The 1/32 CSCRA Car Standards have never been about "retro" technology - just about "building and racing slot cars representing classic periods in motor racing history". Yes, the idea is to encourage the scratch building that generally is not common in regular club racing, but it has also tried to be inclusive and accessible.
Modified BSCRA chassis such as 1/32 F1 sprung steel, JK pressed steel and Demon brass models have been used at CSCRA events for years, as of course have various plastic chassis such as Slot.It HRS. In fact it's one of the great things about these events that a wide range of approaches are seen, using classic brass and piano wire, PCB and carbon fibre, Slot.It motor pods and other approaches.
If we were going to try to focus purely on scratch-built chassis (if such a thing can even be defied), perhaps we should have done so before Steve Ward started making his Penelope Pitlane models. Results show that they can be made very competitive, but more interestingly, they have brought people into CSCRA event who would have been put off by having to start building a chassis from scratch from piano wire and brass.
Even race classes such as the 1/24 UKRRA "D3" which are consciously retro and promote scratch-building by forbidding technical developments such as laser-cut spring steel, centre pivots and anglewinder configurations have found that many, if not most, competitors favour starting from an easily-assembled kit. And even there, some people buy ready-made chassis from top builders - what is "scratch-built" about such an entry?
Really, I think we should be most concerned about making this aspect of our hobby open and accessible to all, and if Richard's beautiful laser-cut chassis help to do that, I'm all for it.
David
Modified BSCRA chassis such as 1/32 F1 sprung steel, JK pressed steel and Demon brass models have been used at CSCRA events for years, as of course have various plastic chassis such as Slot.It HRS. In fact it's one of the great things about these events that a wide range of approaches are seen, using classic brass and piano wire, PCB and carbon fibre, Slot.It motor pods and other approaches.
If we were going to try to focus purely on scratch-built chassis (if such a thing can even be defied), perhaps we should have done so before Steve Ward started making his Penelope Pitlane models. Results show that they can be made very competitive, but more interestingly, they have brought people into CSCRA event who would have been put off by having to start building a chassis from scratch from piano wire and brass.
Even race classes such as the 1/24 UKRRA "D3" which are consciously retro and promote scratch-building by forbidding technical developments such as laser-cut spring steel, centre pivots and anglewinder configurations have found that many, if not most, competitors favour starting from an easily-assembled kit. And even there, some people buy ready-made chassis from top builders - what is "scratch-built" about such an entry?
Really, I think we should be most concerned about making this aspect of our hobby open and accessible to all, and if Richard's beautiful laser-cut chassis help to do that, I'm all for it.
David
