[Mr Modifier]

The Start
Now I have a proven digital track under my belt in the form of the Amman Valley Raceway - I thought I would find out first hand what all the fuss is about slot rally tracks.

This is my first attempt (the "Maiden" part of the track name) and it is intended to represent a rally course on a frozen lake (the "Ice" part of the track name).

It's a test track, my first rally track and my first routed track so be gentle with me!

I started the build last Friday evening and the finished track was raced at our club on Wednesday evening. Total build time was probably about 10-12 hours with half of that time spent on laying the copper tape.

 

[Mr Modifier]

The Foundations

I had an old office trestle table in the garage that hasn't been used for about 3 years so I figured it was fair game.

It has legs built in and a metal underframe. Sitting on top is an 18mm thick slab of what appears to be quite fine-grained chipboard.

The table is 6 feet by 2 feet 6 inches (1840mm x 760mm) so that gives me the constraints of the plan. It's also short enough and narrow enough to fit easily in my estate car so that's a bonus.

 

[Mr Modifier]

The Plan

I drew a scale table shape in Corel Draw along with a box representing a 1:32 Ford Taurus - if that would fit around the track then anything would.

A few options

This is the chosen one drawn up in Corel Draw

 

[Mr Modifier]

Marking it out

OK so the next challenge is marking it out on the table top. The reason I drew the rough sketch up in Corel with properly radiused bends is that Corel has this neat feature of being able to print a drawing scaled up to any size and split it over as many sheets as needed. The table took about 15 sheets of A4 printed out to scale.

Each sheet was taped in place on the table

... until the table was covered with the full sized plan

I then tested it out by placing a few rally cars on it and pushing them, around making vroom vroom noises (much to the amusement of my six-year-old!)

The final stage was transferring the slot lines onto the board. A narrow hole punch and a hammer sorted that one out

MIND DADDY'S FINGERS NOW!

Marker pen to join the dots and we are ready to get the router out

 

[Mr Modifier]

Cutting the slots

My router has a long arm with a point so it acts like a giant compass so routing the varying radius circles was straightforward. The straight lines were courtesy of some spare MDF with a straight edge and some speed clamps.

The slot was sanded by hand afterwards to make sure the edges were smooth.

After routing I painted the table top with white matt emulsion using a roller. After drying I did a light sanding before applying further coats.

I then decided not to sand as the paint was quite old and was leaving some lumps of paint that looked like lumps of snow or ice - ideal for the theme!

 

[Mr Modifier]

Timing

A while ago I came across an R/C timing device that was reduced from £18 to £5 so I bought 2 in anticipation. It only times 2 laps but hey it was 1/10 the price of a Ninco NTimer. The device uses an I/R beam. I had to modify it slightly but as you can see it was a straightforward installation and is dead easy to use

 

[Mr Modifier]

Power and Control

Power is courtesy of a 12v 5A regulated power supply with two power take offs that cost me under £7 from Ebay including delivery. Bargain! Standard 3 pin throttle socket and the track is wired for brakes

 

[Mr Modifier]

Wiring

Here's what it looks like underneath. Lots of crossovers mean lots of power taps - 19mm brass screws in countersunk holes and piercing the copper tape. Wiring soldered to the ends of the screws.

The direction of travel is reversible by simply swapping a couple of quick release connectors under the track (I used audio jacks and sockets).

Wait a minute - there's a lot of wires under there aren't there?

Good spot - wait and see!

 

[Mr Modifier]

The finished article

So there it is - the Ice Maiden. I added some old filler I had knocking around to make piles of snow and ice thrown into piles by passing rally cars. I also used some coloured drinking straws to add some "slalom poles" as guides for the cars to time their sliding and braking points.

Job done. And quite a draw for my son's playmates from down the road.

Here's a video of the track in action - the Mini is running soft urethanes by the way which shows just how slippery the matt varnish I applied to the roadway is (it was done to make the roadway look like the snow had been compacted into ice and contrasts well with the flat matt white of the rest of the board.
CLICK ME

 

[Mr Modifier]

The special bit

Did I mention the excessive amount of wiring? Did anybody notice the on/off switch under the track?

Well here's what it's for...

Actually you need to see it on a video to get the full effect.

So here's one I made earlier...
CLICK ME

 

[4.3 ZOOK]

Nice ,I like the lighting!

 

[Mr Modifier]

Thanks 4.3 ZOOK,

now I sort of know what I am doing - my next track will have some elevations and a cool bridge like your Oak Creek Rally.

 

[dangermouse]

Very nice and no doubt it will be a ton of fun for you and your co-driver

Cheers
DM

 

[Ember]

Who's a clever boy then? Good idea well executed.

Congratulations.
Embs

 

[Mr Modifier]

Dangermouse - You're not wrong! My co driver is already power sliding the Mini around the big curves and has started digging through my collection pulling out the TeamSlot rally cars with the kick-ass motors!

The quickest car around the track so far is the Ninco prorace scooby - 4 seconds per lap quicker than the Mini.

Ember - thanks. Coming from somebody with your building skills that means a lot!

 

[2FER SLOTS]

You done good!

 

[Martyn_]

Drives very very nicely- one or two lovely arse out sliders and some very tricky varying radius curves. Enough straights for a good burst of acceleration, and tricky enough to need a bit of experimenting with your braking points. Best of all, it's one of those tracks that feels totaly different running in the other direction (you know what I mean, some tracks feel similar whichever way you run them.

Looking forward to your idea of polishing various spots on the track to vary it up. I certainly won't get bored of driving this section.

Driven in the dark with the full aurora borealis effect is an exciting drive. well done rich

Has anyone gone sub 14 secs yet?

 

[Mr Modifier]

Hi Snurfen,

Nobody sub-14 seconds yet (that's for 2 laps from a standing start by the way).

I've only managed 16.30 with the Ninco Scooby. I just need to figure out how to get rid of the Ninco Hop because that's costing a few tenths on the straights.

To be honest - the Mini is way more fun - the tail slides have an almost hypnotic effect on me.

 

[Martyn_]

Sorry Mr Modifier! I meant of course sub 15 seconds - I really shouldn't type on a forum whilst having an in depth discussion with the wife

QUOTE (Mr Modifier @ 21 Jul 2012, 12:12) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>I've only managed 16.30 with the Ninco Scooby. I just need to figure out how to get rid of the Ninco Hop because that's costing a few tenths on the straights.

Relax - feel the throttle, let the car guide you. I'm sure the course record was achieved with that lovely little scooby of yours

(was it 15.06?)

 

[Ember]

Another option is some bracing between rear end and motor mount.