our schedules allowed, he gave me the inspiration to ask a local shop to give me cars to review on Shawn's site Slot Car Garage in turn for advertising and links to their website, he became my slot car mentor and eventually we joined forces with Harry the owner of Home Racing World were I continued my slot car reviews.

(queue the music and fade to black)

(fade in)

We ended up moving into a duplex with the one requirement I needed...a basement. I came up with my 4 lane track design and started buying and trading for all the pieces I needed to make it. We've had more ups and downs combined with the economy (like everyone else) going into the toilet and it got to were I ended up selling 75% of my car collection off to keep up with things. It has been a long and rough road, but a year and a half after moving into the duplex...

IT HAS BEGUN....

Oh yeah, remember how I said I downsized my original track purchase because of size restraints...think 4 lanes of 1/32 glory spanning 7.5 feet by 18 feet. (queue the choir of angels and the beam of golden light shining down upon me and my basement)