|
Post by birel33 on Nov 7, 2008 20:49:20 GMT -6
Could someone please tell me what a good time for a pure stock car would be on a 35ft best track. I need a time to udge how close my cars are.
|
|
|
Post by ProQuest on Nov 8, 2008 0:02:14 GMT -6
Hey birel33,
That's a great question, but nearly impossible to answer. Even two identical Best Tracks, set up as close to the same as possible, can vary significantly -- by several 1/100s of a second. The only way to know for sure is to time a car on your track to get a base line, then send it to PWDR (or where ever you race) and see how the times compare. For example, if a car runs a 2.70 on your track, and a 3.0 at PWDR, then you will know that there is about a .30 second difference between the two. Having said that, to give you an idea, Kevin Baugher (a/k/a Derby Master) tests and tunes on his 35' Best Track. As I recall, his pure stock cars run around 2.660-2.670 on his track. I expect they would be very competitive in any league. My guess is that those times would equate to around 2.95s to 2.96s at PWDR. Again, I can't emphasis enough how much different tracks can vary. In fact, the same track can vary significantly from setup to setup. So, as they say in the infomercials -- "your results may vary."
Hope this helps a little.
Steve H.
|
|
|
Post by Lucky 13 on Nov 8, 2008 2:37:15 GMT -6
Could someone please tell me what a good time for a pure stock car would be on a 35ft best track. I need a time to udge how close my cars are. ProQuest is very right, trying to compare track times can be/is tricky. On my 35ft Best Track a good running Pure Stock will run in the 2.48 range. Once you send in a car or two you will be able to get a better idea of where you need to be by comparing your 42ft times to your 35ft times. Lucky 13
|
|
|
Post by birel33 on Nov 8, 2008 14:34:07 GMT -6
Well I was feeling some what good when reading proquests post as my cars are running right around 2.62. Then I read Lucky's post and .2 is a large gap over 35 ft let alone 42 ft. I guess I will keep working on these times and I have some more work to do on the track.
On that note. I had damage to my track during shipping and Best Track is sending replacement parts. They were fast in answering my calls and told me that parts would be out right away. My hats off to them. Also I had a little trouble with my Micro Wizard timer. It was all my proplem as I did not put it together right, but I called Micro Wizard and they spent the time with my and got me up and going. Again my hats off to them. Both were shipped really fast and the products are top notch.
Lucky, Proquest, anyone else that has experience setting up Best Tracks that would offer advice I would be greatful. I have several sections that are not fitting the best and I do not want to file on them or do anything till I know what I should do.
|
|
|
Post by ProQuest on Nov 8, 2008 15:54:08 GMT -6
I'm no expert in assembling tracks. I'd best leave you in the hands of someone more experienced and capable, like Lucky. Several others who post here have considerable expertise (I won't mention any names like grubartez, 3Cub, Slick ). Hopefully, someone will chime in. But for whoever responds, if you could describe how the sections are not fitting together properly, you might get more helpful and specific suggestions on what to do. Steve H.
|
|
|
Post by 3cubdad on Nov 8, 2008 21:31:09 GMT -6
Birel,
What kind of problems are you having?
Set up problems would normally fall into one of three areas:
1. Height difference between sections, normally the downtrack section being higher.
2. A gap between sections of the track, or a gap on one side or the other.
3. "Humps" at the joints.
The first and most important piece of advice would be to make sure that the connecting pins are mounted in the "upstream" section of track, (that is piece that is closest to the starting pins should have the pins mounted in them). Believe me, it really does make a huge difference, and this solved a lot of my problems!
Let me know what kind of problems you may be seeing.
Steve 3CubDad
Oh yeah, do not let the time difference concern you. I run a 42' Best Track like the PWDR races on. There is a consistant .011 difference, and I have even seen .015 for one race set-up. Like others said, until you send it in, you won't have a comparison!
|
|
|
Post by Mr. Slick on Nov 8, 2008 21:31:07 GMT -6
What is the situation? How may lanes? First question: Is the transition(curve) section aligned at the bottom? The top(towards the start line) of the transition is the end that can be uneven. The start line fixture is straight and so any minor differences in the start section position due to an uneven transition don't matter. The bottom of the transition is what the rest of the track keys off of. If it isn't square, nothing from there on will be square. Is the problem in the initial alignment of the sections? effort to assemble the sections? rough joints? . . . . Just ask and it will be answered. . . . .to the best of my ability.
|
|
|
Post by beakerboysracing on Nov 9, 2008 7:29:53 GMT -6
Well I was feeling some what good when reading proquests post as my cars are running right around 2.62. Then I read Lucky's post and .2 is a large gap over 35 ft let alone 42 ft. I guess I will keep working on these times and I have some more work to do on the track. On that note. I had damage to my track during shipping and Best Track is sending replacement parts. They were fast in answering my calls and told me that parts would be out right away. My hats off to them. Also I had a little trouble with my Micro Wizard timer. It was all my proplem as I did not put it together right, but I called Micro Wizard and they spent the time with my and got me up and going. Again my hats off to them. Both were shipped really fast and the products are top notch. Lucky, Proquest, anyone else that has experience setting up Best Tracks that would offer advice I would be greatful. I have several sections that are not fitting the best and I do not want to file on them or do anything till I know what I should do. Hey Birel33, I just finished setting up my new 42 ft best track and it was pretty easy, just a little time consuming to get everything fitted and filed. One bit of advise I would offer is to take each section and flip over face down and then starting with middle lanes, tape your track section joints together tightly with duct tape. Start by taping across the joint several places down the length of the track the run a long piece of tape the length of the joint. Do for each track section joint. You will find the duct tape will make the track a whole lot more solid and reduce vibration and noise. Got this tip from an expert builder and proxy league owner and I can tell you how amazed I was of the difference. Second, when you file your edges, use light strokes with the file to knock of the burrs then go back with 600grit on a small square block of wood and sand joints smooth. You want sand the joint at a 45 degree angle to smooth the burrs out. Be careful not to take to much material off as this will make gaps in the track joints. You want the joint to be really smooth so when the cars goes across it, there is no bump. You may have the down hill section a little lower than the up hill section, which is better than the down hill section being higher(BAD). That is why the pin placement is critical. After sanding with 600, you can go back with a finer grit or polish if so desired to get it really smooth. You also want to put an angle in the rail at the joint in the down hill side of the track. Just sand the rail joint at an angle on the down hill side so that when a car goes across the rail at the joint, there isn't a part of the rail sticking out on the down hill side of the joint. This will eliminate bumps in the rail for rail riders. I used a framing square to square up my track sections. Just laid the section upside down, with the bolts loose on the angles that hold the sections together, and adjusted the sections until I got them square or as close as I could. Then tightened bolts back down, then duct taped the sections. You may have to file a little here to knock off high spots. Make sure you have the "tonque and groove" on the seperate lanes oriented correctly with each other. I got this wrong on one sections and it took me several hours of cussing before I figured out why the two track sections would fit together. Turned that one lane piece around and the sections fit together perfectly. I also didn't like the spring clamps that come with the track to hold the sections together, so I went an found some really small c clamps at northern tool. They work great to hold the sections together ( really helps pull the sections tight and reduces the gaps). Track times are really tricky. Warrens track is .04 to .06 faster than my track. Same track, but for some reason, probably my bad set up, there is that difference. My track is .02 faster than PDDR. Again, same track, must be set up. The main thing is once you send a car in to proxy, you will then know by comparision to your track and be able to tell pretty acurately how you car will perform at proxy races from your results at home. Or you could be like Master ProQuest whos track is still in the box in the garage but still beats the pants off of all of us every month. Hope this helps Scott Beakerboys
|
|
|
Post by birel33 on Nov 9, 2008 8:50:57 GMT -6
Beaker, you will not have to worry about my track not being setup as my son would have a heart attack if not set up.
Ok the problems I am having is the joints are very rough. The gap is minimal but there is a hump at the joints. The one that is the roughest is at the joint between the strait start section and the curve. I know that once the replacement peices come in I am going to have to take the track apart and put it back together, this is when I plan on getting the joints as smooth as possible.
Thanks for all the help guys.
|
|
|
Post by birel33 on Nov 9, 2008 8:52:04 GMT -6
Oh ya, I plan on having cars ready to send in for 2009.
|
|
|
Post by Mr. Slick on Nov 9, 2008 10:54:17 GMT -6
Just to be sure, you did put the pins in the bottom of the curve and not in the stright piece. . . . the pins cause the track to actually bend which raises the wheel lane slightly. Hence to keep the wheelie effect to a minimum, the joint should always go from high surface to low surface. The same for the guide rail. Go from wide to narrow. By sanding a little angle on the downhill piece of rail you will avoid the bump. . . . I'll see if I can come up with some diagrams that help explain what is happening.
|
|
|
Post by Mr. Slick on Nov 9, 2008 11:49:27 GMT -6
Oh, and by the way, has anyone been down to MPQ's to verify that his track is not set up in his secret lab? ;D
Boy - it's nice to be back to the normal stuff and off of the rockets! They were way too much to learn.
|
|
|
Post by 3cubdad on Nov 9, 2008 20:47:00 GMT -6
Birel,
It sounds like the problem may be with the set-up and alignment, not necessarily the assembly of the track.
From a previous Q&A with Lucky13:
If you have "humps" at the joints, your set-up is not level. You should be able to take a 3' or a 6' level, lay it across the joint, and have it fully in contact with the track all along the length of the level.
I know that Best Track's instructions tell you to place the bolts for the stand at exaclty 27" or something like that, but then later it says to adjust for alignment. This is also one reason why track times vary from track to track, and even set-up to set-up of the same track. Start with the flat section immediately after the curve, make sure it is level, then attach, shim, and adjust the pieces to make the joints smooth. You may also need to adjust the legs on the curve. If you really want a quick way to see this, stand at the starting gate, keep your eye on the joint with the curve, and slowly raise the end of the track 1-2 inches, how does it make the joint look?
Hope this helps a little, let us know!
Steve 3cubdad
|
|