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Model Forum / Radio Controlled / Land Models / June 2005advice needed on race track material
Hi, I'm new to the r/c world but intend to dedicate serious time to it, now that my son is showing a lot of interest in it. In fact, since I'm relandscaping my large backyard, I've decided to include a path around it to use for r/c cars. The question is what material to use. concrete is expensive (I'm told $10 to $13/sq foot), decomposed granite looks great for buggy or large wheel truck, but not really for road cars. Another option is rubber based material, the kind that is used around kids play structures in most public parks (around here at least). I am told that it can be compacted harder than in these parks, so that it's not so "spongy". I haven't tried, but the traction must be pretty good on this type of surface. Can anybody advise me as to what's best, what's most cost efficient, etc. ? Any pointer is really appreciated. I need to make a decision very soon. Thanks. > Any pointer is really appreciated. If it's outside and in your backyard go with clay/black dirt and make an off road track, running stadium trucks and buggies on it. Save the on road vehicles for parking lots and professionally built RC race tracks. Well, I want to be able to use this path to walk and maybe for the kids to bike on it. Like I said, I'm looking at ways to make a road track, not a dirt track. Otherwise I would go for the decomposed granite (also known as Pathway Fines) that I mentioned before. > Well, I want to be able to use this path to walk and maybe for the kids > to bike on it. Like I said, I'm looking at ways to make a road track, > not a dirt track. Otherwise I would go for the decomposed granite (also > known as Pathway Fines) that I mentioned before. Well laid asphalt will do the trick, but again, it might be up there in $. > I want to be able to use this path to walk and maybe for the kids > to bike on it. How big is your back yard? Sounds yooge. You also sound like yer made of money. > Well, I want to be able to use this path to walk and maybe for the kids > to bike on it. Like I said, I'm looking at ways to make a road track, > not a dirt track. Otherwise I would go for the decomposed granite (also > known as Pathway Fines) that I mentioned before. The only surfaces on-road vehix will run on are concrete or asphalt that are relatively smooth and flat. Anything else is going to be sending the little boogers every which way every time they hit a minor imperfection. So, I'd take the advice of the others and use dirt or gravel/slag rock (both of which are cheap) and run Stadium Trucks, Buggies or Monsters. Doc "So, I'd take the advice of the others and use dirt or gravel/slag rock (both of which are cheap) and run Stadium Trucks, Buggies or Monsters."........... don't you guys understand that he wants something for a "road" car to drive on.... i would suggest trying two other options before going concrete or asphault. first, try making your path / walkway / rc track by laying sheeted plywood or something of that nature down (securely of course, maybe a raised surface?) and using really thin outdoor carpet to cover it. the carpet will provide excellent traction but may or may not be as expensive as the concrete... second, you CAN use red clay. but you have to pack it very tight and keep it very smooth. there are many organizations that run rc cars on a tightly packed clay oval. should be the cheapest way to do it. good luck and keep us updated on what happens. jack >> Well, I want to be able to use this path to walk and maybe for the kids >> to bike on it. Like I said, I'm looking at ways to make a road track, [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > > Doc Thanks Jack - and the others too! Yes, what you suggest sounds like the "decomposed granite" I was talking about in my first posting. I saw someone else's backyard with a walking path made out of this material and it's definitely a way to save money, but like it was said before, even small sand grains laying there might throw a 1/14 road car off - maybe not a 1/10, but I don't own such car yet. - In fact, I was thinking of buying an xmods to get started, but that's a different story. I think I'm going to go with concrete, I'm just going to have to get multiple quotes to see what kind of expense to expect. Dimensions are 180 ft x 3ft wide. Regarding the width, I was advised to use 4 to 6 feet wide but that's way to wide to still "look good" in a backyard. Do you guys think 3 ft is too narrow and that I won't be able to keep the car on it? I think that might be true at the beginning, but with practice .... and I don't plan to have races with more than 2 cars, maybe occasionally 3. Thanks again for all your input. -- jj. As for width, a standard sidewalk is a bit tricky to drive on with 1/10 scale. While the carpet track I race on has lanes not much wider in spots, I have walls to rub. Fall off a sidewalk and you usually can't get the car back on the pavement without help since sidewalks are built higher then the ground around them for drainage. Can make for a frustrating time. I have tried to follow sidewalks at parks with 1/10 cars and did not have much luck. If it is new concrete you can probably get away with 1/18th cars. RS4 Micro or Xray M18 for street cars. It will make the sidewalk feel much wider. I would sweep the sidewalk before playing since the smaller cars will like stones and such that much less. Might even put some caulk in the expansion grooves to smooth those out if they are a problem. > Regarding the width, I was advised to use 4 to 6 feet wide but that's > way to wide to still "look good" in a backyard. Do you guys think 3 ft > is too narrow and that I won't be able to keep the car on it? I think > that might be true at the beginning, but with practice .... and I don't > plan to have races with more than 2 cars, maybe occasionally 3. I'd strongly advise 6', unless you're planning to drive slowly and walk around behind the car. If you want to keep it looking 'scale' then make it 6' where it runs across your field of vision (assuming you're going to have a single point you'll normally drive from) and 4' where it's running directly towards/away from you; but much less than that, and you'll never be able to get the throttle open properly. I did a demo event some years ago for a (1:1) car company, who provided a fleet of R/C cars and invited a group from my club to go along and drive for them. They built a track using 2'-3' wide boards, with a bridge and a jump or two; even as experienced racers (used to doing sub-10 second laps on a twisty carpet track) there was no way we could show the cars off to their full potential. As an aside, have a good look at the width of a real race circuit (other than Monaco!) and compare it to the width of the cars on it... you'll probably find it's wider than you think. Jonny > Thanks Jack - and the others too! > Yes, what you suggest sounds like the "decomposed granite" I was [quoted text clipped - 17 lines] > Thanks again for all your input. > -- jj. You will definately want to try an off-road car at that small scale. The on road cars for 1/18 and smaller will bounce and jostle terribly on anything but carpet or dead-smooth flooring. Try the Mini-T or RC18T out. They have on-road style tires available to them, and you can add small jumps and obstacle to make the circuit a little bit more fun. I have no problem running my RS4 Micro in smooth parking lots, it is actually a common place to race them. Concrete would be no problem at all for them. With stock motor it would be slow enough you should be able to keep it on the sidewalk. Besides the smaller size the micros do much better then the 1/10 cars in runtime. With stock motor and a battery pack (not AAs) I easily get 30+ minutes on a charge. OK JJ, now you got me thinking you got a great idea. Across from my office is a park with sidewalks. They go around statues, poles and plants so it's not boring straight runs all over. I will have to bring the Micro to work tomorrow and play during lunch tomorrow. Last week I mounted a small wireless camera on my RS4 Micro. Needed more light so I taped a AA battery flashlight to it as well. Looked plenty freaky but had fun driving it around the house, under the bed, etc. I sat in my recliner and watched the TV as my car zoomed around the house. I taped it with my VCR, I need to get it on the web. The whole first floor of my house is hardwood, tile or linoleum so no room was off limits. |
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