Toys...

[n4gix 4,979]

Speaking of expensive toys (such as Estes rockets!), did anyone else here get into the slot car hobby?  I'm speaking of the "professional" slot car businesses where you take your slot car and race it around their huge tracks.

You would build your basic car from the parts the business carried in stock $$$, then spend a bunch more $$$ buying custom tires, motors, gearing, and so on.

 

[charliearon 3,143]

No professional slot-car tracks, but my buddy and I had a huge Aurora Slot-car track setup in his garage!

 

[n4gix 4,979]

14 minutes ago, charliearon said:

No professional slot-car tracks, but my buddy and I had a huge Aurora Slot-car track setup in his garage!

Nice track! By "professional" I mean places such as in the video I linked where someone had rented a large space and then invested a TON of their money into the place. 

The one I went to in Arlington, VA back in the very early sixties was less than a mile from our house, so my friends and I spent many hours there. Until I just looked, I had thought most (if not all) of them had gone belly-up. 

[charliearon 3,143]

We had a hobby shop near by that setup a 4 lane track and rented time to race the cars you bought from them.  We finally bought our own set and then bought their used track to add to ours.  We had street lights to race around in the dark.

[birdguy 3,994]

We still have a model railroad club out at the fair grounds.  Magnificent layout.  But it will retire when the youngest  members becomes the oldest members.  I was out there a couple years ago but there were no junior members.  

Everything is on computer now.

Noel

[Mike A 357]

3 hours ago, n4gix said:

Speaking of expensive toys (such as Estes rockets!), did anyone else here get into the slot car hobby?  I'm speaking of the "professional" slot car businesses where you take your slot car and race it around their huge tracks.

Oh, YES!!! There was a slot car track in the 1960s at Playland at the Beach in San Francisco.  What great memories!

Check out this thread with some pictures:

https://www.hrwforum.com/forum/hrw-all-scales/vintage-slot-cars/24134-san-francisco-playland-at-the-beach-slot-car-tracks

In this next thread, check out the 2nd picture, just under the picture of the outside of the building.  This is the purple track, which was the biggest one there. To the right you see a black track w/2 slots that's supported by a bunch of arches.  That track was for drag racing. You can see that at the top of that track that they placed a pile of very soft & thin material, like a curtain, that would catch & stop the cars without damaging them:

http://slotblog.net/topic/93948-american-raceway-tracks-vintage-color-pic/page-2

That was a lot of fun. I had a Batmobile slot car, was even able to find it now on eBay:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/113795323103?hash=item1a7ebad4df:g:3yUAAOSwsltgUYSz

HOLY CRAZY INFLATIONARY MADNESS, BATMAN!  THEY’RE ASKING ALMOST 100 TIMES WHAT IT ORIGINALLY COST!!! 😂

Edited July 26, 2021 by Mike A