In this post we invite our member Alan Wilkinson to explain the mystery of slot car gearing. Part 1 – The very basics I’ll keep this section short… Slot cars support multiple pinion (located at the end of the motor shaft) and crown (located on the rear axle) sizes. Manufacturers supply cars with a gearing that can work reasonably on most tracks. However, performance can be significantly improved by setting gearing to be optimal for the track upon which you are competing. Crown ÷ pinion gives you a basic ratio. For example: 27 ÷ 9 = 3. So in basic terms, the motor turns 3 times to make the whee ..read more

Ever wondered how a typical race night unfolds? Well the mystery is over! We was able to finally put together video of the August 2019 TransAm round. Watch all six lanes from Green to Red on board a competing car. Bonus final race for those who get through to the end! We hope this may very well ‘whet your appetite’ as we look forward to the restart of the race calendar hopefully in 2021 ..read more

A room for men to do as they please. But does every home need one? Often referred to as ‘the last bastion of masculinity’ a man cave seems the perfect fit for any hobby enthusiast – so let’s explore the idea a little further. Having moved recently it got me thinking, dreaming even, that a dedicated space for slot cars was a reality for the first time. The idea of a loft or garage with every millimetre covered in track can only be a good thing? So away from the club track,  I started to think if I had a blank canvas what would my dream slot car track/man cave look like? My first thought wa ..read more

The UK Slot Car Festival opened its doors on the 19th – 20th May this year at the British Motor Museum, in Gaydon, for Europe’s biggest (and best) slot car event. On the day The weather was scintillating on the Saturday and members of the London Scalextric Club made their way to the festival which featured all of the major slot car manufactures including the headline sponsor Scalextric along with Slot.it, Carrera, NSR, Ninco and many more. There were some real highlights on the day and both the F1 Policar championship qualifying and SRC rally stage really made a great impression! It go ..read more

In this post we explore an exciting aspect of slot car racing away from the track – swap meets. Swap meets are often seen as an opportunity for traders to buy and sell slot cars to both collectors and racers. Slot cars, spare parts, track and scenery are just a few things found at a typical swap meet and both new and used items are for sale. In the UK, there are notable swap meets held each year in Swindon, Milton Keynes, Orpington, Leeds, Havant and Coventry – with the biggest swap meet of them all, the UK Slot Car Festival, held at the British Motor museum in Gaydon. When you visit a swap ..read more

Understanding Urethane It’s the main part of the slot car that delivers the power out on track… the tyres! In terms of slot car tyre selection there are four choices available rubber, urethane, silicone and sponge. These compounds have been developed over the years to suit all different track surfaces and just like real motorsport slot car clubs often tend to race with rubber tyres. It may come as a surprise then to know that at the London Scalextric Club we decided to make the switch to urethane tyres. In this post we explore the distinctive properties of urethane and what benefits this deliv ..read more

Slot cars, much like real racing cars, are designed to be maintained and set-up ready for racing. In this post we strip the Slot.it Opel Calibra back to its chassis in order to take a closer look at a slot car. Out of the box Raced in the 1995 DTM and International Touring Car Championship the Opel Calibra is a fine example of a 1/32 scale touring car produced by Slot.it – based in Italy. Out of the box the car notably comes with a s-can 21,000 RPM motor, 28 teeth gear and rear 15.8 x 8.2mm diameter aluminium wheels. Stripping the car back The first rule of slot car racing is… rem ..read more