[joeymorgans]

Hi everyone!

I've been researching a bit trying to figure out what cars would be best for running scalextric digital parties for kids aged around 5-12...
And so far, the only obvious thing to do, would be to use super resistant cars, my first question is:

Whats the strongest type of car suitable for kids birthday parties? (ie. there will be many many crashes

)

But, probably more importantly, I will need a car that is smooth to drive, but is still quite fast so the kids can enjoy the experience, not too fast though.
I have tried taking the magnets out of scalextric cars and trueing the tyres, making the grippier by using 3in1 oil on them, but it still seems tricky to drive...
The reason I think its better to have no magnets is because when going round a corner, it warns you if you are going to fast by sliding or snaping out, but doing this makes the cars slower, and in a way, easier to come off...

So at the moment, I am using magnets in the forward position which is the best option I can see at the moment, I have used 3in1 on some cars to even the laptimes out. This is going fairly well, but I was curious if anyone knew a better car to run that may be better overall. So my second question is:

Whats the best car or best way to make a car easy to drive for kids?

Thanks very much every one!

 

[Ember]

I have just had the joy of running a four lane analogue track for a primary school fete. Any of the Impact Resistant cars would be suitable but I'd have to recommend a fleet of Boxsters.

They took a hell of a punishment and never missed a beat. I used a variable power supply and had the track set to 10v for most of the time. When the really wee ones were driving I even snuck the voltage down to 9.

Also recommend the Audi TTs, although I only had one for the Princesses that insisted on using a pink car.

And the impact resistant Lambos are good, easy to drive and stable. But they're really inclined to be very fast if you don't have the variable supply available to tone them down.

To be honest, for kids at that age I think magnets in and at the rear position. They don't care about running races, they only want to cut laps. And as far as they are concerned, crashes just make it all the more exciting.

The best driver that I found was the little girl in the front of this photo. By the time she'd had a few goes at the track over the evening she was even blipping the controller on a short straight between two quite difficult corners. Love the concentration.

Embs

 

[Ade]

hi
ditto all the above. I have used both the audi's and the lambo's and they do take some beating before they give up.

The porsche boxter's are getting harder to find now unless you trawl the bay..

Very best of luck in whatever you run.

 

[Lasp]

The boxes for starter, with two cars in, all will bee good. And right price also!

 

[Mr Modifier]

I only have one Boxster - they are getting hard to find. It seems pretty bullet proof and I know SS67 uses them for school fetes and suchlike and he swears by their robustness.

I run my digital track for kids with Ferrari F430's, Nissan GTRs, Porsche 997's and Lamborghini Gallardos - all the Super Resistant versions. They have suffered some heavy crashes but seem to have survived really well. Just make sure you take the spoilers off the 997's before you start.

As Ember suggested - turn down the power.

I run SSDC software and find on my track that if I set the power to around 60% the kids can make it all the way around my track on full throttle, without coming off anywhere except my two hairpins. This makes marshalling easier, it means the kids get their crashes but can also get a decent run between crashes.

I ran it for 5 kids recently aged between 4 and 7. One of them didn't "get" the variable throttle bit - despite his parents' best efforts to explain - he would have been off on every corner if I hadn't turned down the power. The rest of them were flying off the hairpins early on but got the hang of it and were producing some races with close finishes.

All of them were able to lane change right from the start (even the one that was using the throttle as an on-off switch)!

 

[ss67]

Definitley the Boxsters although even they are not indestructible and you can use any resistant cars.

Magnets in, soft tyres (I use WASP tyres) and 9.7volts works best for me but you're gonna have lots of crashes with young kids whatever you do!

 

[villagio]

Rather than using slower/SR cars, you could try the Scalextric Start controllers. They have a simple screw which dials down the power. My kids love them, even if I think it's extremely boring if you can't crash.

I've been meaning to investigate if they could be adapted for use on normal track (by just clipping off the connector and grafting a standard plug on there).

 

[GregK]

Boxsters, Audi TTs and the Gallardo are the most robust as the whole body shape is a one-piece molding. The newer cars now appear to use the same moulds as the Hi-Def ones so you get separate black windows glass thus making the car weaker.

Have a look in the 4 Sale thread as there are some nice cheap minis and Nissan GTRs going ...... you might be able to get a deal......

 

[ss67]

QUOTE (GregK @ 10 Apr 2012, 13:23) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>Have a look in the 4 Sale thread as there are some nice cheap minis and Nissan GTRs going ...... you might be able to get a deal......

See here

 

[Ade]

hi
that should be a straight forward job Villagio, three wires in eack to solder and a bit of heatshrink tubing.

Do these start controllers have a smilar feel to the standard analouge one's.??

 

[Gysse]

"Start controllers" for digital - I think not !!

 

[joeymorgans]

Hi everyone, thanks for all the replies!

At the moment I am using:
2x porshe 997's
2x laboghini gallardo's
2x nissan GTR's

These are all super resistant, but it can be hard trying to get them all doing similar laptimes, because the nissan GTR's are longer, they like to slide more, so I have put the magnet in the back, and for all the others, i have put them in the forward position.

I also turn the power down, but thinking about it, I don't think I have turned it down enough, like Mr Modifier said, I might try turning it down so they can hardly come off, but you definatly want it so they can come off because yes the kids love that, you just have to get that balance right.

I'll take a look at that thread where you can buy those cars for cheap, I will at least need 2 sets because at the moment, I only have one, it doesn't have to be the same model car, the colours are more important because then its easy to tell which car the kids are controlling.

Once again thanks for all the help!

 

[villagio]

QUOTE (Gysse @ 10 Apr 2012, 13:33) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>"Start controllers" for digital - I think not !!

Ah, didn't read the digital part in the OP. Yeah, that's not going to work then.

Bigbird, they're smaller (more suited for kids' hands) than standard controllers, but I think they're fine for the job they were made for. I've only got 2 so won't be chopping one up at the moment, but I'm on the lookout for a spare to tinker with.

 

[Ember]

The problem with the 997s and GTRs is the spoilers and wing mirrors. They do have a tendency to disappear. As do the wing mirrors on the Lambo. I'll admit, with the Boxsters I was lucky enough to have two pairs given to me. I gave them a quick clean up and paint job to match up to the controller colours.

Parity in the cars isn't all that important as the kids will all have differing levels of ability. As long as they are all easy to drive and run quite stable. The only GTR I've had much to do with was inclined to roll so reserved it for use by an older child (teen) who was looking to show off. Mean, aren't I?

Embs

 

[MrFlippant]

Joe, be sure to get the latest APB firmware. You'll have a few more lower power options.

 

[RikoRocket]

I'm with SS67, all my boxsters are still going. I have desroyed most other of the robust cars, including Audi TTs, F 430s, minis. In fact the latest Audi R8 robust car lasted one lap banged into another car and lost its grill...

 

[ss67]

Boxsters and TTs are the toughest but if you don't mind no wing mirrors or spoilers and want some variety then most other resistant cars are OK.

The Nissan 350Z is really tough too but with the drift guide (even with the locking pins) it is not as quick & easy to re-slot.

 

[Scorpus Flex]

i would suggest £16 scx nascars. they are pretty tough, handle well and arent as light as super resistant cars so tend to fly off less. topslotsandtrains still have some on their special offers page, the password is topslots. I was going to suggest £10 scx cars but pendles has sold out.

the colours are bright and great for kids, i think they would especially like the m&ms and reeses peices ones. I just think for the little bit extra having a good looking car instead of a toy looking super resisitant thing might make it more fun and might make the kids respect the cars a bit more and not just want to see how hard they can crash them.

 

[Mr Modifier]

I get what you are driving at but it simply won't happen. I have SCX NASCARs and the locating pins (plastic lugs) that locate the body in the chassis wouldn't last 5 minutes with kids racing them.

The window surround pillars are too thin and will break after one or two pile-ups - they are simply not built for digital carnage.

They also handle terribly compared to the Scalextric Super Resistants. Yes the SCX are more fun for more experienced drivers and more satisfying to drive when you get it right BUT we are talking kids here and the newbie drivers treat throttles either like on/off switches or so gently you would think they were holding a teddy bear's paw.

Kids will not respect a detailed car more than a super resistant one. You can pick up a pair of new Scalextric F430 super resistants on the bay for £24 including postage (I got them for this price twice last month) and that is a far better bet than SCX NASCARs at £16 each. And with DPR chips you don't have to chip your spare cars, just swap a chip out from a broken one or swap in one spare chip.