American Graffiti 1962 - Update finally 09/03

[MoparGreg]

Yes everything is 1/25 scale.

[MoparGreg]

Ok so sit down, Im routing tomorrow! This thing is happening. My track design has morphed quite a bit from my original design. But I feel this new design has really captured the movie much better. Ill get a design up at some stage. The current design Ive drawn on the MDF I don't have it drawn up on computer.

I ended up working in a complete 1/25 scale Mels diner to the track. This is going to be quite the challenge to build a 1/25 scale replica of Mels diner. Im keen though!

[RazorJon]

The options with this build could be endless,I would build a spot so each lane drove through a building, like the hotrod shop the old boy that drove the yellow roadster worked at, or do a swerve through Mel's overhang just missing a car hop :o

[MoparGreg]

Yeah I agree, endless possibilities. Just wish I had endless space to play with. Unfortunately I only have a small space to work with. In ways its kind of good as I can concentrate in a smaller area. I have left it open to easily extend it with my track design. What I would love to do eventually is add Paradise road drag strip onto the side of it. That would be cool. Only in my version hopefully the Chevy dont end up in flames! :)

Also been meaning to ask is there any electronic gurus in the house? Not right now but in the future Ill need some advise about making up some LED lights for all the street lighting & lighting for the shops. Also I want functioning traffic lights, e.g. green, amber & red. Basically Ill need info on how to wire it up, if you need any resistors etc. Anyway just putting it out there, I dont need the info right now but in the near future. I want to build it all myself, not buy any prebuilt kits.

[Nor Cal Mike]

Greg,I will be watching this project with great interest. I can't wait to see John Milner driving the strip You'll need a dark haired girl figurine to stand in for Mackenzie Phillips.

[nhdungeonracer]

[dreinecke]

Bibbster - awesome description! Even I can follow that!

Greg, get cracking!

[dreinecke]

I feel your pain!

[MoparGreg]

Thanks Dickie, I know of that site, some of those light up billboards are exciting, they will tie in nicely. Just wish the price tag was not so exciting. A couple cant hurt eh!

My good friend Jeremy, Im a simpleton, that diagram looks like gobblety gook to me. I cant read circuit diagrams, but I am handy with a soldering iron. I think Ill hit you up sometime in the future for a bit more of a detailed look at that diagram. Maybe what all the numbers mean & a shopping list. Is that ok? One thing, with that setup can you delay the length of time the red & green stay on? To you you an idea Ill probably need about 12 traffic lights spread out over the track all wired in together.

Today Im concentrating on routing. I dont expect to have the routing completed today but ill make a start. I have promised 2 little girls, 2 pooches & 1 special bride that I would take them for a run on the beach this morning. Its winter here, cold at night but the days this week have been outstanding. Not a cloud in the sky. So its great to take advantage of this weather while its great.

[TsgtRet]

Jeremy I've been out of the loop a long time......I was thinking in terms of a bistable multivibrator for just red and green. Of course when I went to Tech Scool we learned tube theory first and then transistors.....basically steam powered electronics.

Greg that is going to be so cool. Just remember if you find a 1/25 Han Solo figure all you need to do is put a cowboy hat on him and you have Bob Falfa!

[MoparGreg]

Hmmm, after a great start to the day it all went downhill :( . I spent the morning with the family walking the dogs & looking for shells on the beach. Just spectacular down there today. We watched a large pod of maybe 100-200 dolphins just off shore. Finished up at the cafe for a bite. Got home & it all went downhill. I spent time setting up the router getting the heights right. Also hammered in some nails in a nice new guide strip. Set up my work table to do the routing on. All going good so far. I got halfway around nailing in my first strip & snap! Brand new strip snapped, not even on a tight corner. Got out my ole-reliable strip that routed my oval track. Nailed it in & routed the length of the strip. Moved onto the next section & snap, snapped the strip again.

I had hoped to post a nice progress shot but its not really worth showing. Anyway tomorrows a new day, Ive got everything setup ready to go now with a nice new strip ready to go. With thinner nails & a slightly wider strip.

[dreinecke]

Greg...funny, I think you and I had talked about this when I routed my track and snapped my strips! Sorry to hear that. See, if you hadn't been goofing off at the beach, getting lunch at the cafe, etc...you'd be done ;)

[MoparGreg]

Got a nice update with photos. I got alot routed today, not finished it but Im happy with the progress. I realised I have not showed a track diagram & what Im doing.

A bit of info before I get into it, This is a true AC2car track where 4 cars can run at the same time with lane changing. It will also be wired as DC with the change of XLR plugs, 5 seconds to change from AC to DC. On DC only 2 cars can run at one time. I did look into the Scorpius & Slotit digital systems but I just cant justify the cost atm, particularly the price of each car chip. I decided to make this a AC2 car track, sure AC2 has its downsides but I have all the parts needed here for AC2 & chips for the cars cost 50cents each.

Keep an open mind with it as its not a traditional race circuit. We designed the track around the scenery. Just a fun scenic track

So the idea is there is 1 lanechange on the track at the start of the lap. At the lane change you can choose to cruise past Mels Diner or choose the other direction & drive in around behind the diner & into the gas station.

At the start of the lap, up the back straight just behind the copcar there is the lane change section. You choose your direction there. The back straight is the main street.



So cruisin down the main street. See the pencil line on the wall, that will be building ficades, all the shop fronts you see in the movie. These will be all the way along the straight. The second pencil line is the walkway, where people will be, post boxes, street lighting etc.



So this is where the road forks out. After doing a 180 from the main street the road either takes you around the front of the diner or around the back of the diner. That paper square is a hotrod shop, more on the hotrod shop later.



Here we are coming around Mels diner. The other direction is up behind the diner.



So the whole reason for this track is Mels Diner. This will be a 1/25 scale replica of Mels. The outside edge of the white paper is the roof line. The first inside pencil line around the outside of the circle is the sidewalk under the roof. The next pencil line towards the centre is the walls around the outside diner. As you see the cars is how the will sit. So they will be halfway unser the roof of the diner.



So here is were the roads come back together again. The road from behind the diner gos through the gas station. Gas station is the white paper square.



Just want to thank my bride for helping nail in the routing strips. Team effort. So thats it for now. more routing next weekend, thanks for looking.

[RazorJon]

looks like fun so far, good start, if you are still looking for girls have you tried the pit babes?

[dge467]

That's is going to be awesome Greg! Looks like your in for a lot of scratch building with all those structures! Digging all the old Mopars!