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Slot it Challenge 2012

7K views 24 replies 11 participants last post by  GetSlotted 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
Hi to all the 2011 Slot It Challenge registered drivers. With only two rounds left, we are looking towards next years championship rules.

The obvious rule change already discussed by many is the use of the magnetraction from motors. 2012 will see the banning of magnetic effect/open can motors on tracks with steel rails. This includes, Pendle, GT Raceway and Pinewood. Only closed can non mag motors will be eligible for these type of tracks.

Your suggestions regarding tyres and any other potential rule changes are most welcome as are suggestions regarding venues or any other aspects of the race weekends please comment here.

Please be aware that only 2011 SIC registed drivers are advised to post as I don't want the thread to get out of hand like some previous topics.

This thread will be run for two weeks up to the Pendle event and then be closed.

Also if you are not on the SIC mailing list please pm me your email address and I will add you to it.

Regards
Nic
 
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#2 ·
Hi Nic.

First, I like the idea of not using the magnetic effect motors next year at the braided tracks on the series.

I think the next move should be Tyres. They always have and will be a black art, it's where the advantage comes mostly, even over how well your car is built.
My idea would be to have handout F22's as you sign in Sunday morning at the events, there must be a way we can mark them so people won't feel the need to change them during the event. An extra fee could of course be added to the entry fee to cover cost.
These should remain unglued and untreated. Maybe we need to start holding cars after Scrutineering and only allow drivers there cars back for the heats ?

Apart from that, I think the rules should stay the same as 2011.

Now, regarding Pinewood as a hosting club. I'm not going to be able to commit 100% next year, much like this year to the challenge series. I also know due to many different reasons others at Pinewood are going to be the same for 2012.
I'm more than happy to carry on hosting running a round at Pinewood, but feel it's unfair to carry on doing so if the clubs drivers cannot commit to the series and attend other rounds. Please feel free guys to cast your comments on this.

Also news at Pinewood is our 1/32nd track is now in storage. We are hoping to have a new 6 lane braided (but not magnectic), track in it's place, which will be higher from the ground and include raised drivers podium. Not sure yet if the track will be gloss or sandtex. Hopefully it should all be designed, built and runnng for March next year.

Hope this helps Nic and I look forward to seeing other drivers from the challenge's views.

Regards, Paul Charlton - Pinewood Raceway
 
#4 ·
Hi nick , I think the decision is right on the motor front I think most people would agree with that. I must say however I don't agree with Paul on handout tyres , I think personally that we should just make it so that it's f-series tyres only. The amount of time you hear people complaining that they are fOllowing someone using p6's and it's ruining their grip is countless.

I feel it should be f15,22 and 30 only. Also I think they should be allowed to be glued and tried as yes this may be some of the art of it yes part of winning is about how well you do this and set the car up , what's wrong with that ? Redbull aren't the fastest car out on the track purely because of their drivers being the best are they ? That's the great thing about the slot it challenge you can set your car up to the best of your ability and you have to work out what works best for the car.

As for pinewood holding a round I think even if your maybe not going to be fully committed next year then you should still be able to host a round due to the help/commitment shown to the series in the past. Only having 5 rounds would seem a bit naff. Oh and Paul , please build a plastic track not a gloss/santex one!
 
#5 ·
As you say Flange, I have heard drivers complaining about the lack of grip following another car with different tyres etc. In my opinion this is rubbish. If this is the case i must be following some one who's been using '0 grips'.

I personally think the F15 tyres generate to much grip.

As Paul says. If every one was to use a control tyre, I would suggest F22's. They give good grip but are a little more forgiving than the 15s and true up easier. I don't think hand out tyres on the day would work as untrued and unglued tyres would prove a nightmare on a woodern track at 13.8volts. its been tried and tested at Pendle.

Nic
 
#6 ·
I would like the round a pinewood to continue, provided that a track has been built in time. I personally enjoy the round at Pinewood and it always seems to attract a fair number of racers, it would be a pity to omit this venue from the series.
Personal circumstances could affect us all in time which could result in some of us not being able to commit as much time as we currently do but feel that if a club such as Pinewood is willing to host an event then we should be grateful as it provides us with the opportunity to race ( which is why we do this isnt it !!!!!!!) as well as to have a social event.
 
#7 · (Edited by Moderator)
What is a Slot.it event? To me it is a "Social weekend with fellow slotcar enthusiasts, oh and we do a bit of racing too"

I think I must be the bloke who runs round just before Nic and Lee because I really struggle for grip and I tend to run P6's sorry Lee….Mind you, it didn't do you any harm at the last event
…..

But then again for some of us the only opportunity we get to race Slot.it cars is the Slot.it weekends, our club simply does not give use the option to use these cars or tyres so every weekend is a fresh challenge, it's quite difficult to come up with the perfect tyre in a single practice day. So a single tyre option of any kind could be a good move for some of us, no-matter what the option is.

I actually understand the argument for closed cans on the magnetic tracks and have no problem with that.

With Paul, I think the majority of the rules should stay the same as 2011.

And I'd like to keep Pinewood if at all possible it's such a great venue it would be a shame to loose it…
 
#8 ·
I think I share a lot of the views already expressed really.
Remove the mag effect motors from the equation at venues with steel rails/braid.
As far as tyres go, I think restricting it to F22's only is a great idea, but I agree with Nic that unglued or trued they'd be a bit poo. F22's are far easier to true so shouldn't prove as problematical to the less experienced (or those not on the dark side
).
Also, how about a revue of the points system? With more of a gap between places rather than 50 for 1st, 49 for 2nd and so on.You could up the ante a bit more by awarding bonus points for fastest lap of the day, furthest distance travelled in a single heat and smelliest guff of the weekend! ok maybe not the last one


I haven't got a problem with any of the venues on the calendar, I think they offer a good cross section of surfaces and layouts. However I would like to put Molesey forward as a possible alternative/additional venue.

This is my first year of being involved with this series and I've really enjoyed it so far, but having listened to various points of view it would appear that some tweaking is required to freshen it up a bit. Nothing too radical, just a tweak! I like a tweak
 
G
#9 · (Edited)
In reply to Nic: i think, personally, that you are talking out of your bottom.

Many racers feel that, if using F tyres and following P's, you suffer from seriously reduced grip. Anyway, as they are not readily available, shouldn't the use of them be prohibited now?

If handout tyres are used, this may encourage a larger entry but all clubs would have to run at 12-12.5 volts. We have just used F22's at this power level with little problem.
The dates could be varied so that Pinewood is not always 1st etc. Make racers come to our club as our entry is low compared to others.

The most important point regards the 3 round rule. I am certain that some are registering for 3 but not turning up for them and therefore perhaps only racing a home round. I suggest that anyone, for whatever reason, not attending 3 rounds, are removed from the results. It may be an idea to introduce bonus points for each round attended therefore encouraging entries at away rounds. Either way, the current scoring system favours any club that can field a large entry of "home" drivers. That is not the fault of the club in any way and in fact all clubs hosting an SIC round would like to be in that position.
Banning open cans on magnetic tracks is a must but not an across the board ban altogether.

The implementation of any new rules should be aimed at attracting new entrants.
Off to find a bomb shelter..............................
 
#10 ·
All valid points and thanks for posting. We would like to see representations for all participating clubs so what ever your view point of the rules please post as it will give us a greater all round view.
Regarding tyres - knowing that Maurizio is following this thread i would like to see Slot.it release a range of pre glued & trued tyres (18x10 on small hubs please
), something similar to the Scaleauto range of alloys with either sponge or rubber glued & trued, possibly in a range of different compounds so that at each event a specific compound could be chosen and all entrants would use the same rubber. For many racers this would be a great leveller.
Regarding the first round, as Paul from Pinewood has already stated there are some question marks over their involvement. I would like to give Pinewood every chance of hosting an event as their venue is superb, however in order to do this we feel that another club should stage the first round giving Pinewood extra time to work out their position. This would obviously mean a reshuffle in the calendar. Would participating clubs and club reps in particular please look at their options.
Sean
 
#11 ·
i think the track does change when somebody using a different compound is on before you, so think going for one compound would be better and in my opinion the f series, 15, 22, 30, whatever free choice. they are grippy but i don't think too grippy. the problem is at the mo we running the cars low for the mag at pendle, when the mag lets go thats it, its not the tyres fault really. at hereford i was running f tyres and they were sliding, too much in the final!

i think they are far easier to do and take a lot less time to run in than the p6's. I've managed to do some decent sets a certain some1 has done me some better ones but i think overall they r easier to get going than P6's, specially when u can bang them on and they ready to go pretty much right away. i think its closer now with people using the f tyres rather than the P, they were a blacker art IMO. i wouldn't personally want to go down the unglued route and run at 12V.

the points system idea is a good one - giving more reward to winning rather than just one point. and maybe some kind of bonus system for those that travel to all 6 events and like the fasted lap thing. the smelliest guff award would be a challenge, there would always be some1 that went too far though pushing too hard, not on the track. and wether enforced due to pinewood or not be nice to shuffle the fixtures as people miss rounds in the summer due to hols and its always the same clubs missing out.

i think its a great series and whatever happens il be carrying on next year i would have thought. i think it will be far better once the mag effect has gone because tyres are all the more critical it seems, getting them low enough to get the mag but high enough to go down the straight and not take the paint off the track!
 
#12 ·
I agree with Nic regarding different compound Tyres effecting grip levels the surface surely cannot change that quick!
On saying that it would be nice to see some sort of control on tyres. You can go and buy a car the same as the top drivers you can buy motors the same as the top drivers, what you can't do is get Tyres the same as the top drivers, I know this is part of competitive racing but it's very frustrating when you lack any sort if grip.
The introduction of the f Tyres this year has made the gap bigger between the top and bottom drivers, so sticking to one tyre ie f22s would be a step in the right direction perhaps.
 
#13 ·
QUOTE (welshwisard @ 5 Sep 2011, 23:47) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>The introduction of the f Tyres this year has made the gap bigger between the top and bottom drivers, so sticking to one tyre ie f22s would be a step in the right direction perhaps.

I cannot understand why? As soon as you take them off the truer (f15s) there ready to go and will no be bad without any special oils or chemestry lessons. I agree with Sean the best thing would be for slot.it to release glued and trued tyres already done so those that dont have a truer can just get them and there off. Just sticking to one tyre wouldnt solve this problem as from experience i find the f22's need about 3-4 times as much running in time/oiling than the f15's do and they are more of a dark art to get right.
 
#17 ·
Obviously the main point is the mag on steel, I think the change will have very little or even no change at all on the amount of mag you can get from a "good" motor.
If this is the case then maybe there should be a clearance limit stopping the cars from dragging along the track , what this clearance should be i have no idea.


As for the tyres i think there should always be a selection in compound because of the high wear on sandtex surfaces (unless your Mr Mitchell
)
Another possibility could be to run only "F" compounds on smooth surfaces because i'm pretty sure we would all choose "F's" over "P's" for maximum grip, whether it be all "F's" of just "F22's". This would also solve the grip issue some people claim to have with the "P6's" which i'm not convinced with, and for the other range of surfaces allow the option of "P's" because as Shaun proved at stoke the "P" compound has no effect on grip for the "F's".
 
#19 ·
I Don't have the experience of many who have already commented as I only started racing last year. I do know however that the large number of tyre options is daunting to anyone looking to do the series for the first time. You never know for sure whether its car type, engine choice, gear ratio, tyres or something else that is preventing you getting anywhere near the pace. At least if the tyre choice was narrowed to F22 or even any F tyre you could concentrate on getting those to work well instead of wondering what the guy next to you had used.

QUOTE i would like to see Slot.it release a range of pre glued & trued tyres Are you suggesting hand out tyres Sean?

As for magnets and motors, I can see the benefit of changing to less maggy motors. I would make the motor rule the same for all tracks however (ref Lee's post above, I too think the rules should be the same for all tracks.)

Keith
 
#21 · (Edited by Moderator)
QUOTE Are you suggesting hand out tyres Sean?
No, I'm not suggesting hand out tyres. In my opinion this wouldn't work for the championship.
What i would like to see is competitive tyres available to all. At the moment the choice is not simply P or F but how to glue, true & tread. Scaleauto & NSR already have a range of alloy wheels with pre glued & trued tyres, if Slot.it were to release them (in a suitable size) i'm sure it would become an 'easy' option for many drivers and would have an immediate and beneficial effect on the series.
If this isn't going to be an option then limiting the choice to F tyres, would be a sensible option.
Sean
 
G
#22 ·
QUOTE (zetakc @ 6 Sep 2011, 06:38) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>As for magnets and motors, I can see the benefit of changing to less maggy motors. I would make the motor rule the same for all tracks however (ref Lee's post above, I too think the rules should be the same for all tracks.)

Keith

There is absolutely no reason to ban open can motors apart from use on tracks with mag effect rails or braids. That would mean throwing away a considerable investment for many.
Ready prepared tyres would be a good option for those who have difficulty doing this but again many have an investment in tyre truers and would prefer to do their own.
P tyres are not readily available and if that continues to be the case then they can't be allowed.
A ride height rule will be very difficult to police and probably unworkable.
A few minor tweaks is all that is required.
 
#23 ·
Hi All,
The rule on Motors for 2012 will be along the lines of.

Open can mag effect motors will not be allowed on Mag effect tracks, although we are going to allow them to be used on tracks without the mag effect, ie.

(Current tracks 2011)

Closed can motors only.
Pinewood
Pendle
GT Raceway

Open and closed can motors.
Wolves
Hereford
North Staffs

Nic
 
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