[fouldsc]

What make of tyre do you recommend for wooden tracks and what tyre
preperation do you do ? . I've heard of people soaking them in oil (WD40) etc.
how does that work ?

Was thinking of going for some Professor Motor Silicons or should I be
heading as far away from silicon as I can ?

Chris

 

[Pendleslot]

Usually, a soft compound rubber tyre works better. Proslot, Slot.it P2 or P3 are good. Tyre treatments are common place but everyone seems to have their own personal choice. Petol lighter fluid is good for cleaning tyres, WD40, 3in1 oil, sun tan cream, oil of winter green etc etc is commonly use to soften tyres.
There is no real hard and fast rule, try different tyres/treatments and eventually you may hit on something.
Glueing and trueing tyres is essential when racing on a wood track, you need as much rubber in contact with the track surface as possible.
Sean

 

[GRAH1]

perhaps a point worth mentioning if you are allowing any kids access to your treatments then stick to sun tan oil , baby oil or castor oil rather than wd or 3 in one ,you are less likely to have any skin complaints unless alergic to any of the above , with the sun tan oil route or similar the longer you leave it on the tyre before rubbing off with a dry cloth the more effect it will have,

My current method of tyre prep is as follows ,glue , true , 3 in one for a couple of days before ,then sun tan oil during the event . I have as much grip as I need in most cases

 

[fouldsc]

Thanks for the advice guys , (another !) quick question : so do you literally
sit the tyres (in there hubs) in a pool of 3-in-1 for a couple of days , then
take them out , clean them (with lighter fluid or similair) and then they
are super sticky and ready to race ?

 

[GRAH1]

No if you do that they will swell and be no use , stick the tyres onto the rims ,just round the edges , true them ,rub 3 in one in or what ever you are going to use ,the tyre will soak it up keep doing this for a few days untill the tyre is ready rub the tyre dry with a lint free cloth and it is ready to use . Any bits of dust can be removed with sticky tape just roll the tyre over it . Run the tyre dry on the track or you will not get enough grip and youll messit up for every one else.In between heats apply a coat of treatment and rub clean again before use. If you follow this you will get more grip because the tyre will not only soften it will leave a deposit of rubber on the track to grip to . Eventualy the tyre will soften so much it will perish and become uselelss, youll know when you reach that point , I find 2 - 3 meets if im lucky is as much life as I can expect although I have one set at the moment which are incredibley grippy and have done about 4 events .

If you just want a better tyre than standard with no messing use Ortmans they will give a high level of grip and be consistant , while not as good on wood as the above you will find they are acceptable in most conditions and with out equal on plastic.

Hope this helps

 

[Big Al]

Hi Chris,

on a different arguement, sometimes having too sticky tyres can be detrimental. Having the ability to have "controlled" powerslides can make for quicker laps in certein circumstances. May I suggest the alternative being SCX slicks, which once on the rims, require a flat sand on a board until they're light grey in colour. If the track's had a little spray put on, or there's already a good racing line, these will provide you with a not too sticky grip, and which I've found to outlap other tyres like the softer, more grippy compounds...

Regards

Big Al
www.slotcars.co.za

 

[wixwacing]

Hi Chris,
If you are going to be racing on painted surfaces it is essential to keep the track surface clean. We run predominantly on board tracks and it always takes at least 70 to 80 laps on each lane to get the track flying, This is done as guys are turning up for the start of racing.

A short cut is to sponge the track over with a DAMP sponge or rag, rinsing the sponge regularly. Take care not to rub off the 'Blue Groove' at the entry and exit of bends which is building up from previous tyre wear

After that, you should be able to run most of the commercially available tyres to great satisfaction. Ninco. SCX. Scalextric and Pro slot all seem to work well. Well enough to have some cars tip over in the corners from too much grip!

Ribbed (grooved) tyres also have their part to play. I have a set of ribs and a set of slicks to fit all comp cars, practice will tell you what is needed. Another phenomenon is that wide tyres tend to spin more than narrow tyres, Unlike the real thing, tyres can be too wide! Narrower tyres exert more grip as the model weight acts on a smaller surface area, but too narrow will present handling problems. Find the best width for the model by experiment.

A warm day will see tyres start to work long before the same on a cold day (believe it or not).

If you get into the additive cycle you may firstly be unpopular with some track owners and racers, secondly you will be adding extra time to your pre race checks. It has also been my experience that treated tyres start to go off in anything but short races.

Lastly, some people like to dress their tyres with the sticky side of masking tape or similar. Great for getting you off the line first but if you deslot in the first few laps (or get deslotted) you will find after you run through the dust on the edge of the track you will be slipping and slidding for the next five laps as the dust sticks to your tyres!

I have found the best reliable combination to be firstly getting the correct tyre choice and secondly to keeping the tyres spotlessly clean by wiping with methylated spirits or preferably a pure hydrocarbon like shellite (similar to lighter fuel) to keep the rubber spotless. Then if your in the marbles nothing sticks to your tyres.

Just to totally loose you all, different tracks ie, twisty tracks, straight tracks, long or short circuits, have different tyre requirements, so if you are a club racer, get to the venue early and start practicing, get your tyres sorted before all else.

But again most of all ensure your track is clean and tyres will finish the job.

 

[Vinno1]

Hi Phil good to see you over here. That infomation will be very helpful in the future as a board track is on the cards at Boslots house.

 

[fouldsc]

Thanks for all your advice guys (especially graham for his great description on how to treat tyres and wixracing for his usefull tips), I am currently giving the treating of the tyres a go , if I find I am useless at it I am going to try
the Ortmans

Chris

 

[slotrace48]

With all the talk about glueing tyres to rims, what is the best type of glue to resist the 3 in 1 which spreads through the rubber, Superglue seems very permanent!

 

[Gaugemaster Controls]

I realise this may be a stupid question, but can anyone explain for me?

We frequently get cars sent back to us on which the tyres have gone dry and brittle, and eventually split. Sometimes the cars are only a few months old, but they all do seem to be coated in oil. Therefore, my question is if the oil adds grip but also destroys the tyre, at what point do you know how much oil to add, or whether it is the right type of oil?

Aaron

 

[Mooster]

Ah, is that happening to mostly Fly cars? If that's the case, it's just something which seems to happen to them from time to time anyway, not because oil has been applied to them. I've quite a number of front tyres go like that, and a smaller number of rears, particularly on Fly Classics - one day the tyres are ok, the next they've gone hard and are sitting in a little puddle of oil. Some other cars of a similar age, stored right next to the affected car, are absolutely fine. I've had it with a few Scalextric tyres too. It's a mystery.

Mooster

 

[Mr.M]

Just wanted to back up Mooster's findings, I've had exactly the same experience. The Fly Classic tyres tend to still peel off afterwards, but the Hornby ones have to be picked off a bit at a time. I think Jexy once told me that if you stand your cars on glass while not in use, none of these strange things happen.

BTW, I have never glued a slot car tyre on in my life, or oiled one, so I don't think that is the cause.

Mr.M

 

[Scott B]

It's a chemical thing.

Tyres are made up of itsy bitsy tiny little things that are in turn made up of even tinier things (sub atomic particles) all held together with electricity. I don't think you can use the electricity to make the car faster.

Anyway, sometimes the itsy bitsy things just lose the plot and split up. Apparently you need 11 dimensions to describe what's happening with sub atomic particles (no doubt someone will post an explanation), but if you are lucky your tyres just go hard and oily (oh, er misuses). If you are unlucky you take out most of the neighbourhood and make the wind go very fast in all directions away from you taking every other slot car you own with it. A bad thing.

While I am on, just who first thought of putting lighter fluid on the tyres of his toy cars. And who tried sun tan oil!

 

[Gaugemaster Controls]

thanks guys - perhaps we should try some other things on tyres and compare the effects? Black Forest Gateau perhaps, or perhaps Ragu bologniase mix, or Radox?

You never know what might happen!

Aaron

 

[Intergrali]

got plenty of knackered tyres here.

great for front tyres!!

yeah I use 3 in 1, also tastes ok so if you happen to be having lunch at the time of treating tyres then it's not a case of having no lunch, however I dont advise eating it on purpose!