Any Scalextric fans among our number?

[andi4x4]

I bought a new Sierra RS500 and E30 M3 yesterday and I didn't realise that they have deeper guides which means that they won't run on my Classic track.

Any ideas on what are the best (or rather, most suitable) guides to replace them with, please?

I have some spare guides from some old (1990s) Porsche 962Cs, will they fit OK?

 

 

Hi Del,

 

If they are the "new" Scalextric cars then the easy option is to trim the bottom off the guide blade. The old 80's/90's push-in type guides do not fit the newer cars due to the way the braids are fitted now.  You will need to take at least 1mm, maybe more, off and slightly round off the front lower corner. If you check the boxes the cars came in there should be some spare braid sets - they are usually attached to the underside of the black display plinth.

 

Just so we are clear - there is another manufacturer who have made a RS500 in recent years - SCX - is it one of those ?

[Del]

Thanks again, Andi.

No, these are definitely Scalextric. Looking at the liveries, I'm guessing at Australian touring cars.

[andi4x4]

Thanks again, Andi.

No, these are definitely Scalextric. Looking at the liveries, I'm guessing at Australian touring cars.

 

Ok, was just checking as I have one of the SCX Sierra RS500 rally cars !  The old Scalextric braids ( as I am sure you are aware ! ) had to be threaded through the guide blade and the wires pushed into the top to secure them. The modern cars have the braids pre-fitted to a plastic disc which slots over the guide blade, making braid changes quicker and easier. Unless they have changed it again in the last year or two (not bought a Scaley car for about two years !)

 

Another thing to check with the classic track is the gap between the rails - the old track is very flexible and, as such, the rails can kink and close up the gap. Also, where the track joints are the rails get bent and twisted from constant assembly/disassembly, which can cause the track rails to close the gap and can also raise the rails one above the other, both of which can stop a car dead in its tracks and even snap the guide pivot off the chassis, rendering the car scrap ! Bear in mind, the new style guide blades are not only deeper, they are also slightly thicker, so will be more likely to find the tight spots !

 

 

The gapping issue can be sorted by simply sticking a screwdriver into the slot and levering the bulge back into the plastic, opening the slot up again. It goes without saying --  TURN THE POWER OFF FIRST ! --  Obviously, if someone squeezes a trigger while you have a chunk of metal between the rails, damage, or injury will occur ! The issue with the rails sticking up at the joints is a little more fiddly, but if you study a good piece of track and compare it with a naff bit, you will see what you need to do. 

[Del]

Success! Trimmed the M3 guide, eliminated all the tight spots on the track, and so managed a few laps at reasonable pace 

RS500 next...

 

Also noticed that the magnet had fallen out of one of my old Porsche 962Cs, so had a go at magless too. Very tail-happy (as expected) but good fun. so will probably take the magnet out of the other Porsche so that I have a magless pair to race with.

[Reorte]

Also noticed that the magnet had fallen out of one of my old Porsche 962Cs, so had a go at magless too. Very tail-happy (as expected) but good fun. so will probably take the magnet out of the other Porsche so that I have a magless pair to race with.

Maybe I'm being grumpy and old-sounding but I prefer them magnetless, it keeps the speed down to less absurd-looking. My original Scalextric set was bought by my grandad when I was little, Mini Clubmans, and they were very tricky, they'd roll easily (and probably could've done with a magnet to be fair). Another challenge was using ancient tyres with very hardened rubber, it was like driving on ice.

 

I once set it all up in the local pub and organised a tournament. I was very stiff the next day from having spent all evening leaping around putting cars back on the track (as well as hungover since I got some drinks on the house for it - must've been a success because the place was short of beer the next day!)

 

Most of my Scalextric time seemed to involve crawling around levering a screwdriver into the joints to try to make them connect.

[Oldddudders]

Magnets are presumably of little use off steel-lined slots. In the old days a lump of lead or plasticine would limit the wiggle.

[andi4x4]

Magnets are presumably of little use off steel-lined slots. In the old days a lump of lead or plasticine would limit the wiggle.

 

Yes, the magnets only work when near the rails, but, the early Scalextric mag-effect cars had a wide strip of magnetic material across most of the width of the chassis just in front of the rear axle.  The magnets definitely work. The 1980's cars fitted with them were not brilliant as the magnet used was a fairly weak one. When FLY cars first appeared in the UK they were often banned at slotcar clubs unless the magnet had been removed as they used a super strong neodymium type magnet. You could place a FLY car on the track and turn it upside down without the car falling off. Magnets are definitely a benefit on steel railed track, however, when they let go, the crashes are often more violent !

[Reorte]

Without magnets you can slide the back end out to stop overtaking if you're in the inside lane. The window between not sliding out much and enough of a spin to jar you out of the slot is quite narrow.