Racers Cars Expose

What is a slot car? | racing classes
the heart of the slot car | controlling the car | car bodies

What is a slot car?

A slot car is a miniature, scale model of a full-size racing car powered by a small electric motor and controlled by a hand controller connected to the racing track. Slot cars come in many different forms. Everyone is familiar with the home race sets such as Scalextric, Ninco, SCX and Fly, but these are not as quick and competitive as the slot cars raced in clubs and raceways throughout the country. Having said that, these home race set cars do provide a good introduction to the serious sport of slot car racing.

Racing classes

The cars raced are 1/32nd scale models (approx. 125 mm to 150 mm long and 64 mm wide). The mainstay of our club racing are cars raced to British Slot Car Racing Association (BSCRA) standards.

The main classes we race are: ·

• Saloon
• Formula One
• Sports/GT
• 1/32nd Production Class
• 1/24th Production Class

The heart of the slot car

At the heart of a slot car lies its chassis and a small electric motor. Modern chassis' are built from brass or spring steel. The fastest slot cars in the world use very lightweight steel chassis cut from a single piece of sheet material with advanced cutting machinery. All slot cars are guided around the track by a plastic 'shoe' that fits into the slot cut into the track surface. Fitted to either side of the guide shoe are the pick-up braids that feed the electric current from the track to the motor.

Controlling the car

The car is driven via a hand controller that plugs into the track. Squeezing the trigger of the hand controller makes the car go faster but the car also brakes and quickly stops when the trigger is released. As with any hobby or sport, a lot of practice is needed to become good at driving a slot car.

Car bodies

The plastic bodyshells used on serious slot cars are lightweight so as to keep the car's centre of gravity as low as possible and therefore improve its handling in corners. A huge range of bodyshells are available, covering every class of racing. Because most bodyshells are intended for serious racing rather than good looks, they don't carry unnecessary details but do look very good when painted with a bit of imagination.