I saw this posted in Sulit.com.ph and all I said was, "I got to have this.".
I used to have a slot car set, sadly I don't remember what make it was, I can't also remember what the cars where included in the set. All I remember was that the rails on the track where shiny and wide and the colors of the controller where Red and Yellow. It was thrown during the first few floods that we have when we moved here in Cainta. That was a very very long time ago.
That is why I was really excited when I saw this set posted for a very cheap price. The owner said that the set was complete, we meet up and did not bother to check the set thoroughly (Big big mistake!) because his rating in Sulit.com.ph is high. I went home and checked the set and found out that the Tyco Power Pack is missing and one of the curve is also missing. I did notify the seller about this and he did told me that he will check for the parts but I have not received any updates from him since then.Considering the price that I paid for the whole set it is still a bargain.
When I first checked the cars that came with the set, my initial reaction was, "I don't remember my slot cars back then being this complicated.". My reaction was like that because looking at the under chassis of the car the crown gear, pinion gear and the armature was visible. Well this is not just a toy grade slot car then, I thought to my self. I am a total newb when it comes to slot cars that's why I checked with a friend of mine who from what I understand is a very good slot car racer abroad. His name is Craig and I got to know him because I purchased a remote control car from him. I checked some sites to learn more about the slot cars that I have and soon learned that there are tons of after market option parts for this tiny racers. I got more excited. I checked if there are any parts being sold locally but there were none, that is why I decided to just clean and rebuild the cars for the mean time. I guess it's just high time for me to pull out all of my tools again and work on some motors and gears, it has been a long time since I last worked on something like this.
I found no "How to" posts or videos on the web for rebuilding the Tyco 440X2 kit that is why I had to learn it myself. I first dismantled the wheel-sets from the chassis, found out that the rubber tires can no longer be used since it lost its and elasticity and started to have cracks. I then removed the hair strands and threads that got tangled to the wheel axle. I removed the dried up grease on the axles and on the crown gear using liquid soap and let it dried. It took me awhile to figure out how to remove the motor case from the chassis but I was able too eventually, without breaking any parts LOL. The motor magnets and the traction magnets where all dirty and there where hair strands on the armature as well. I went back to the net to check for mod tips and found this blown apart picture of the 440X2. Thanks to HOSlotCarRacing.com I now have an idea of what small parts should I look out for when dismantling the motor case.
I started to work on the motor, removed the pinion gear so that I can remove the armature from the bulkheads. I left the carbon brush, brush spring and the brush tube in place and decided to work on the armature first. Removed all the hairs, cleaned the armature shaft and sanded and buffed the commutator until it's all shiny again. Checked if there were any coils that were damaged and luckily there were none, at this point I know I have a working slot car. I then moved to the brush and removing it was scary as hell at first, I have this tendency of loosing very small parts specially if there are springs involved. hahaha I removed the brush tube and the carbon brush fell but the brush spring was still inside, tilted the tube and the spring came out. Good thing I did not loose anything. Cleaned the tube, spring and buffed the brush and placed it aside. I then cleaned the motor magnets and then started to rebuild the motor case.
One Peso coin for size comparison.
Only a gear head would enjoy something beautiful like this. (^_^)
Now that the motor has been cleaned I then moved onto the chassis. There was nothing much to do on the chassis all I did was clean it using an old toothbrush and some liquid soap and let it dry. Once done I then rebuilt the whole chassis. placed the motor back with the shoe spring and I then sanded and buffed the pick up shoe.
Now for those who are clueless about slot cars, this is how Wikipedia defines a slot car:
"A slot car (sometimes, slotcar) is a powered miniature auto or other vehicle that is guided by a groove or slot in the track on which it runs. A pin or blade extends from the bottom of the car into the slot. Though some slot cars are used to model highway traffic on scenic layouts, the great majority are used in the competitive hobby of slot car racing or slot racing."
Well for the Tyco series of slot cars not only does the car have a guide pin it also has what they call a traction magnet. And that's what it basically do, it helps keep the car stay on the track by using a magnet and also helps give the car more traction since it's pulling the car down closer to the track.
Guide pin on the left and traction magnet on the right.
After cleaning the pick up shoe I decided to test it first and see if the motor will run. Got the command control part of the track, found some 12V power supply and laid it out on my table. Usually when we rebuild a motor there is a breaking in phase, you'll know that the motor has been well tuned if you'll hear the motor rev to a smooth high pitch sound with almost no vibration. Sadly for my rebuild I think I have to do it again or I might have to replace some of the parts because I did not get that smooth high pitch sound. Here is a short video of the motor revving.
I am still checking for OEM parts or even hop parts that is locally available, and I really hope I could get some. But for now i'll settle for what I have. I am now thinking of a track layout to test the cars. Hopefully get a good video out of it as well and will definitely post it here. That's it for now, thanks for dropping by and keep on Over Haulin!
