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| Initiation Advise: Reflections of a beginner for beginners |
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| Written by Dr. Watson | |
| domingo, 31 agosto 2008 | |
If you are reading this it is probably because you are just as crazy as many others that are so hooked on these "little cars". If this is your situation, there are two things that I´m sure that you love: One is racing your miniz and the other is modifying your car and seeing how it improves its on- track performance. In any regard, you will need a track to race on because its not all about spinning and fooling around on your dinning room floor. You can do much more with your miniZ.  Throughout the country there are numerous clubs that have magnificent tracks on their premises, so my advice for you is to not hold back but be encouraged to check out one of them. I´m sure that you will be pleasantly suprised, not only by the track but even more so by the atmosphere: you will find really great people as yourself who enjoy thier miniZ just like you, but with the only difference that they have been a part of this little world longer than you and that they know quite a lot more than you. In addition, generally speaking these people love to share this knowledge, so you will learn a lot. Two hours in this environment and you will learn more than two whole days racing on your own at home. The problem, normally, tends to be that you may not be able to go the club as often as you would like, perhaps due to the time schedule or maybe because it is quite a distance away or any other reason, so it is likely that you may be interested in setting up your own circuit at home and, if possible, enjoy it with your friends. If you have reached this point and you agree with everything that you have read, there are a few questions that you should consider. ¿Is it interesting to have a circuit at home? My answer is a resounding yes. In any regard, even though your house may be small and you have to set up and dismantel the track constantly, and you are only able to race alone without being able to compete with anyone, be it as it may, it is very interesting to have your own track. It shouldn´t be considered as a substitute for a club track but rather as the perfect complement. Remember that, as in my case, you are a novice, and therefore if you want to really enjoy fully your minZ you still have a lot to learn:- Learn how to drive your miniZ, - Learn how to tune up your car,- Learn of the different modifications that you can apply to your miniZ and how to apply them. ¿What types of circuits are there? Basically, regarding the type of surface, there are three types of circuit (if I´m mistaken, I ask for those with more experience to please correct me) : - OXIRON: The oxiron is a type of texturized paint that allows for good grip of the miniZs and is usually used on wooden board surfaces. Most of the first surfaces of the club tracks were made of this material, and from what I have read (I don´t have personal experience with using this track), it wears down considerably the miniz tires and can also release tiny metal particles that can affect the magnets of the motors as well as the electronics. In addition and above all, it is an expensive surface and complicated to set up (you have to paint on wooden boards and the set up and dismantling is complicated). - CARPET: There are many different types of carpet. The best carpet for our miniZs is the fair carpet, which is a carpet made of very fine fibers that are typically used in fairs or exhibitions (mainly in the walkways). It is inexpensive (2-3 €m2), and also it can be obtained free of charge after an event that has taken place on fair grounds (these carpets are usually thrown away at the end of a fair). It is easy to set up and dismantle (once finished all you have to do is roll it up). It is a good surface for racing provided the correct tires are used (the best is to use soft tires, especially on the rear axle, as they have better grip (the hard tires cause the car to fish-tail a lot). Care must be taken when rolling and unrolling the carpet as to avoid wrinkling it, as these wrinkles over time will make the carpet unusable. The fair carpet is usually grey or black in colour. It is not adviseable to use bright colour (red, blue etc.) carpets given they can prove to be straining to the eyes. Another precaution that must be taken when using a carpet is that the passing of the cars tends to result in the production of a fine "hairs" on the surface for which it is necessary to clean the Miniz thouroughly after each session. - FOAM: Foam is a type of lightweight rubber material (I don´t know the exact chemical composition) that turns out to be a very adecuate surface for racing the Miniz´s, given that it has exceptional grip and the performance of the car on its surface is excellent (most of the clubs currently have circuits made of this surface and are used almost exclusively in the competitions). most commonly they come in the form of pre cut tiles and with the edges cut in jigsaw puzzle form which enables for quick set up. Of the foam circuits we basically have two options: Commercial Tracks: We can find in the market a commercial product RCP ( it can be found at the store of this web site). The RCP tracks come in jiggsaw puzzle format and with protections (edges) of the same material (of a different colour). They are enclosed packages (for setting up a predetermined cicrcuit), even though if extension kits are purchased there is a possibility of setting up larger more complex tracks. This is the most widely used system in competions as well as in many clubs; the performance of the car on the track is impecable. The problem is that it can be a little expensive; the basic circuit is small in size and in an "L" shape and costs close to 300€. or Foam Tiles: In some sports stores (Decathlon for example) and also in some hypermarkets (i.e. Carrefour and Alcampo) these foam pieces are used as a surface for doing excercises and /or for placing gymn equipment. Even though they aren´t exactly the same as the foam pieces of the RCP tracks, the surface is very similar and turns out to be a very interesting alternative, especially for home tracks. They are sold in packages of 4 units and each piece measures 62x62cm with a price of around 10€ per package. However, it must be taken into consideration that the borders of the track pieces are not included and thus have to be made separately. These are the most habitually used materials and circuits. Of course, there are others and everybody in the end will find the best option that suits them, and in addition, more commercial circuits are beginning to appear in the market such as the American Real Tracks which makes the circuits out of ABS plastic (the same as the Scalextric tracks). These tracks are modular, easy to set up and include a protective guard rail, but they are very narrow (16 inches = 41cm) which makes them too narrow for the miniZ (a bit better than the dNaNo). The manufacturer has announced that at the end of this summer a new wider model (22 inches = 55cm) will be launched, which in my opinion is still a little narrow but is still worth trying out. Is it necessary to put borders on the circuit? How can it be done? A good surface is fundamental in order for your miniz to run smoothly, but lets not forget that we are only beginners and therefore that the car will hardly ever goes where you want it to go. Therefore, we have to accept the following reality: it is almost certain that the car will often drift off the track. This means that either we´ll have to put some acceptable borders on the track or else the body (or other delicate parts) of our miniZ sooner or later will end up getting destroyed in any collision with solid surfaces. The commercial circuits (RCP) incorporate foam demarcations that will save our miniZ time and time again, but if we opt for an oxiron track, carpet or foam tiles, we must make our own borders to protect our miniZ. After reading up on various forums, I have seen that people use pretty much everything; sky is the limit. The systems that are most widely used is the currogated plastic tubing (the type that is used in construction for passing electrical cables within walls). To me it seems a bit hard for my liking and it is a bit difficult to hold down on the surface, which is the main reason why, after testing it out, I personally disregarded its use on my circuit. Another system that is quite extensively used are the gutters used by electricians. I personally don´t recommend them, as they are very hard and in addition, are only used for straight angle demarcations (they aren´t flexible and can´t be used on bends in the track. After trying out various options, I finally opted for the foam tubing that is used for filling and insulating the copper tubing of air conditioners. They are inexpensive (50cents per 1m of tubing), plyable, easy to come across (Leroy-Merlin, Aki, etc...) and easy to install (they can be held in place by use of velcro strips). These foam tubes have some real advantages in my opinion: - The foam walls of the tubing are flexible with a hollow inner section which enables it to absorb collosions perfectly (I can assure you that despite having been through many collisions, I haven´t even broken a rear view) - It is flexible (plyable), which enables it to be used to demarcate bends using any type of angle (including the sharpest bends). - It is very easy to place velcro tape onto it (the type with the tiny hooks) (self adhesive), as the holding mechanism to the track surface (if the surface is made out of carpet, the velco (with the tiny hooks) holds perfectly, and if it is made out of foam, you will have to first place a layer of the smooth fibre section of the velcro in order for it to hold firmly. - If a velcro securing system is used, then it will be very easy set up and dismantle the borders (on a 4x2m circuit it takes less than 2 mins to set them up and even less to take them down.) Despite, this simplicity, this system is very durable and although any one fastening point can possibly come loose following a heavy collision, the car will neither break through nor go over the demarcation, meaning that it will not fly off the track and be damaged. - For the sake of mentioning a negative aspect of these demarcations, its worth noting that the car´s speed is reduced upon colliding with the foam tube. Personally, I find this characteristic to be quite advantageous given that it allows me to improve my driving skills and avoid rubbing up against the demarcations which, after all, is the main objective of learning how to drive. - We can also say that the after an exhaustive use and significant amounts of collisions and bumps, little pieces of the foam demarcations can start to fall off from the most badly worn areas, but if you consider the fact that these tubes are only worth 50cm for a 1m length, they aren´t expensive at all to replace. The more exposed surfaces can also be protected by using adhesive tape, alternating with red and white strips that both act as a protective agent as well as visual aids while racing on the track. The use of carpet or foam tiles and foam tube borders can result in a circuit that is very fast and easy to set up and dismantle (4-5mins) that will be enough to wet our appetite, test out the modifications to our car and improve in our driving level. How big should my track be? The answer is simple: all the space that you have available, whether its a bedroom, garage, whatever space you have avaible you can design your track accordingly. Take care not to install your circuit outside as both the foam as well as the carpet tend to degrade once exposed to elements. If you do have set up your track outdoors, the best thing for you is to take it down after each use. This shouldn´t take any time at all once you get the hang of it. Although you may have a limited amount of space, you must realize that your track is for MiniZ racing and that it is a machine of precision that can reach considerable speeds, which implies that your track must have a minimum width. If you make the track very narrow, you won´t be able to control your miniZ at high speeds given that you will only be able to circulate at low speeds which in the end will turn out to be quite boring. In addition, you won´t be able to test out any of the modifications to your car, niether will you be able to improve your driving skills. Things will get even worse if your wish is to use your track with other friends because your cars simply will not fit niether on the straights nor the curves. For very small spaces (4x4 or less) a track width of 60 cm (the size of a foam tile) is borderline but acceptable, especially for racing a single MiniZ. If the size that you have is greater or you wish to race with more than one car, I would advise you to use a minimum width of 90cm or even greater if you can. What layout should my circuit have? The layout of the circuit obviously depends on the space that you have available as well as your imagination. To help you out, you find on the internet various circuit design programs (you can actualy download one of these from this same website). Use them and also try out other layouts, keeping in mind that if you use foam tube demarcations you can use various layouts on the same surface; all you have to do is change around the demarcations. One good option is to read the various exchanges of this forum and you will find numerous designs and ideas that you can use. You can also post your personal designs on a page of this forum and ask for the opinion of the other users. To me this seems like a very good idea. All seems well but, What is the best circuit for me? Considering that the best thing is to build the circuit as big as possible, making best use of the space available, my advice is: - If the current economic crisis isn´t affecting you and your budget is looking good, your best bet is the RCP circuit; good surface, ready made demarcations, and the only drawback is that it is a bit tedious to set up and dismantle. - If your budget is a little tight, go for the carpet ( if you have the possibility, visit the premises of an exhibition and ask the people for their carpet but they dispose of it and you may just get it for free. If not, you can purchase it at a very affordable price at any hardware store.) As an example, I will add that at the same time that I am writing this article, I am setting up a circuit with some friends at their house. We have a space of 8m long, on half of which a 4m width can be used, and on the other half, a 2,4m width; we got the carpet for free (from an exhibition) (0€), we needed 30m of foam tubing for the demarcations (0,5€/m = 15€) and we have used 12m of velcro (with tiny hooks) (0,8€/m = 9,6€). So in other words, for less than 25€ we have constructed a serious circuit that will provide us with some great moments with our MiniZs. The least that I can recommend to you is that you get the foam tiles. They have a reasonable price (10€ for 4 tiles that make up for a total of 1,24m2). They are easy to set up, the surface is excellent and the performance of the car is flawless. I hope that all of this information that I have shared can serve as a reference for you and helps to motivate you to construct your own circuit. Remember that being a novice is something that passes on with time and practice. Some photos illustrations.  A microcircuit made of carpet cut into two in order to place it under the table. Ugly, bulky and short but be it as it may its still serves to get your fix and get some practice in.  With the parts together and the foam tubes; things now begin to look a little better.  These are the foam tube demarcations.  Example of the placing of the velcro strips (with the tiny barbs) on the foam tubing. The strip measures 10cm and the space between each strip is another 10cm. In this manner, it is easy to shape the tubes to the track contours.  If the surface is carpet, the velcro can be attached directly, if it is foam, we will have to place smooth fabric strips so that the foam tubes could be attached.  Here´s how the foam surface track should look.  Decorating the foam tube demarcations of the curves with red and white adhesive tape, the final product could turn out to be quite impressive. |
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