Hi all,I have two questions for you all. #1-I was wondering what the best brand of track is for a permanent home layout?The main thing I need is to be able to run AFX semi trucks on it.#2 What are the best box stock cars for home racing?I race full size cars and was needing a hobby for the long Missouri winters and I had a childhood flashback so here I am.Of all the slot boards I have visited this one is most helpfull and nice by far.Thanks in advance,Steve Arms

Hi Steve and welcome!

There's only two companies doing regular sectional track in any quantity, Lifelike and Tomy/AFX. Mattel/Tyco put sets out once in a while but seem to be leaning towards 1:43 scale these days. All three are fairly similar in the quality department.

AFX is your best bet. Best connections and also the widest variety of different shapes and lengths of track pieces. Extra AFX pieces are widely available from hobby shops and online. Lifelike has pretty good availability in hobby shops as well, (In my neck of the woods anyway) but they only produce 12 and 9 inch radius turns...not to say you can't do a good layout with only those two, but your layout options are limited.

Tyco/Mattel has a few different radii (sp?) but you'd currently have to look to Eb@y to buy some used. Maybe you can get a sweet deal. Many here have.

Your other options for HO scale are aftermarket tracks like Wizz track etc, but you have to wire your own power, plus they're a little pricey as a first set.

As far as cars go, everyone has a different opinion. The AFX sets come with wicked fast Gplus cars, but many, including myself, find these to go too fast to have any realism. Of the magnet cars, I like the Tyco 440x2. They don't seem to produce them anymore but they can be had on Eb@y and some of the online hobby shops. My faves are the Johnny Lightning XTractions, which are reproductions of the old MagnaTraction AFXs. They're fast too but don't have too much magnet downforce. You still have to finesse them a little. Anyway that's MY answer on cars, but be assured, everyone else will have an opinion too.

Thats all from me.

Hope this helps
Trev

PS Forgot to ask: WHat kind of 1:1 racing do you do?

Thanks for the help!Looks like I will go with AFX track.Also great info on cars.Looks like I have found a great slot car home here!My full size car is a dirt track car.I am gettin my feet wet with 4 cyl FWD cars until I get enough experience to move up.

Thanks for the help!Looks like I will go with AFX track.Also great info on cars.Looks like I have found a great slot car home here!My full size car is a dirt track car.I am gettin my feet wet with 4 cyl FWD cars until I get enough experience to move up.

Cool to hear it. There's a couple other 1:1 dirt racers here as well. What track do you run at? I'm not a racer myself, but I'm a pretty hardcore fan. Nothin wrong with 4 bangers. Many of our tracks around here have 4cyl classes and they're often the most entertaining division.

Anway, I'm sorta surprised I'm your only response. On the other hand, the traffic's pretty light here on weekends. If ya posted on Tuesday you'd probly have more responses.

Talk at ya later
Trev

I'm a Tyco runner, but am limited to a lot of my designs. If I were to hop back into it again I'd start with the Tomy/AFX stuff. Lots of curve options and pieces that can really vary the layout.

Hi Steve, I agree that the Tyco 440X2 is a really good choice for an all around out of the box runner. They are my fav.

Before you commit to AFX be sure you know what you really want. I think Trev is refering to the newer Tomy style track and the SG+ cars. Go to ebay and look for auctions for AFX and Tomy and look for track for sale. Sooner or later you will find pics that will show the two different connecting styles. AFX has little dog ears that break off. Tomy slides straight together. AFX made a Gplus car and Tomy made the SG+. Very different cars.

The company names can be confusing. The company started as Aurora. They made vibrators, then tjets, xlerator, speedsteer and so on. Pretty much everything that needed two screws to mount the body.

Change to AFX. Track changed and now the snap on body is introduced along with a new line of chassis. Non magnatraction, Magnatraction, gplus and more.

Next comes Tomy. This gets a little more murky because the AFX title is also on it. Another track change. The best of the line. Another chassis change. The Tomy Turbo and SG+ cars are only flavors of the month. Snap on mounting remains.

Then there is Racemasters that sell cars with packaging that say SRTAFX and also say Tomy on them. No new bodies until recently when the did the PT Cruiser. They did an improved Tomy Turbo chassis.

BSRT does an SG3 that really moves down the line.

Hope that's not too confusing.
Steve

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Before you commit to AFX be sure you know what you really want. I think Trev is refering to the newer Tomy style track and the SG+ cars.

Thats right. I'm only chiming in again because not too long ago I made an order for some 9 inch radius turns from my "guy" in Quebec, and actually ordered the wrong ones (old AFX...which they still had lots of too). Thankfully the guy was on the ball enough to see from my file what I'd bought previously, then called me back to confirm what I actually wanted.

SO be careful when buying aftermarket pieces. But if you buy new sets, its the Tomy AFX you'll get.

Check www.hoslotcarracing.com for a rundown on the best AFX sets and the contents of each. Most swear by the Super International 4 lane, followed closely by the 4 Way Split set. (Or one of each if you got the space and the $$...I think that's what MikeRacerX used for his layout in the "My track..so far" thread) Greg, the guy who runs the site, sells this stuff too.

By the way, if you go there, don't let his "how-tos" intimidate you. While all the info is good info, many of his steps could be classified as overkill. As a beginner, you don't need to worry about a lot of that stuff.

Trev

Steve.....

Welcome to the hobby and to the board.This is about without a doubt the best group of guys out there.I can't thank them enough for all of the help and info I have harvested here.Stop by the Wednsday chat too if you have the chance.

AS was already stated earlier,this is THE site for info:

http://www.hoslotcarracing.com/

Everyone likes different brands of track for different reasons.I just switched over to the Tomy AFX stuff on my new set up,and I am VERY VERY happy with it.I only had one or two slightly warped 15" straights out of the 70 or so I just used.It was easily resolved by flipping them over.

To get your feet wet,I suggest the Tomy Super International.I picked 3 of them up NIB for $109 on epay.If you want,I can find the sellers ID,they always have at least 3 up at a time.

I did a "test" track first before I took the plunge and dropped a few hundred bucks on the track I just built.I built and wired the "tuckaway" layout off of Greg Brauns site.I even made the laptimer he has there.I made about a million mistakes,but I wanted to see if I really wanted to get back into the hobby full bore before I laid out the big bucks.It was a great learning experience,and is helping me big time on what I am currently doing.SOmething to think about.

These guys ahead of me explained the different types of cars pretty well.Only thing that I would add is that variety is the spice of life.It's nice to have a few of everything because they are ALL good in their own ways.

Mike

Lots of good advice already, just thought I'd throw this out there.....

Couple of places with decent prices on sets, especially when on sale...
http://www.hobbypeople.net/
http://www.hobbylinc.com/index.htm

I really lucked out and got the "4 way split" and "super international" sets for $190 shipped from HobbyPeople when they had a 50% off sale last November or so....

Steve,
My experience racing the semis is that they don't like the wiggle track. Crossovers are no problem but stay away from the wiggle besides they will also impede your ability to make a 4 lane track if that's your desire.

Jerry

The best kind of track is the one you make your self. The best kind of car has to be Fly cars or GB track. Plastic tracks on a permanent layout (from my previous experiences) seems to slowly decay from years of racing you get a lot of nasty joins. you can get a wide selection of cars from www.scalexworld.com