[steveaca]

I'm thinking of getting an MSC car to race in our club's rally car class. We run on Scaley Sport digital track and rally car class is for non-mag. cars (2 or 4 wheel drive), restricted to motors of no more than 21,500 rpm. Inaugural event for this class was last week and the fastest car was an SCX Citroen C4 4-wheel-drive. My questions are as follows:
1) Which MSC car would be the best for this , taking into account the non-mag rule? I'm thinking the Ford RS200 or Subaru Impreza.
2)Do the above cars have different chassis ? From the photos I've seen, the Subaru appears magnet-less but the Ford has a magnet. The actual chassis appears different as well.
3)What size axles (3/32 " diameter ?) do these cars use ? Will Slot.it components such as gears and rims work on the standard axles ?
4)Are silicone tyres available to fit the standard rims ?
5)What are the motor specs (power, torque, rpm) ?
6)At the end of the day, is this car going to be any faster than the SCX Citroen ?
Steve

 

[StuBeeDoo]

From my experience with 2x MSC cars - RS200 and 6R4 - I would say no to your "are they faster?".

I haven't run either of these cars against a C4, but I've got loads of other SCX cars and on my predominately Scalextric Sport rally track, which is mainly R1 and R2 with the longest straight only 2mtrs, the MSC cars are among the slowest because they are very hard to keep in the slot.

The detail on the cars is brilliant, but I'm unlikely to buy any more, and if I'd have paid the normal asking price for them I'd have been very disappointed. Detail is all very well, but handling is of greater importance to me.

In fact, I'm having problems with the rear axle on the 6R4. I can't get the crown to grip the axle. The grub screw has been tightened that many times the the allen key now spins in the screw and the crown is still loose . I'll have to get a better crown.

Not impressive for a £50+ car.

The belt driven 4wd was never the brightest of ideas, either. For the band to be tight enough to actually drive the front wheels of my MSC cars when they are under load, the front axle is pulled out of line.

To sum my feelings up.......... Buyer beware!

Just my 2p.

 

[steveaca]

Thanks StuBeeDoo. I'm wondering when you say that the MSC cars are the slowest, if you're running magnets. Our rally class is for non-magnet cars and with magnets removed, it is possible that the MSCs might outperform the SCXs. I do prefer the direct drive 4x4 set-up of the SCX cars to the belt drive arrangement of these cars.
I agree with you about the crown/axle issue in that the price of these cars should warrant some level of reliability.
Steve

 

[Abarth Mike]

My crown isn't loose but I think from the picture below we might deduce that it is either a scaleauto or MBSlot crown. These being the only two part crown set up I know of.

There are two threaded holes in the crown have you tried adding a second grub screw? Or even the same screw in the other hole?

 

[mtucker666]

Set up right they will happily out perform and SCX car IMHO. The rear tyres are no good so swap for your proffered tyre of choice. The quickest msc car for scaly sport car will be the angle winder subaru which only comes in a kit and is now not too easy to find. Will take a bit of work but once sorted you will blow away those pesky citroens.

Matt

 

[Julian_Boolean]

The MSC Impreza does very well at SlotRallyGB, I've got the 6R4 and it's definitely quicker than SCX cars but is tricky to drive, for me the Avant Slot Manta is a lot better, I think this has the same chassis as the Avant Slot Impreza and Evo if you want something modern. If you don't want to spend over £40 the Ninco Focus and C4 are very good.

 

[Guest]

The MSC is light years ahead of SCX in many ways, for one the SCX motor way slower than the MSC, although the MSC motor is far to quick for these rally cars! I've put an NC5 in my inline Subaru and I've played with slot.it orange can with Slot.it pod which works really well. The belt works very well with alinement so simple, with adjustment done by the two stoppers at the front. The MSC do suffer from plastic wheels coming loose, but that is a quick fix by roughing up the end of axle with sandpaper then a very small drop of CA on the axle push and turn wheel back on job done.

http://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/UUnWNJETUYljoUUhvVhBZHcQ&index=6&feature=plcp?rel=0

I run my 6R4 and Subaru with Slot.it 15's on the back and once shrub in (if you don't have a truer) work very well on Ninco track, can't say for sport track, although I did try my cars on my sons fig of 8 once and was not happy with the lack of grip the sport track seemed to have… moving on!

SCX do have their place and run well together, but IMO they don't alongside MSC.

 

[stoner]

it seams a shame to waste a gear set. looking at mikes picture you will just get away with tapping it for the next size up grubscrew. john

 

[StuBeeDoo]

QUOTE (steveaca @ 10 Jul 2012, 07:03) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>I'm wondering when you say that the MSC cars are the slowest, if you're running magnets.
No, I'm not.

QUOTE (Julian_Boolean @ 10 Jul 2012, 08:32) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>If you don't want to spend over £40 the Ninco Focus and C4 are very good.
Agreed. Particularly the C4.

 

[Ronan]

I've found my MSC cars to be not only faster than any of my SCX cars, but some of the quickest cars around my track barring a few NSRs and slot.it's.

I run on MDF hence no mag and they are superb. I replaced the rear tyres with soft urethanes which transformed the grip and I solved the problem with the final gear coming loose (all the time, a problem with all the MSC cars I have plus a scaleauto SLS, so I guess it's the same part) by getting a tube of liquid threadlocker from a local B&Q type place here in Dublin and since then no more problems.

The only problem with them now is the other guys I race with don't like me picking them when racing rally cars as I tend to win easily with them!

 

[martini917k]

Stu, on a tight, twisty, slippery track the MSC stock motor is your problem; it has too much rpm & torque; drop down to an NC-5 or even NC-2 & you will greatly enjoy the car.
As far as the crown gears go: be sure to tighten them up . We've gone over the MSC cars fairly well & they offer lots of adjustments, some I haven't quite done anything w/ so far, but my crown slipped on my Subaru as well. I have 2 Monte Carlo chassis & the Mitsu & the Ford.
They have made the best Subaru body yet!

 

[alexis in greece]

I have had a very bad relation start with MSC cars via a 6R4.
1-Crown problem as described.After close examination i found that the gear was out of round therefore producing vibration
and screw losening.Tried to change to Slot.it but to my surpise wouldnt fit so i had to change the pinion too
2-Tires,a lot to be desired.
3-Light array.Held on the body by 2 tiny plastic pins which broke on the second off.
At these prices?Never going to by another.
Speed?Other club members say the RS200 is fast.

 

[driver#8]

It depends on what you're looking for but for the range and bang for the buck, SCX is hard to beat.

If you're running competitively then, depending on the classes you run, MSC makes a strong case.

Have a look at the results of each of the Slot Rally GB events, however, and you'll see that between the two brands there is a fair whack of difference.

At Oxford this weekend the fastest standard SCX car completed the 8 stages (routed, Ninco, Ninco Raid, Scalextric) in 447.48 seconds. The fastest MSC completed those stages in 371.6 seconds.

However, standard SCX cars and standard MSC cars don't compete in the same class, and each was running at the front of the respective classes.

Edit: I've got two MSC cars, the 6R4 and the Impreza. I haven't been able to run the 6R4 because of the gearing issue, although it seems a fairly simple one to resolve. In all cases with the MSC cars it's worth bearing in mind that they're 'handling bodies' sitting upon what is intended to be standard-setting chassis, motors and running gear for slot rallying. They are not scale models. The RS200 looks a bit silly and the Impreza is no oil painting. The 6R4 just about gets away with it, but if you want a real looker Scalextric's forthcoming model will be a better bet - it just won't run very well without a magnet.

 

[StuBeeDoo]

QUOTE (martini917k @ 10 Jul 2012, 14:39) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>Stu, on a tight, twisty, slippery track the MSC stock motor is your problem; it has too much rpm & torque; drop down to an NC-5 or even NC-2 & you will greatly enjoy the car.
Good advice!

TBH, I seem to recall reading it somewhere else but had forgotten it.

I've swapped motors between my MSC RS200 and Ninco Lancer this evening. The RS200 is a much nicer car with the NC-5 in, and I've lopped a good 5sec of my stage time.

The Lancer is more of a handful with the MSC motor in, in spite of being a heavier car than the RS200. I'll have to source a couple of NC-5s.

 

[steveaca]

Assuming I decide to go the MSC route, which would be better, the Impreza (not angle-winder as I can't find one available) or the RS200 ?

 

[slotcarscrapyard]

I race a MSC RS200 in a field of MSC Impreza's and to be honest the scooby's generally are quicker.
If it wasn't for the fact that the drivers tend to crash out at the end of thier talent i doubt the RS200 would have won as many races!
Dont get me wrong, we have some great drivers at club, but to put things into prospective I have on the odd occasion beaten them with an scx Escort MK2 with a 25k pro speed motor and a lowered body!
(I do get my arse kicked in GT and scx nascar classes though!)

 

[Ian B]

I have a few MSC Cars, but I love the Impreza its a great car, so adaptable, the ability to fit the Slot.it motor-mount is a master stroke it's certainly a hit on our club track. It's versatility allows for so many different set-ups depending on the drivers personal preferences, I just happen to run mine as a sidewinder. With its extra length and width over the RS200 or the 6R4s it just suits our twisty wood track much better.

If you were asking me which one I'd have, my answer is the Scooby every-time.

And I dare say I will be having one of these as soon as they hit the shops here in the UK.

 

[steveaca]

Great to know that the Slot.it motor pods can be used on the Impreza. I would be interested in running the standard motor and pod though but with silicone tyres. I can't seem to find a reference anywhere advising which silicones would work on the standard rims of this car. Can anyone help ? If silicones can't be sourced to run on the standard rims, would Slot.it rims work on the MSC axles ? As we're at it, how about Slot.it crown gears : would Slot.it gears match up with MSC motor pinion ?
Thanks in advance for your input.
Steve

 

[Ian B]

The majority of UK clubs don't use (allow) Silicones, so the other answer is yes slot.it wheels will fit, I'd be tempted to go with a complete slot.it back end.

 

[steveaca]

What gearing (crown: pinion) does the MSC Impreza come with ? Does MSC offer a choice of gears, as , for example, Slot.it ?
Steve