[MrFlippant]

Although not as effective as steel rails, the magnetic paint DOES have some effect:

QUOTE two identical hornby mustang slot cars on a section of my wood track. track is painted with 2 coats of rustoleum magnetic primer with one coat of behr interior flat paint on top. first car has no magnets installed. second car has a single bar magnet in the rear position. huge difference in traction...

for this test, both cars were powered with two 9 volt batteries held directly to the rails.

 

[MrFlippant]

see quotation of video description
by the way, that's not my track, but I'd seen that video a while ago and it seemed appropriate to post here.

 

[MrFlippant]

I wouldn't call it a waste of time just yet. It doesn't take much pull to improve traction dramatically as shown in that video, but you won't FEEL it if you put a car on that has a magnet in it and lift it off the track like you can with a magnet car on steel rails. Between absolutely no pull (no magnet or ferrous paint) and a little pull (magnet and ferrous paint), there's a difference in the car performance. Will the kids be able to tear around at high speed without coming off? Of course not. Nor could they have on plastic with steel rails and silicone tires. You'll still need to reduce their power scale and/or track voltage to help them stay on while they learn how to race with very low magnetic downforce.
The annoying part is that the paint needs a long time to fully dry/cure/whatever prior to a top coat. This is information I had not known, so will be useful to keep in mind when other people ask about using magnetic paint on a routed track.

I really hope that time will cure the problem and you can continue as planned. I think it's good that you didn't tape first, though. No one ever gets anything done on a track once you can make a car go on it. ;-)

 

[MrFlippant]

I'm fully prepared to believe that the magnetic paint has little effect. At the same time, I know Boopiejones from more than that video, and have no reason to doubt him. I guess the only way to prove it is to take the SAME car and do it once with a magnet and once without.

I also am well aware that the tires probably make more difference than the magnetic paint. I've run magless enough to know that, and when I make my own wood track(s), I'll probably not use the magnetic paint I have on hand. House paint and proper tires is all I'm planning on worrying about.

 

[MrFlippant]

Not even a hint of offense taken, so no worries. I find this all interesting and thought provoking, and that's a good thing.