FLY Classics

[HomeRacingWorld]

About 20 years ago Fly classics were about all we had to Oooooo and Ahhhh over. Cantankerous, at best. They earned the bad reputation with the steeper price and lower quality running gear.

But we managed to have fun times. Countless hours with them. And that was when we had little to zero parts to tune with.

Today? Pffffffft. With a few clicks I can have all the slot car jewelry I need to fully rebuild a classic.

Will it outrun a Sideways or Slot.it? Hang with a shiny new Thunderslot? Likely not.

But they can sure haul the mail in their own class.

Just depends on what you are looking for in a slot car. If all out competition is all you care about, and you don’t really care what car your driving, then they just aren’t the top choice.

Still enjoy them from time to time. Yeah they cost a pretty penny and even more to tune. But there has always been that “something” about a Fly Classic that when you finally get it right...it’s about the most fun you can have.

[Fast Co.]

Well said Harry.

Fly Model Cars are, and always will be an important chapter in the history of this hobby. Many slotters, myself included, were lured back into the hobby during the late nineties by these little jewels which were far more life-like than anything else available at the time with beautifully tampo printed graphics, glossy paint, full detailed interiors and beautifully detailed wheels.

The cars made beautiful static models, but you never really knew what you were getting in terms of a racing slot car until you put it on the track.

The very first time I put a Fly car on track (an early Viper on what is now called Scalextric Classic track) the car immediately stopped short, it's epoxied magnet having fallen from the bottom of the chassis onto the track rails. Back then, I used to wonder why the cars couldn't at least have aluminum rear wheels that could be screwed to smooth axles. That was before Slot.It introduced their line of aftermarket parts, before motor pods, and years before Slot.It's first RTR car, the Audi R8C.

With all original parts and some minor tuning Fly cars can be made to run well. Especially the Classics which are all sidewinders. Today, with a slew of aftermarket parts available now including 3D chassis, these cars can be made to perform equally with more modern premium racing slot cars.

The question is "Do you want all of your slot cars to perform in exactly the same way?" Their 1:1 counterparts certainly did not.

[War Eagle River]

For the wino’s...

[War Eagle River]

10 set up and ready to race in our upcoming FLY Endurance Race. Now just have to run the snookers out of them to see which rises to the challenge.......stay tuned

[Audi1]

[slothead]

I thank Harry for explaining the reality of Fly cars to me when I started buying them for my Le Mans series and couldn't understand how a brand new car that I just paid $70 - $80 for (Electric Dreams) wouldn't even run a lap before needing work.

Now I have a bunch of Fly Classics and enjoy them as much, maybe more, than most other cars. It's kind of like going out to eat and the stunningly beautiful waitress totally botches your order and you apologize to her and follow her just a tad too log with your eyes as she walks away. The only difference is not getting kicked under the table by my wife.

[noddaz]

Ah yes, Fly cars. The slotcar line that taught people how to tune cars... :lol:

[War Eagle River]

“It's kind of like going out to eat and the stunningly beautiful waitress totally botches your order and you apologize to her and follow her just a tad too log with your eyes as she walks away. The only difference is not getting kicked under the table by my wife”

Now that’s just hilarious!! But true! Fly Classics are tops on my list of cars to race. So many models and liveries, awful hard to pick which one to zoom zoom! But rest assured, tomorrow morning when we kick off our Fly Classics Endurance Race, it will be epic!

[slothead]

War Eagle River - I'm looking forward to updates and photos from your endurance race. I have about half of the Fly Classics you showed, and have great fun with them. They dominate my Le Mans series, challenged only by some MRRC Chaparrals, a few Scalextrics (Ford GT40, Ferrari 330 P4, and a Chaparral 2F), and a lone Carrera 917K. The Fly Lola T70's, Ferrari 512's, and Porsche 917's are gorgeous cars and after initial work have been very reliable.

Have a great day of racing!

[Czar]

I think an over-arching question is: If Fly had never made slot cars, would there have been the slot car rennassaince we have enjoyed for the past 15 years? As I remember, the detail level of Fly cars is what spurred the likes of Scaley, Carrera and all the others to build scale model racing cars instead of the blobby cartoon cars they made previously.

[War Eagle River]