Quote:
Originally Posted by grantp
Long time ago I often made my own slot cars from bits obtained form various sources.
The vogue back then, for a while in the UK at least, was to use Keyser electric motors on the basis that they could be had with a shaft working at both ends and the size of the motor was often very appropriate for the production of 4wd slot racers.
If one was especially smart one could replace the windings on the commutator for a huge speed increase. I never quite got to that point - the things were fast enough for fun as it was.
Anyway, the other benefit of the Keyser motor was that one could simply solder some brass rod to it to form a chassis. Cosworth expanded the concept to the real world later ...
But I digress ...
I built a Lotus Cortina with that sort of chassis and included working brake lights. The round rear lights were perfect. One got some polythene tube of more or less the same diameter, added a bulb and a fairly simple 2 connector "switch" and somewhere in the design had a sealed section with the connector "switch" wires at one and and a bulb connected to them.
In the tube was a blob of mercury. The connectors were at the forward end of the tube. So under acceleration the blob would move away from the "switch"but lift off and it would flow forward, "make" the connection and the brake lights would come on.
Oh the innocent days when one was allowed to buy and play with mercury.
I think I may have obtained mine from the school chemistry lab. Great fun rolling it around wooden school desks ...
|
Superb. Thanks. My father was into slot cars in his youth, I got saclaxtric christmas '76. Still have it. I found this book years ago, probably at a jumble of some sort. . Not fully explored it to be honest, although did build a competitive 356 a few years ago.