[4.3 ZOOK]

Hi everyone..
As some of you know I've disassembled the Shasta Highlands Track,but I think this one will be better all a round.
It is going to be a single lane Rally course/part street,part gravel,and part dirt.
I drew this up in November,so I've been waiting a while to start,and have made several improvements along the
way.This is the basic layout.It is 7'x14' ,and will set on a hinged table that gets it mostly out of the way.

Also did a 1/2" per foot scale model out of paper to see how the elevations would look.

Does anyone know of a soft ware program for a computer[MAC] lap counter?
Would like to be able to monitor multiple racers,showing single lap speed,fastest lap time,etc....

Will have more next Sunday
c-ya then
Rice

 

[MrFlippant]

I can send you a copy of RaceManagerX, which has a Mac version. It's the program that Dale Thomas, aka Motorsportnut, was working on. The home track clubs around here use it regularly and it runs great on my Intel Mac os 10.4.1. He died last year, so there will be no updates for different hardware, or bug fixes, but it already works with a half dozen different lap counting systems, and is quite stable. I don't know of any other Mac compatible RMS apps, though some may exist.

 

[Ember]

Whoohooo... It's about time we got to learn just what it is you're cooking up, Rice.

QUOTE (4.3 ZOOK @ 28 May 2012, 12:47) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>It is 7'x14' ,and will set on a hinged table that gets it mostly out of the way.
7 x 14 feet? Hinged? Who has an orangutan in the family to put it up and down, let alone reaching across for a car?

Embs

 

[Kellerkind]

Ohhhhh...Uhhhhh...Ahhhhhhh! Rice is up with something new! Nice track this is going to be! Looking fwd to see more. Regards Jens

 

[4.3 ZOOK]

Hi Ya'll...

Mr. Flippant that is very nice of you,maybe I could trade something for it,will PM you, thanx...

Ember I've already thought of that and since I don't have a large ape or a giant arm like the sandman,I came up with this

....
An old ATV winch, which was disassembled and mounted to a bracket and bolted to the wall. A 3/8" drill is enough to
raise and lower the table.

That is an old painting I did back in '79,it will be in a few photos until I move it...
Started laying out the track

I'll have photos of the bridge next time..

 

[John Cahill]

I had to look twice, your track is so much like what I also imagined when I laid mine out! Also, mine is a
representation of the roads here in "Oak Creek" ...at least our bridges are in different places. *grin*

Seriously, I suppose one curvy course looks like another...however, I''m looking at yours and thinking
I need more trees. Hope you get an idea or two from mine...

Good luck in your build,
John

 

[Kellerkind]

Hi Rice,
the beginning is done and I am looking fwd to see your new track!

@John: Nice track! Do you have a thread of it in Slotforum, too? I would be very interested in seeing some detailed photos of your scenery.

Regards Jens

 

[4.3 ZOOK]

Thanks John(nice track),they are similar ,I tried to incorporate as many different types of turns(increasing,decreasing,etc.)and copy the Sierra foothills.
My posts have been rather helter skelter due to the fact that I,m doing this from friends computers(soon I'll be connected)

A couple more of the raising/lowering hardware

The bridge: I used a piece of Aurora flex track so the bridge could swing a bit....

Cut and shaped the pieces and stained them in "Jacobean" stain...

3/8" MDF is no longer available in my area,so I decided to kerf the 1/2" with a router,worked well....

But sure was dusty....

 

[Ember]

 

[4.3 ZOOK]

First I'd like to thank Greg (Mr.Flippant) for the download..
And then I'm just going to post a bunch of photos...

 

[Ember]

There is definitely now small amount of 'wow' becoming a possibility here. The bridge alone is bordering on inspired.

Waiting patiently for more
Embs

 

[MrFlippant]

I already said wow to myself.

 

[Kellerkind]

...yes, remembering Shasta Highlands scenery one know what great track this is going to be (if ZOOK doesnt change the whole thing again when already finished

). And there will be a forest this time! Great photo btw. What bushes did you use for the trees or are they made by that crazy yes-I-have-killed-my-mother-and-father-mea-culpa-method?

Regards Jens

 

[Ember]

QUOTE (Kellerkind @ 18 Jun 2012, 16:10) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>...or are they made by that crazy yes-I-have-killed-my-mother-and-father-mea-culpa-method?

Jens there are some days that you really frighten me.

 

[Kellerkind]

...sorry I wanted to say copperwire-method

 

[Ember]

Now hang on a minute. If that was an auto-correct intervention I think I should still be concerned that your auto-correct had the phrase "crazy yes-I-have-killed-my-mother-and-father-mea-culpa-method" in its memory.

 

[4.3 ZOOK]

Yes! I'm still confused and laughing,"So sorry,my mistake" Would that be an insanity plea?

Thank You all!
Don't put any pressure on me now,he he....

Jens,it is a member of the Ceanothus family(buckbrush,whitethorn)a nasty bush that grows around the foothills of my area.
I'm sure that some form of it grows in just about every temperate zone.
I wanted something that scaled out at 1 to 1.5 meters(3 to 4.5 feet)

You can see where the branches have been cut and spliced to make them more tree like.
When foliage is added it will have to be in a way to cover the joints.

 

[Ember]

They make rather evil looking 'ghost trees' pretty much as they are.

 

[4.3 ZOOK]

@Lynn-I know what you mean,still have to experiment with the foliage though.

Here is a panorama shot of 95% of the track

This is the water crossing that is just out of sight in the photo above.
I wanted to get some radical elevation changes thinking that it would make driving more challenging,
but the cars go through these (what I thought would be challenging)areas like they weren't there..
makes for better viewing though...

Kerfs were made to the bottom and top of the MDF so it would flex like "crazy"

This section was pulled down easily with drywall screws.

The kerfs were then filled with "bondo" (automotive body filler) which there is no photo of..

Here is a photo that shows the angles better

I am posting more frequent now that I am back on line....YA!
(there goes my book reading)

 

[Ember]

But we're more fun than books 'cause we answer back.

BTW: There's an E on the end.

I've yet to make the Editor's pay for that mistake but I shall. Oh how I shall...