Home Racing World

Too hot to play outside last couple of days, so I thought I'd build something that's been in my head
for a couple months.
I've tried several times in the past 3 or 4 years to build a rear suspension with moderate results.
I'm giving it another try.
Here's the pieces it took to build this version:
The axle is a piece of 1/8 universal speedometer cable, which is an extremely tightly wound
tempered spring; (All you gearheads will know what I'm using here)
I'm using various lengths of 5/32 brass tubing;
& 2 small pieces of foam;



I'm using a piece of 11/32 (I think) brass rectangular tubing on each side of the chassis to mount everything.
..........This is an offset chassis for oval racing...after all this is, Strangebrew......... :D
I've barely inserted a fluted (might help the gear ride against it a little better) 5/32 brass spacer
into the right side rectangular tube & soldered.
Same procedure for the left, except it's a VERY SHORT piece of regular 5/32 brass tube.
This locates the axle in place in the chassis.






All that's left is to assemble the pieces.
I put the 5/32 brass tubes into the rectangular mounts.
These act as bearings for the axle to ride in, but also can rotate in the rectangular tubing.
so you sort of have 2 bushings in one.
I left them extend past the outside just slightly so as the axle moves up & down, it won't bind against
the outside edge of the rectangular tube.
The axle has barley any front to rear movement & is only allowed to move up & down.
The foam was an afterthought to help dampen any chatter from the axle. (My version of a shock absorber)
It runs good on my short oval with no discernible wheel hop. Guess it needs a test run at "headquarters".
The axle is pretty stiff, so I don't even know if it works as suspension or not, but it was an interesting project. :roll:

Idea's like this are fun to build but I doubt it will run very well, but I've been wrong before.

The thing I like about slot car racers is they are very inventive. :text-bravo:

I love to see 'thinking outside the box' stuff like this … like they say, "you'll never know until you try".

Wow an IRS. Just think, in cars they said the IRS was a dream but look how many cars are using it now. I'm just wondering when NASCAR will switch over since most of the other race cars are using the IRS system.

At Accord Speedway in NY I've seen modifieds turn entire laps on 3 wheels due to suspension travel allowing the left front tire to be totally up in the air.


Not sure if it's the ideal setup, but it's not uncommon. If you get your setup to the point that when hammering through a corner the left front gets airborne (while keeping the guide in the slot) I hope you post a slow motion video.

This is really interesting, looking forward to the results.
Your mind must be full of great ideas, this is the really good side of slot racing whether 1/32 or 1:1, the thought and development processes are still there :think:

Strangebrew,...Nice to see you experimenting/tinkering,....it is a very cool part of the hobby, and one which not only is fun, but, really improves ones building skills,....wish more folks took part.

Over the years many cars have been built with independent suspension systems, and Ulrich produced a very highly engineered/complex chassis with 4 wheel ind. suspension (and front end steering) in the mid 60's....it did run quite well, but its complexity/over engineering made it very heavy, fragile, and uncompetitive. I have yet to see/hear about a car with ind. suspension that has been competitive with a traditional solid axle car, although chassis with torsional flex certainly rule the roost in terms of handling. That said, I again applaud your efforts, and do not let anything I have said deter your efforts......very cool to see !! :clap:

One thing on your build you may want to consider......you may want to insert a solid shaft into the spring going laterally from (and into) one bushing support to the other.......this will still let the ends of the axles flex, while eliminating any flex in the center of the axle, which will lead to gear mesh/wear issues, issues which will affect the handling of the car.

Build on and have fun :dance:

Cheers
Chris Walker

PS..In case you have not seen one, a couple of pics. of a Vintage Ulrich chassis

A fairly simple front end .........note the real wire wheels,...these were from Russkit, looked great, but not very true, and really really fragile !!



A more complex rear end using springs, half shafts, universal joints etc.
Note:....the axle between (and into) the bushings is a solid piece, eliminating gear issues

That is down right slick sir! :D

roy wong 4 a.jpg
roy wong.jpg
This was built by one of the all time masters of scratchbuilding, Roy Wong, back in 60's. It never ran as good as a standard hinged chassis.
As far as I know, in the last 45 years no chassis with active suspension has performed any better than a standard chassis. Many attempts have been made and some are outstanding work, but the performance just is not there. This same is also true for rear differentials and steering front ends. It doesn't make sense, but it seems to be the results for all attempts. You will still have a nice custom built slot car! Good luck.

Still too hot to play outside, so Put together a Studebaker Lark body for the prototype.
Paul Gage rears & home cast fronts on Pro-Track wheels.
Printed some quickie stickers.
We'll see how she runs with a body & some tuning..... :D

sweet build, love your enthusiasm for this stuff brother, If it weren't for guys like you there would be no seeds planted. Was thinking Rambler at 1st look, either way super creation my friend !

Really amazing ideas in this post. I am inspired to get off my can and finish my table setup. Can't wait to start making some brass chassis. Thanks for all the great ideas Strangebrew and everybody else. :text-thankyouyellow:

I was just reading about the Studebaker Lark and it was considered a 'sleeper'. With the R3 package, Studebaker 289, Paxton Supercharger blowing out 6 psi, 635 cfm carter four barrel, 4 speed transmission and 4.30:1 gears in the rear, and only rated at 289 horsepower this lil' car has been know to turn low 12 ET's at the 1/4 mile. With that said, this little beast of Strangebrew's should really haul the mail.