hey guys im a newbie, and recently dove back into afx slot cars due to some recent back surgery.i have spent the past 2 weeks bldg. the hardware for lap timer 2000. i choose to go with a serial db-9 connection so i could use my old windows 98se pc. but i ran into major issues and could not get the software onto the pc. had error message "service profile damaged,reinstall service profile", what a headache. also copied software from another pc but it wouldnt install. so, i purchased a usb to db9 adapter so i could use my xp based laptop or my vista based desktop, which both have lap timer software on them. but still no luck. i use the com 2 port, inverted lap switching logic, i have tried everything. i have tried both the rs flat type photo cells and the rs 276-145 bullet style transistors. for an easy project and to save some cash i am ready to explode! feel like just putting the track back in the attic.anyway, all help would be appreciated and at this point i will spend more cash to fix it right. thanks jeff stevens what a great website!

Hey Jeff-Welcome back to slotcars & Welcome to HT.Do a search on this topic.Theres plenty of threads on the issue.Good luck & post some pics of your layouts progress.:thumbsup:

I've been trying to figure this out myself for a coule of weeks, I put the whole serial port idea aside for now and went parallel port with Ultimate Racer and it works fantastic. If you get anything to work via serial port I'm more than interested in the solution, I have a nice desktop without a parallel port I'd like to use. Good luck

hey az thanks for the welcome and i too have dug a grave for the serial port idea. its 1 a.m. and got the software finally onto my old pc and have bench tested with the parallel port . shazaam! im in bussiness. cant wait till tommorrow hope i can sleep, im like a kid in a candy store. now i can start from the ground up and design my track. thanks again , jeff

I've been trying to figure this out myself for a coule of weeks, I put the whole serial port idea aside for now and went parallel port with Ultimate Racer and it works fantastic. If you get anything to work via serial port I'm more than interested in the solution, I have a nice desktop without a parallel port I'd like to use. Good luck

hey!i too have ur30.i would like to set up my track for a simple timer,but i dunno what hardware to use,and i dunno what a parallel port even looks like!!!any tips?

Hi, you can use reed switchs (ILS) detectors with UR3. It works fine for me.

I made a tutorial (in french, sorry) on our little ho board :

http://hoslotforum.free.fr/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=255


If you don't understand something, feel free to ask.

bye

hey!i too have ur30.i would like to set up my track for a simple timer,but i dunno what hardware to use,and i dunno what a parallel port even looks like!!!any tips?

I picked up some reeds from Newark, someone posted some part numbers on this thread
http://www.hobbytalk.com/bbs1/showthread.php?t=237547&highlight=newark
They pickup all the cars I have which include Auto World T-Jet 500's which I assume have the least amount of magnetic downforce.
As for the parallel port it's the long pink one
http://lh5.ggpht.com/_p_6ZWPWZpGc/SZG5SiaxcMI/AAAAAAAATsU/zovpWzfaVwo/s640/computer_back1.jpg

thanks guys,trying to grasp computer stuff for me is like trying to teach a cat to fetch!lol!

hey all. just wondering, i was planning to use the infra red leds that Greg Braun talks of on his site, RS part number 276-143, for abouve the photo cells. yet in one part of his site he says to use resistors. does anyone know if i need resistors for those leds if i use a 12vdc power pack?

No resistors just the LED's unless you use a game port then you need resistors to simulate another axis. Did you figure out the serial port issue or are you using a printer port? I never have gotten the serial port to work, been running the printer port flawlessly for a while now.

Im looking for a tining system. Ive seen way too many threads like this about the 2000 system. Should I stay away from it?

no, definatly use the lap timer 2000 or make one yourself. some of my slot car friends use it and it works great, with loads of features. also, thak you for the help with the resistors, and i too am using a printer port.

Can you set it up to rotate lanes? I mean will it follow a driver through sit outs and all the heats? This is the free version you can download at the website right? I'm just asking because we could only get it to count for each heat individually, as a race in itself, and couldn't run a race where you rotate through the lanes. We tried every setting, but we must be missing something, like the secret password, or handshake.

Rich

I don't think LT will run a race with lane rotations. Ultimate Racer has a tournament feature that will and it's also free.

ultimate racer is a great piece of software. On first test, it seems to be a lot more complex to use than other softwares, and 1/32 scale oriented.

But it's weel documented, and once you've configured it, everything is simple, and very "ho friendly" :

tomy and tyco track support
1/64 scale (for speed indcations, statistics) support
ILS (reed switch laptiming, used in tomy afx laptimers too) support "out of box".


There is some cool features too, for hoslot racing : you can trace your own track plan, so the software will be able to calculate scale speeds, for example, of make fine statistics.

Other cool feature : you can modify anything : race screen, lane colors (to respect legal h0 racing configurations, for example), indications (best lap, average speed, etc, etc...)

and it's got a superb database, for statistic fans of club season progress.


I tried laptimer 2000, but "out of box" I didn't achieve to make it work properly with my reedswitch parallel port assembly...