[Skeeter]

ok, im going back to university on sunday, and im back to having very minimal space. i have a small ammount of floor space in my room thats long and thin (wide enuf for a R2 curve) and ive got some plans. these are the 2 designs ive come up with:

Track 1

Track 2

I have all the pieces except those in blue. i want to ask you which track i shud make up on my floor. the choice depends on wether i buy 2 R1 hairpin curves and use them with the side swipes, or make the track have a longer straite and buy 4 standard R1 curves?

The standard R1 curvs are £10.60 from my local antics store, and the R1 Hairpin curves are £8.

personaly i wud prefer the hairpin/sideswipe combo, but this makes the elevations more difficult, and there is more track to go over. so what do you recoment?

also, can u recomend something or someway to support the raised track? i have some of the grey supports, and the cardboard bridge supports but there not that stable, and covering offset track meand u end up with large sections of bridge unsupported. in either of the designs i would need a support that wud fit between 2 ajacent straites to support the curve above it on the inside.

help would be great, thanks

 

[ListerStorm]

I like the first one just for the length if nothing else.

When I setup my layout I used video tapes for the elevations. Laying flat and stacked on top of one another they were very stable. You could also use small blocks of wood, cd cases etc. Anything works better than those cardboard and plastic things that come with the track.

 

[pault86]

From my personal experience, the new Sport R1 hairpins that pull the inside lane toward the outside are much easier to negotiate than standard R1s. At least for me, I have to come to almost a complete stop to get around on the inside of a standard R1.

Don't use any video tapes you don't want erased by traction magnets and EM radiation from motors!

Paul
Circuit TrustChrist

 

[ListerStorm]

QUOTE Don't use any video tapes you don't want erased by traction magnets and EM radiation from motors!

Good tip Paul, I didnt have any issues with it when I did it though. Better safe than sorry.

 

[Skeeter]

i dont hav any video cassettes ir cds at uni, i got a few dvds and games, and thats it

 

[Scott B]

QUOTE i dont hav any video cassettes ir cds at uni, i got a few dvds and games, and thats it

Let me guess; you are not doing a degree in English language, are you?

Were you traumatised by commas and apostrophes as a small child or something? Do they charge to use the Shift key?

 

[bacardibeast]

LMFAO!!!

 

[Skeeter]

ok, i admit, im a realy bad keybord user unless i try hard (writing essays etc) also this is on my pc that i havent used in 4 months (i use a laptop at uni) so the keys are different, but besides all the excuses i am to lazy to change mistakes, and use shorthand way to much. ive got awards on 2 other forums for diabolocal use of the english language, but thats just me. if u understand enough to get the idea, whats the problem.... so n e way, back to the point, ive decided i want the Hairpin curves/sideswipe combo, and will prob buy a few more straights to make the track longer, but im still stuck on how to support the track. i need some easy way on a very very small (almost non existant) budget!

 

[Isetta]

QUOTE Were you traumatised by commas and apostrophes as a small child or something? Do they charge to use the Shift key?

Scott, it's the future; you will have to get used to it.

Cheers, Tom

 

[Skeeter]

ok, i bought the hairpin bends, and now i love my track! i got almost 9 meters in a space only slightly bigger than the set 1 oval! but i got a problem. as you can see from the pics, there inst enough room around the outside of the hairpin for n e borders, but there is a gap. this means i cannot go round the hairpin in the outside lane if i slide, cos the car dropps of the track, into the gap, deslots, and then crashes! does n e one have n e ideas of something i can cut into a slim cresent moon shape and pit in the gap? its got to be the same height as the track, so it can be like an extended piece of tarmac? n e ideas? i was thinking cardbord, but the corrugated stuff is likely to deform when painted black, and not cut easyly? it also has to be cheap as this is only a tempory track

 

[niblue]

QUOTE (Skeeter @ 12 Jan 2005, 16:32)does n e one have n e ideas of something i can cut into a slim cresent moon shape and pit in the gap?

There is a thread called "A beginners first track" where there is information on using some type of foam rubber for doing exactly this, including pictures and links to a web site with details etc.

 

[Skeeter]

im not in the USA, is there n e where to get this kind of stuff, in smaller ammounts, in the UK?

 

[Taz]

I have a similar problem and although I javen't tried it yet I am planning to use 6mm mdf for borders etc.

An alternative to filling the gap may be inserting smaller 78mm and 87mm straights to set the R1 curve against the R2 curve

 

[dhmotorsport]

Get hold of a bit of hard board, the compressed paper stuff you often see on the back of wardrobes or drawers. Two layers of that is exatly the same height as Scalextric track. I've used this method for borders on my circuit (though being permenant I've also grassed the borders) and it works a treat. You also get a choice of a smooth side and a textured side usually to give you a slippery border or a grippy one.

 

[Skeeter]

sounds cool, but my wardrobe is my unis (im sure they wont notice lol). i cant use n e more strights cos i cant afford to buy them (4 smaller than 1/4 straights either side of the R2 would work)

 

[dhmotorsport]

QUOTE (Skeeter @ 12 Jan 2005, 19:39)sounds cool, but my wardrobe is my unis (im sure they wont notice lol). i cant use n e more strights cos i cant afford to buy them (4 smaller than 1/4 straights either side of the R2 would work)
<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

You should be able to pick up enough hardboard from your local B&Q for the price of a pint....what am I saying, I can't tell a student to give up a beer, that's like telling someone to give up breathing

 

[Skeeter]

when pints are a £1 it is!