Would you build a 1:32 Indy track?

[slothead]

Just did some calculations. A 1:32 scale Indianapolis Speedway would be 412.5 feet around and retain 9 degree banking in the corners. You'd probably need a hanger to house it and an RC-like elevated driver's stand to have it all visible. To a nearly full field of cars on it at a time how about 4 digital lanes with 1 & 3 and 2 & 4 connected so two digital systems could be used? Then run double the cars a single system can handle and each set of cars would have a high and low groove.

I used to dream about stuff like this all the time as a kid. If you could do it would you?

[4424ever]

Are you kidding HELL YES I would if I could but I have to be honest Nascars and Modifieds would be the dominant classes :music-rockout:
Never give up on your dreams

[slothead]

A NASCAR Brickyard 400 would certainly be a fun event on this track. Perhaps multiple versions for cars from a variety of eras. What about some Superbirds at INDY, and some Ford Torino Talledegas?

Given the rectangular shape of the speedway, I think it could be well marshaled by 6 - 8 people. A single car spin/deslot could be quickly reset without interrupting the race, multicar accidents would result in a yellow flag. A race official would decide which cars needed to pit for 'repairs' in such cases. Fuel usage and tire wear estimates would dictate when regular pit stops were needed. Yes, there would be a pit road speed limit and the field would get to bunch up for staggered single file restarts. During a caution period voltage would be reduced to half it's normal value, which would already be lowered to recreate realistic scale speeds.

Modifieds? Love them on the tracks at New Hampshire and Bristol, but never imaged them on anything as huge as Indy. That would be a sight.

[Modlerbob]

Not for me. Now have thought of a scaled down version of Sebring, I even have a plan of it in Scaley sport track but it would take way too much space. But sports car racing is my big interest, Nascar next, Indy car a distant third and no interest in F1, at least in it's current form.

[arroldn]

My Scaley Track is an Indy configuration. May not be scale but it is used in the DaVols Forums Cup Proxy

[waaytoomuchintothis]

Generally, the guys who build tracks that are a tribute to 1:1 tracks, do it by building the features of a track, not the actual scaled version. A few years ago, one of our own did a Corkscrew Complex that would have made Laguna Seca proud.

[slothead]

This whole thought began as a kid when reality was a long ways away, as far away as Indy. It has always been a dream to have a full scale track though not really possible except for a scale 1/4 or 3/8th mile oval. Yes, it would be ideal to have Indy replica cars to race on it which I know have never been available.

I'm a bit too old to imagine I could make this come true, but the way to do it would be to recreate what Barry Boor did - build homemade replicas of all the cars in the Indy car series for a year and recreate all the races with them. He did this for year after year of the F1 series for the 50's - 60's. So I have a role model, just not the space and likely not the time.

I'm fully embracing my second childhood for as long as it lasts. As poet Langston Hughes wrote - "hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die, life is but a broken winged bird that cannot fly".

[slothead]

Harry's comments got me thinking about scale, so I did a search for Indy car models. Yes, some are available in 1:24 scale, but not sure much that's current. But, many 2018 Indy cars are available as 1:18 and 1:64 die cast cars. My old eyes would have a hard time appreciating 1:64 cars, but 1:18th scale might be fun with such highly detailed replicas. Coming up with a universal chassis design would't be a problem but tires would probably have to be homemade.

in 1:18th scale and Indy track becomes 732 feet around and likely need 7 - 8 inch lane spacing. Too bad they tore down the Astro Dome.

[mattb]

An oval track always looks boring, but it is fun when a couple guys are racing and it's not so boring then. An Indy configuration in scale has 4 90 degree turns which would be tighter than 2 180-degree turns in the same space, making it a little harder to drive and more de-slots. Big problem is the infield area which would be extensive and hard to get to. For lower skilled drivers it is great, but more skilled guys probably enjoy a little more demanding track.

We run a 6 lane Tunkel oval and all the guys get around it pretty good and have fun. On my track, modified "8", which is not at all hard to drive, a few of them still have trouble with the flat curve and the elevation changes. Running the oval is much easier, but seems simple to a couple of us, off-on-off-on, no challenge.

[slothead]

arroldn - nice layout. I had a similar 4 lane setup years ago to get the biggest oval possible on a rectangular table. All the corners were at the ends of the table and easy to reach.

mattb - I was watching a bunch of Indy 500 videos and as the rubber builds up on the track the racing groove is easy to see. Drivers round off the 'square' corners as much as possible by hitting the corner apexes on the way in and out and sweeping out to the outer wall of the short chutes in between. While the layout made from plastic track would be turn-straight-turn and be tight in and out, a routed track could smooth that out quite a bit.

Did a bunch of math and here's what a 1:32 Indy Speedway would be sizewise: turns = 26.25' radii, long straights = 103', short chutes = 21', track width = 22" to 24". Overall size = 156' long and 74' wide.

The straights could be made from about 34 half sheets of mdf or whatever. Not sure how much material would be needed for corners.

156 ft long and only 2 ft wide racing surface shows how narrow the track is and why passing is difficult. Track record speed is 238.5 mph. Typically unrealistic scale speeds would actually be somewhat realistic on a true scale Indy track.

So, if someone has a location for the project I'm ready to volunteer for the build team. I have a roll of copper tape and some router bits to donate. If Harry will kick in with some slot burgers I think we can do this.

[mattb]

The easiest way to do this (I think) is to have 8-10 guys get together and bring their Carrera track. Rent a gym somewhere for a weekend and put together the biggest Oval your track will allow. You can play for awhile and see how you really like it and just have a fun weekend.

When you think about it, it would probably be that all the walking to put your car back on would make yo have second thoughts. I remember reading that the AMR Purple Mile ws the track all the kids wanted to race on at Playland. Guys that raced there said most of the newer kids spent half their rental time walking to get their car and put it back on.

playland.jpg

[slothead]

If driver's stations were in the middle of the front straight, and a deslot occurred at the middle of the back straight, it would require a driver to walk the equivalent of a full lap around the outside of the track to reset the car and return to his station - 460 ft. My doctor would love that, in fact he'd ask someone to knock my car off regularly.

A temporary setup on the floor of a gym would probably be the only way to actually do it, but no way to get 26 ft radius corners with plastic track. Maybe a combination of plastic straight tracks and routed corner sections. I'd like to drive on a track with sweeping 26 ft radius corners linked together by 21 ft short chutes.

What do you think it would cost to get Slot Mods to build the track?

[bill from nh]

I've done my share of 1/24 racing on an 85' commercial trioval. I found it to be very different than running on a road course. On most road courses you get to take a breath when on the straights. On the trioval you were required not only to race your car, but to be aware of what was happening in all the corners at the same time. In other words, your hands were always full. :D I enjoyed oval racing, but others didn't. After a few years, the trioval was replaced with a flat road track. My opinion on building an Indy track is go for it! It doesn't have to be scale.

In the "full glue" days, I had an AMR Purple Mile at my home raceway from 1969-75. I agree, that it was almost too large to run on. If your car deslotted on the backside of the track, it seemed like you had to walk 1/4 mi. to put it on & walk back. A driver needed a 3-man team to successfully race on it. One person to clean the braid with lighter fluid, a second to make sure glue was in the right areas, & a 3rd to maintain the car between heats. That track had good battery power, so I mainly used it to tune my cars for racing on kings & other shorter tracks. If I was testing alone, I would buy 15 min. of track time, choose lane color, & have my time held until I got my lane glued. Otherwise, I was using half my paid time to put glue down. :laughing-rolling:

[slothead]

I remember the glue days and racing on a big commercial track. Guys I knew would bring several cars and when one deslotted we'd start using another till the track was so clogged the crashed cars had to be cleared. Now I'd say lets hire a boy scout at $10 an hour to run around and marshal the track. This could become the slot car equivalent of a caddie.

bill - your comments correlate to what it must be like to drive at Indianapolis Speedway. A well handling car can run basically flat out all around the track, and when a driver does lift off the throttle he gets overtaken by others and loses a few positions till momentum is recovered. That might seem boring, but I don't know how going at 220+ mph flat out even allows a driver to take a breath. I don't think the stress of driving a race car under such conditions is full appreciated in the sports world.

[chrisguyw]