[howmet tx]

I'd love to see more pics of chassis in all their wonderful variety- especially with build details, too. Graham has some fantastic ideas, I see, and Russell sets the mark for craftsmanship so far, but let's see some more! I especially want to know about ideas for improved handling (doh!)
Mrs Howmet has promised to knit some prizes for the most interesting posts.

To set the ball rolling, herewith my first go at a 1/24 'retro' car, '67 period or thereabouts. Straightforward brass/piano wire inline with drop arm and floppy outriggers. Still looking for an appropriate motor.....

 

[howmet tx]

O goodie, goodie, goodie! Wild and wacky chassiseses, just what I wanted!
I love that Scratchbuilt site, but it seems to have gone a bit quiet lately.. is anyone involved there on this forum?
Thanks for the kind words, Russell. I really enjoyed building that. Lining up the rails is not difficult- drop in some aluminium spacers so they don't get soldered in by mistake.
There was a great deal of craftsmanship went into those old brass and steel chassis- a lot of pride involved in making it look aesthetically right as well as performing well.
I loved reading those old step by step building articles in the slot car mags- Anyone want to do a similar thing here with current ideas?
I love hearing about those 'alternative' ideas, too- plastic and wood and whathaveyou.
Thanks fellas. Keep 'em rolling.

 

[howmet tx]

And I forgot- thanks for the offer of help, Graham, but the only authentic bit I have got already is a precious old Dyna-rewind armature. What I need is the magnets... Arcos? And one of those bullet-proofed endbells- Oh yes, the smell of burning PTFE- my very first hallucinagenic high....

 

[howmet tx]

Hey! Mr Secchi!
Thanks for the tip about the races...I'll do my best to be there. As soon as I can get a motor sorted. Unless modern Parmas are permitted!
Can you post some of your work? I know it's gorgeous.
And I didn't intend this to be a low-down scrounge, Graham, but if you find anything in your shed, let me know.... Thanks! I lost all of my gear years ago, probably when I went to college and Mum and Dad demolished my old bedroom. Health hazard, they said. Probably right.
Commercial chassis have their place too JP. No need to be shy. As if you needed telling.
I hoped this would all be about chassis, but here's a top view of my nostalgia wagon, painted from memory......

 

[howmet tx]

Wow. My cup runneth over and dribbleth down my chin and onto the keyboard and sticks to the fluff between G and H.

This is fantastic! We've got, let me see, tin cans, coat hangers, circuit board, brass plate and rod reverse plumber iso angle blather burble......

Love them all! The black arts are not lost!

I'd like to nudge the tiller a touch back towards current trends, though, much as I love the retro stuff. What are the best handling set ups round and about? Home tracks, club tracks, magnet and non- ? How many hinges do the cool guys use these days, and where? Stuff like that. Every club prefers a different set up usually.

One last retro thing..does anyone have one of those X frame Team Bog chassis from back then? I was trying to figure out how they worked. All I remember is that the main rails crossed over before they got to the front axle, but I'm blowed if I can work out how... or why?

 

[howmet tx]

Beautiful and inspiring, Larry! And all you other contributors too, thanks!
I got myself a 1/24 Eagle shell ready and waiting as well... the last proper racing F1 chassis I built had a pivoting rear axle/motor cage- I wanted to see if I could remember how and why I did that, too.
Happy soldering/gluing/drilling/whatever, chaps! As long as you take the photos too....

 

[howmet tx]

Looks like those sausage fingers can handle a pair of pliers just as well as a barre chord on a Strat after all, Mr JP!
10 out of 10, young sir, and make sure you hand in the rest of your prep on time!

One question.... why on earth did those guys go to all that trouble for a gutless 13UO back then??? Now a Fox makes much better sense.

 

[howmet tx]

Soo, let's see. Replace the 13U0 mags with a Fox set, new armature (would a Fox do?), and why waste that Fox can and brushgear? Sorry Grah, anything to relieve the tedium of rewinding...!

Hate to be pedantic, but that's not the way to spell potato
Shouldn't it have an apostrophe at the end? That's the way my greengrocer spells it.

Keep scratching

 

[howmet tx]

Quick work, young John. You may visit Matron after school for a special treat.

 

[howmet tx]

See guys? What Howmet promises, Howmet delivers. Now get busy on those chassis, and I'll send Matron on her rounds.

Mrs Howmet still knitting though- we still have a quantity of three-armed sweaters waiting for a few more lucky winners.

 

[howmet tx]

Matron will be with you shortly, Mr Smith, but she's disappointed to hear you only have a short stack. We'll see what we can do.

 

[howmet tx]

By the way Philsmith...
just trying to figure out your frame there- is the front section folded over, or is it a separate plate soldered on? Is that to stiffen it up? It's certainly a very solid chassis. Can we see it set up?

 

[howmet tx]

That's interesting, Prof. I never realised that the Monogram motor was substantially different to the stock Mabuchi. Who did the rewinds? In those days no-one at our club could afford them... we were pretty cynical, even at our young age, about US repackaging and renaming of cheap imports! And the common view of the stock 13UO was that it was a waste of space. Whatever you did to the arm in terms of rewinding, the magnets just weren't up to the job. I remember butchering the cans to get some 16D magnets in through the sides (or Rikochet mk 1s), but then you'd pretty well lost the advantage of the smaller size. When I started to make some F1s recently, I had another look at some dead 13UO's to see if they were worth reviving, but then I discovered that the Fox, or equivalent, is not substantially bigger. And it goes MUCH better! I'm still waiting for my delivery of Beardog's new small F1 cans, and in a state of fevered excitement to see if these will finally be the holy grail for scale F1 builders... a motor small enough to fit in a cigar body GP car, but with enough power to make it worthwhile!
Cheers!

 

[howmet tx]

Yes- beautiful work! thanks for showing it, Phil.
Especially now I know it's for one of my all time favourite cars. I built one myself with a Classic body- even then I found it hard to fit a sidewinder Fox inside it- a question of height rather than length. It must be tough finding room for a 16d. Can we see more pics of how you did it?

 

[howmet tx]

I'm with JP here... slot racing in the 80s is unknown territory to me. I was out at night annoying ladies the whole time.
I'd love to see more info and pictures- those cars look superb, and I apologise profusely for all my slurs and slanders re. the 13UO!

 

[howmet tx]

By the way, it you really do have a shortage of Lotus glass, you can always get a 'Classic' Lotus 40 body....

 

[howmet tx]

Thanks for the kind words Russell, and coming from you......
What can I say?
But I'm afraid that's it from the photo album, such as it is. I've just taken another film though, and I'll be putting up a few more when it comes back from the developers. I'll start working my way through the collection though, 'cos this is fun!
Currently working on chassis for my ProtoSlot CanAm Ferrari, Retro 1/24 Eagle F1, Mac Pinches' WONDERFUL BRM, reading this b*** forum addictively every day, and trying to earn a living on the side.
Ain't life grand?

 

[howmet tx]

Just to get back to chassisisis for a mo', here's my Batmobile frame (now that's an easier word), finally done. I'll stick some more pics on the Vanquish Batmobile site if anyone wants to see anymore of that project.

 

[howmet tx]

It's 1/16th rod, Grah1. Tube's a bit weak, Eh?
Glad you like it. They're fun to do! Cooking up something Jaguar shaped next, methinks....
'There's a blast from the past'- that's what the little Howmets say after I've had my beans for supper. Cheeky little critters.

 

[howmet tx]

Superb JP! Wrong period for my Eagle- I'll have to build something like that though. Smoooth. And I like those fronts- wha?