Full review on 1/24 scale slot cars and their importance by racing driver

Racing driver reviews his 1/24 scale racing slot cars and explains the history and importance of a forgotten hobby to the world and education. Instagram @caseyputsch / caseyputsch

[@CaseyPutsch]

Whoa! Hello friends. Yeah... so this video got a bit long and I didn't realize it, but I think the information is valuable to young and old people looking for racing, engineering, and craftsmanship fun! I hope you enjoy some wholesome fun with the video today!

[@OnlyTheFinest125]

This was my childhood as well, the Crestwood mall. By the carousel. Guy had a track and everything. Every weekend my dad would take me. The best part about that place was if you won. You didn't have to pay a fee. I got so good that the man that owned the store would put on of his cars on the track and race me. 🏎️ Just to beat me and run my dad out of cash to leave... So I would retaliate and put my goals on knocking him off the track 😅 It was one of my Fondest Memories as a kid. Mine was a Mach 1 Mustang race car believe it was Trans Am series orange yellowish I can't quite remember the color but I really wish I never got rid of that car.

[@arc1105]

All good, your chat of excellence made the 44:12 video fly by in what felt like 1/24 time.

[@wimderix]

There is engineering in optimising anything!

[@oldschool6345]

Absolutely a video of the kit car slots would be appreciated. Thanks for sharing

[@burkey8037]

Great video 👍

[@billffromnh]

I've been racing slot cars since 1963 with a 1/24 scale AMT Turnpike. I've never raced HO, but have tried most other classes, including open class wing cars. Flexi cars were a great starting point for my children, who are now adults. Both my son & daughter raced them with me. I thought this video was very well done & gave a concise picture of 1/24 slot racing in a 44 minute capsule. Nice job!

[@Plasticmercenary]

I live 10 minutes from Nelson ledges raceway so I love hearing your stories because we are from the same area. Please do more on the vintage slot cars. I’d love to see your vintage model kit based slots.

[@johnosborne1009]

There is a new slot car track in Cortland. On RT 305

[@grantsnell6782]

Thanks for the walk down memory lane! About 55 years ago I had an after school job where I opened up and ran a slotcar centre until the owner came in after his regular job. I always felt that was the best after-school job a young guy could have! The building and repairing of slotcars was my first foray into engineering/mechanical work. Good original thinking getting your students involved, educational and fun at the same time!

[@scottyoder9471]

Awesome information for the young people out there ! Raced a few tracks in southern PA in the 80's while I was in High School, was a ton of fun building chassis and making them work ! Found another hobby shop about 2 yrs ago very close to me that has an oval and a huge king road course, and now after almost 30 yrs I'm back at it and sharing things that I know with the younger racers that come into the shop ! It's just as fun watching a young person come in just starting out and watching them get progressively faster as they learn the car and learn to drive them , as it is to push the limits of what I already know and make my own cars faster and learn more about new chassis of the day.

[@Slick7Raceway]

I currently own a slot car centre and have for 12 years. I have raced at all levels of competition in 1/24. My proudest moment is racing with my daughter for the best part of 4 years. She even became a national Champ in a class. Best motor sport anyone can do for all the reasons you listed and many more. Great video thank you from a hard core slot car guy.

[@aserta]

That is very cool. Bravo.

[@randall4411]

Please help this hobby Casey ! Keep showing the world how much enjoyment it offers . When I used to go to the big slot car racing place were they had around 10 tracks including a drag strip it was an magical experience .

[@FastSports-ScaleCarGarage]

Thank you for talking about Slot Cars!! Ross Brawn began his racing career and created his first company to produce parts and motors for slot cars!

[@muimasmacho]

Super cool video. I was heavy into slot cars in jr high school, in Anaheim, Calif. beginning around 1967. Hobby City. Best track ever! I started with cheetahs, and chapperels like everyone else, and quickly moved on to la cukeratcha (SP?), lotus, gt40, a dragster I built from scratch, and a homebuilt Little Red Wagon, which was everybodys's favorite. Eventually i engineered all my own cars, building them out of hobby brass, including actual suspension and front wheel steering/groove tracking. I even build one with a two speed transmission which shifted by centrifical force. I ran Mura race motors and experimented with rewinding the armatures with different gauge wiring and modifying the brush angle (timing) for best results. Races were held on the weekends and I held the top three positions with three different cars, depending on class categories, for 4 yrs straight. Not bad out of a field of about 60 serious contenders. And i was the youngest by a long shot! Unfortunately, the track eventually closed, and switched over to trains, which put them out of business tout de suit. Never found another track, so i ended up selling all my gear at a swap meet for pennies on the dollar. Wish i had kept them as keep sakes because that hobby led to my electronics career, before becoming an automatic transmission specialist. Best hobby ever for young boys! Thanks for putting up this video! Very special!

[@bobwestchevelle]

I lived in Anaheim and raced at Hobby City quite often, then moved to Lynwood and raced at Speed and Sport slot car track. I recently gave my youngest son, who is 31 now my original box from back in those days. I no longer do roundy round stuff but I do a lot of no bar drag racing here in SW Missouri.

[@kiltedgill3235]

When I was in 6th grade we had a slot car track in my home town. I had a paper route that funded my racing. I use to strap my box to the newspaper rack on the back of my bike, and go. I raced for about a year before they closed up. Box always was in the back of my closet. Then, 18 years later, I found on craigslist another local track. Got the items out, cleaned them up, and went racing. Did it for about 4 years, then kind of lost interest. Box has been under my model car work bench of about 3 years now. I'll get it back out sooner and later and go find another track.

[@kiltedgill3235]

I will say, it was much different being able to buy parts whenever I needed compared to back in 6th grade when I would tape up bodies people threw out, used tires and motors.

[@kiltedgill3235]

Thanks Casey, because of your video, my brother and I went and bought a 6 lane, 50' figure 8 track yesterday. LOL

[@RoqueHead]

I've got into proper slot car racing in April and I'm completely hooked to it. Been following you for a few weeks and seeing this video just got me really happy to know you're into it as well! I'm really into racing 1/32 scale plastic real car miniature ones for now and getting the hang of it. There's already so so many adjustments on the pro competition cars in 1/32 (brands like NSR, Slot It, Scaleauto) and I'm still getting the hang of it all, so feel 1/24 isn't attractive for me yet. But it is, as you say, a great starter for automotive engineering. The different chassis with different stiffness's, the ride heights, the front axle leverage for corners, the different tyre compounds, different wheel sizes, different gear ratios, suspension settings. It's a really awesome nerdy world. I'm in Portugal and the slot scene is a bit different in Europe compared to the US. But being 22, I can't find people my age doing it, and can only do it with guys above 40, which is a shame. Loved this video and hope you can share more about your Slots!

[@hellfire08]

I have fond memories of racing slot cars when I was like 10. I had a few wing cars too. They were super fast!

[@michaellawson7409]

Hey Casey! Thanks for taking the time to make the great slot car videos. You have inspired me to get a Red Imperial track going again we have stored at our house!

[@AtomicBabel]

Thank you once again Casey. Seeing this really bring back memories. This video and your video on used race cars really connected with me. A long time ago, I was doing well locally in Group 15 and building my own parimeter chassis with piano wire for Group 20. One guy saw what I was doing and offered to sell me his old Group 7 chassis without the motor for $10. At the next big race they encouraged me to race my 27 with the 7s. My qualifying time was dead last by a long way, but the encouragements kept coming. Then one of the old guys came over and said to go as fast as you dare but stay on the track! Something clicked, I found the groove and stayed on it as chaos and crashes consumed the rest of the field. Ended up winning my heat and taking 2nd for the cash, my cobbled together 27 against the best 7s in the northeast. A used and the slowest car triumph due to good preparation and the right mindset. Thank you Casey for bringing that back.

[@CaseyPutsch]

You got it!

[@niklnikl1]

You're a good man Casey. The world needs more people like you. Thank you for sharing your slot car experience with us.

[@slotcarmods]

Casey, you've done such a wonderful job explaining the benefits of slot car racing to young people and what they can learn by participating in this great hobby of ours, and I thank you for that... This is a video that should be shared and watched with the young people in our lives... Ron... Slot Car Mods Magazine #slotcarsforlife

[@MrPhil1969]

Casey, Thanks for the trip down amnesia lane. Growing up we spent our Saturday nights at the local race track and our Sundays at the slot car track. When racing season was over we would "winter" at the slot car track Saturday nights. I was the kid who saw George Barris as a hero and would build the most outrageous slot cars. I always had something on the track that didn't belong. Cars with hand built trailers, 18 wheelers, wheelie cars. Which also got me thrown off the track by the owners. Somewhere buried in my basement are my cars. At the high point I had 82 cars in my stable. I also had the traditional cars too. You are 100% correct that the hobby teaches so many lessons lost on today's youth. We still have an operational track close to me. I may have to blow off the cobwebs and take a spin. Thanks.

[@juanpablovillalpa906]

Gosh, this video was so nostalgic. I wish i could go back to the time when I’d spend hours going round the slot tracks I designed. I remember modding my slot cars, changing tires, sprockets etc. I still have a mad project i begun, bought a slot car from a dollar store and built it to some crazy contraption with a hugely overpowered engine. Man those were the days.

[@stevenplaskett7728]

I remember some lighter fluid on the contacts was like adding nitro to the motors they picked up crazy rpm ha ha

[@juanpablovillalpa906]

Steven Plaskett it really was

[@userrnamenotavailabl]

Hi Casey, thanks this video is making me want to get down to my local 1/24 track, haven't been there for years, but I'm pretty sure its still there. Love the enthusiasm.

[@userrnamenotavailabl]

Also just like to add, thank you for helping me feel a little less inferior about using my mind to engineer things rather than a computer!

[@gordon2zz778]

when i was a kid my dad bougth me a Bmw m3 GTR and thanks to that i found my favourite car of all times. We changed engines and the magnets and that helped me solidify my passion for cars and having awesome times with my dad

[@tomstclair961]

So true my friend! I had a huge track set up in our garage and the entire neighborhood was always at the house racing. Had a blast. My friend used to wind his own armatures for HO G plus cars. We couldn't touch him, and he wouldn't let the cat out of the bad on how many wraps he was using.. The copper wire was so fine that it was so hard to keep the coating from cracking and grounding out one field of the armature .. Lots and lots of great memories.. Was just looking at the new digital Carrera tracks the other day.. 62 yr old kid.. lol lol. Lots of fun and wrenching. . Thanks for the video 👍👍🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

[@blueroadsroll]

This is too cool. I did a little 1/24 and 1/32 racing, and also HO scale back in the 90s. Thanks for sharing this with us!

[@captainzero1]

I lived this and really enjoyed being reminded of the fun I always had racing HO gauge slot cars. Thanks for sharing.

[@williamstanfield1216]

Sitting at the bench winding motors.How many turns,what gauge wire,important decisions for a 10 year old.

[@barryrogoff6764]

Measuring the wires and cutting them to equal lengths make it easier to wind and balance the armature than counting turns.

[@originalfiremancancelled7303]

Yeah that would be cool to see some vintage ones I still have my Cox race car from the 60s I used to go to a place like you described the track was Giant

[@killemtoenjoythesilence]

Cool Casey! I've been racing 1/24th, 1/32nd and HO slots since the early 90s. I've still got tons of them. Everything from group 10 to open 7 in 24th. I collect 32nd cars currently. Probably have 300+ 32nd cars. I've also got a custom HO track in my den. Man I've got HO cars I've spent 200 bucks on. Ha ha ha. Some might say I have a problem. Glad to see someone else that appreciates them like I do. Keep slots alive!

[@killemtoenjoythesilence]

Thanks man. Nice to see a KZbinr that actually reads the comments.

[@barryobler9491]

Now you might take them to a track and do a short video comparing speed and lap times. It's a great hobby, unfortunately I moved from Southern California where there are still a few tracks, to a part of Arizona where there are no commercial tracks near me, so I have literally thousands of dollars worth of car, controllers and parts, not to mention cases and cases of lexan paint since I was painting for quite a few of the racers.

[@roberthill3207]

1/10 hard body rc crawlers everything about slot cars applys to r/c. Love slots and r/cs. Thumbs up stay awesome everyone.

[@cwsmith7366]

I too fell in love with slot cars in the 60's, starting with HO and quickly jumped to 1/24. I lived and breathed it for about 5 years or so. I had three big hobby shop about 3 miles away with a number of different track designs, including a 1/24 scale 1/4 mile drag strip that you could run up to 36 volts on, with scale speeds in the 600 MPH range for the rails, taking around one second to run the 55' distance. Frankly, I got tired of it when realism became passe and the little wedges were dominate. They were faster of course, but not my thing. I still have 4 period cars left, but sadly no place to run them. I was happy to find that realism is back in vogue with the current 1/32 cars that are so popular in Europe, with true scale copies of famous tracks around the world, endurance racing often with nighttime portions included, etc. Anyway, thanks for sharing, and yes, I would love to see some more of your cars!

[@amraceway]

We still race scale vintage cars. kzbin.info/www/bejne/lX2biXihj5yad7M

[@ne2i]

Carrera makes pretty good track

[@amraceway]

Excellent track that runs 1/32nd and 1/24th cars.

[@patrickbodine1300]

Standing in line, waiting for my chance to race my brass tube soldered car, listening to a new song by the 'Stones: Satisfaction. Fast forward to the '90s. Living in MS, racing in New Orleans on Friday nights, staying overnight, racing on Saturday, and then drive to Ocean Springs to race all day Sunday. Me, the wife, and my two high school kids all racing. Great times!😀👍

[@patrickbodine1300]

Yes, I still have my cars.🙋

[@JoshAintLoud]

Thank you for this video. Just got into slot cars. Bought a few parma flexis, a 30th anniversary flexi, scratch built chassis complete, and a few chassis as well as all parts to complete them. Started building my first chassis jig today. Already hooked on this hobby! Haven't hit a track yet for my first time ever. My say, I can't wait. Learned a lot from you today and I appreciate you greatly. Would love to see your other box of vintage slots. Thanks again and I'll be searching for more videos. Thanks again, GEEK. Lol Be safe and stay healthy.

[@stevenplaskett7728]

I found a old axf track set at a second hand store and it brought back great memories of hanging with my dad. I have a picture of us back in the 80s slot car racing. Show us some more slot car content Casey :)

[@stevenplaskett7728]

I bought it and plan on collecting some cars like the police car and maybe the dukes of hazard. My son is 6 and I don't see him very much but maybe we can do some racing in the future on the afx track like me and my dad did. He died last year so just pictures and memories now

[@alexberman8900]

All of your videos just make so much sense, I'm into RC cars and have some scalextrax but I think I'm going to build my own

[@paas624]

I use to run cars in the late 60s early 70s at Raceways in Metairie La. Great memories. Thank for the trip back

[@Acroposthion]

Talk about a flashback! I actually spent YEARS as a kid racing R/C cars, before “demoting myself” to slots - *TO gain that extra fractional edge!* I got in-and-out of R/C several times, and who knows, maybe I will sometime again. Last time I quit, realizing I could race ACTUAL CARS for what I was spending fielding a competitive 1/8 scale nitro rig. Not to mention the CONSUMABLES one blows through, racing ANY class at a high level....

[@Hosermike76]

There are still a half dozen or so commercial raceways in the Philadelphia / South Jersey area.

[@juliuscaesar8801]

I remember as a 5 year old watching from an outside window, the bigger kids playing at the hobby shop with these slot cars. I dreamed of playing with these things but never did. Fast forward am 54 young and getting younger with getting back into slot car hobby, RC car and trucks, kitting, drones....I’m having fun! Call me a grown up kid. This hobby needs to come back as the younger people and kids today are too hypnotized with the wrong electronics of cell phone. They don’t get to be creative with hobbies. I will be introducing my teenagers into the slot car world as I pick up more and more of this hobby. God bless you man for sharing....oh and bless you for sneezing...Gesundheit! Lol

[@OnlyTheFinest125]

Yes! I was hoping we could get a video of your childhood hobby!

[@CaseyPutsch]

If the video does well, maybe more to come!

[@4englishlies875]

Even I remember doing this as a kid ...wow have not thought about this in years. Thanks for a trip down memory lane Casey. Keep up the great work.

[@barryrogoff6764]

I was very much into slot racing in the '60s. Some of the things I see in this video I believe are factors that contributed its decline but aren't recognized as such. A major factor was cars that didn't look anything like real cars. They looked like blobs or wedges of cheese. Who cares whether a red blob goes around a track faster than a blue one? Another was the different voltages used at different tracks. The "standard" was 12 volts but there were tracks that used a lot more. I remember running on a track in New York City. On my first lap, my car went flying off the track the moment I touched my controller because they were pumping something like 25 volts into it. The high voltage made the crappy rental cars and the cheap, out-of-the-box cars seem incredibly fast - until you took them to a track that used 12 volts. Roughly ten years ago, I wandered into a local racetrack and started talking to the proprietor about what I used to do in high school, rewinding engines, using close-cell foam tires, and so forth. I actually thought about getting back into it until he told me that I was the last kind of customer he wanted there, that his business was entirely oriented around families with kids and rental cars. There were no races and no serious racers there. That business didn't last very long.

[@CaseyPutsch]

Sad

[@mikeazeka1753]

Cool flashback! I still have my 1\24 scale 60's, 70's and 90's slot cars. I learned how to design, fabricate, and test designs that paid off years later teaching high school robotics. The Classic MantaRay was a great old-school car, one of my first. I had a Chapparel with Pittman motor and custom chassis, a Cox magnesium viper, and eventually graduated to open wing cars with Koford EDM steel chassis. They could go 90 actual mph on high speed banked turn commercial tracks. Box stock 15 wing cars was great, cheap, and competitive! Years of racing, fabricating, tool making, and fun!

[@thisguy092]

I really like that you brought this video up. Slot cars have definitely paved the way for car geeks for many decades. They evolved to the RC cars and trucks we have today. Check out Kyosho Mini-z, DNano Slots, kyosho keeps a lot of the racing spirit alive with all generation of cars. They are expensive but, they are quality.

[@alanmuscat59]

Really great video would love to see your rest of your collection. Loving the video's keep it up.

[@MiHiHemi]

Slot cars fueled the fire for me as a kid as well as model building. Yep, one of those kids that had model airplanes hanging from strings on the ceiling.

[@davidherber4233]

Thanks for the awesome video Casey. Would really enjoy seeing your vintage cars too. I’m just getting back into the hobby after all these years. It would be great if you could recommend more info on beginning scratch building 1/24th scale cars, perhaps in an upcoming video. Many thanks

[@TOM-C.]

I had so much fun racing slot cars back in the early 70's. We had a local race track that pretty much filled the entire space of the shop. Unfortunately, by 1975, the shop close, and there was no track nearby so the slot cars sat, and I have no idea what I eventually did with them. I did have the brass bottomed car in my fleet, and I was surprised you mentioned it as none of the other kid's had that chassis. and I thought it unusual. I also had several motors, one faster than the last. I think the most expensive I had back then was about $40, and I remember saving up for it. Another thing I didn't see you mention, or maybe I missed it. We had this little bottle of goo we'd put on the tires for better traction. I've seen todays car enthusiasts use some kind of glue to get their tires to stick to the rollers when dynoing a full size car. Thanks for bring back memory lane, slot cars where a blast, and I'm happy to see them still alive, and kicking. On the flip side, what the heck are those new cars that seem to have no skill involved as they just go around the track so fast you can barely see them? Are these the ones with magnets? What are they about, seem interesting, but don't seem to be as fun as the old style? 👍✌🎄🎅

[@jamessheets9205]

This episode reminds me of my childhood. My best friend had a birthday party and he had a ho scale track and a bunch of old and newer cars. There was 7 or 8 of us and we all went thew the cars and picked one out. I found a chassis that was missing a couple of parts and got it running and put a gtp body on it. That thing would flat out run! Full throttle it stuck to the track and no one could beat it. Eventually the motor died but it was fun while it lasted. I saw an episode of American pickers where they bought some cable/tether cars. I looked into them a little . Those look like they would be a lot of fun.

[@barrettfanning6746]

I grew up in Tiffin in the early 70’s. We raced HO’s at the Bollinger’s hobby shop in downtown. 8 lane track and had great times. Now retired in Michigan and getting back into the hobby but with 1/24 and 1/32 scale. ProSlot manufacturers are just a couple minutes away. The have a nice track and are very helpful with folks getting into the sport.

[@aragotoblythe]

My daughter and I tune Carrera slot cars together. When she was 3 we start with basics, following instructions, painting, and counting the tires we need. The set we own has a speed governor built in so she won't get too excited and blow off the track. Now we're talking about how engines work, how her actions have a reaction, and how we can control the speed. Like all great playing the kids will have fun and not even know they're learning, and it's a toy that grows with them.

[@muimasmacho]

Remember the awsome smell of the wintergreen traction juice? And the ozone smell of the motors, followed by the varnish cooking off the amatures after a race? Or how about the MRC controllers that gave your thumb pacman elbow? And the welding gloves to protect your hands from the heat? Those were the very best of all days. Today's kids are growing up in a very different whirled.

[@danf321]

My slot car, when I was in grade school, was the Cox Chaparral. Great fun. Sadly I needed someone to drive me to the track, which came far a few between. Happily Electric Dreams is still in business, sells cars and tracks of all brands, sells parts AND has a track!👍👍.

[@msmrx57]

In the late 90's when there was still a track around here we ran a hard body class. Talk about having to be able to drive em. Somewhere I still have a few of my favorites including a 57 Vette wheel stander I built.

[@andreolivier1527]

Fantastic walk down memory lane. I remember so many of those parts and cars from the 60's when we raced. Thanks for great videos.

[@repetitivemotion]

I’m 61 and my dad used to take me to the slot car tracks when I was a kid. Great fun. We still have a track in Des Plaines, Illinois. I gotta go there tomorrow.

[@yobop6072]

I am 68yrs young, I was told many yrs ago, you have to slow down to go fast , still here in ohio, still got my stuff, great sport and hobby. This world did not get built sitting a rd a desk, many of us old gs have medical issues from our past work relationships, it's the sacrifice made for the futures. I've worked on cars, boats, planes, houses, you name it, I've probably touched it. We are creating a culture of people who will rely solely on machines to do work, leaving the majority of the folks usless, it's sad, thanks youngman, maybe we'll race somewhere sometime....rew

[@BobbyOfEarth]

Christmas 1964, I was 10 yrs old and I got an Eldon 1/32 slot car set w/4 bodies ..probably so I'd stop bugging my dad to go with him to the slot car track. It was a modified Safeway grocery store with four huge tracks ..and they had hotdogs. ..My friends dad made fixtures to silver soldered custom hand fabricated chassis and we'd ride our bikes down there to race our 1/24 cars. Man what memories..

[@slrrfan]

Thank you expanding the slot car world! There's a fantastic track in Lincoln Park Michigan (downriver speedway), and a bit of a side note, on November 30th, there is a reunion race, paying tribute to Larry Shinoda, and the slot cars that used his bodies (made using gm corporate funds, against the rules), which lead to the biggest upset in slot car racing history in 1967 when Shinoda and the Detroit racers absolutely destroyed the Russkit factory backed team (who would go anywhere else in the country and dominate). So yes, the guy who designed the c2 corvette raced slot cars on his evenings, and designed around 30 different bodies (open and closed wheel).

[@ggaub]

Great video. Very informative. I race all scales, but primarily 1/32. I'm sure you won't be surprised by the fact that everything you said about 1/24 is also being done in 1/64 and 1/32 scales, from poly shells to brass chassis, with and without traction magnets. I also prefer to remove the magnets, which tends to be the way serious slot car racing goes. It's the home/toy race sets that emphasize the magnets because it's easier for beginners to keep from crashing. Still, I know of some serious clubs that use magnets, and those really are on the razor's edge. Once you lose magnet traction, your car is toast. ;-)

[@TOM-C.]

I know this is an older vlog, but though i used to be into slot cars back in the early 70's, 1/24 scale, these new cars I see that go so fast they are a blur confuse me. Are these the magnet controlled ones? I suppose you can see them better in person, but following them on video is impossible, and there has to be something holding them down to the track which seems to make it a less skillful sport, and more about speed. Are my assumptions correct? Thanks for any reply explaining why, and how these newer style cars are so fast, and don't tend to fall off the track! 😁👍✌

[@ggaub]

@@TOM-C. The CRAZY fast ones often use special tires that work well on a track that has a slimy adhesive either all over it, or in the corners. On top of that, they are going fast enough for aerodynamics to actually play a significant role in the racing. They usually go so fast that they can still crash if you don't let up at the right time, but sometimes the cars are so stuck to the track that the drivers really are just holding the trigger down. That kind of racing is also VERY expensive, with motors that are designed to last only one race, and then requiring them to be rebuilt to be back up to racing condition again. A single motor can cost hundreds of dollars. I don't personally understand how that can be enjoyable, but it clearly is for some people. ;-)

[@TOM-C.]

@@ggaub Thanks for the tutorial as I had no idea what those cars were about other than pure speed. I was amazed when I first saw them as I knew the slot cars I raced were maybe 1/4 that fast at most. It did seem little skill was involved as they never seemed to slow down. The 1/24 gave, gives a more realistic driving experience for me, too fast, and your off the track! Like you said, to each his own. 👍🎄🎅

[@bravo0105]

A slot-car raceway opened up in my town and I fell in love with the wing-car bodies and the lightweight chassis. I skipped over the Flexi chassis as I didn’t want the weight penalty; the Flexi rentals I started out with couldn’t keep up with the old timers and their lightweight Group 20/27 monsters. Got a great deal on a new old-stock Slot Cars Dynamic chassis and it’s turned out to be a superb wing car. I also got JK and SlotIt RTR’s that were cheaper than buying individual components yet they’ve required rework and modification. It’s certainly been an education.

[@johnwakamatsu3391]

I started to play with slot cars in the 1960's and started to race them around 1974. The 1974 slot cars used brass, spring steel and piano wire construction with very small side air dams. The large air dams and spoiler were used in 1975. I started to race again in 1992 and the bodies did not look like cars and side air dams and spoiler kept the car on the track. The G7 wing cars of today use plated aluminum chassis, magnesium wheels, cobalt segmented motors, hollow armature shafts, very light bodies and cars can weigh under 40 grams. I have a friend whose slot car broke 4 seconds on a blue king track in the late 1960's and the current record is 1.28 seconds.

[@artjones2498]

i love them i have h/o scale and alot of track...i also have 1/24 scale1 mostly Parma chassis..i enjoy building the 1/24 scale cars....a friend had a shop years ago called lectric motor sports....had a drag strip...a giant road course track and a hill climb track....it was fun....sad day when hed had to close up...havent ran the big ones in 10yrs. but still set up the h/o track now and then....some time i run my early 60s aroura thunder jets.....you made my month when i saw this vid....thanks casey

[@CaseyPutsch]

You got it man!

[@altaloma7789]

The stamped aluminum chassis was probably a Russkit. They really revolutionized racing because the homebuilt brass tube chassis (soldered) had to be relatively heavy to take crashing. The Russkit chassis seemed to take crashing without the weight. At that point, though, most tracks were closing up, so it was too late, at least for the area where I lived. The sport continued on, but in areas far from where I lived. Eventually, I met another racer who showed me how different the technology went. In my time, we had to drive the cars. In his, it was all out - all the time. They were also using "amp sucker" motors that used huge gauge windings to pull every bit of power the track had to offer. Before that, we had to be careful to not go too radical on our windings to keep going even if an amp sucker car showed up in our race. Weird how it went. Glad it survived somewhere.

[@ronaldstevenson8024]

Just stumbled on to this. I am still racing in my game room. I run 132 on a permanent, 75 foot, fully landscaped Carrera track. Fell in love 8n late 60s. Raced last night. We live on the banks of Lake Erie in Lorain County, Ohio.

[@melmyrtle5765]

I was born in 83 got into rc with my father when I was 4 raced most of my life . I got into slotcar racing when I was around 8. I seen a local track and became hooked . I always just built what was in my head. When I moved away from that country I got out of slot cars as there was no track . I recently found a track locally that recently opened . They race one night a week in a spec class loads of fun. All of my friends who race rc have been getting into slotcar racing with there children. I love to let the young kids see how you can build something from total scratch and have it be faster than anything else out there. I was actually taking a break from winding resistors for the old Parma controls that are burnt up as they are pretty hard to get now . With modern Controller cost being over 200 bucks it's not as cost effective as it was. I've been building me a transistor box with potentiometers and switches to turn my old Parma turbo controls into something more like what the modern controls are digital controls were around 20 years ago but they were astronomically expensive. I'm all but positive I can easily put the things that you find on a modern digital control onto a resistor style control for that fact if I wanted to take the time I could probably design out a circuit board like they're using but I think there's a benefit to a resistor that people have lost.

[@ElPhantasamo]

My dad has some vintage slot cars from his youth in the 60's. I always thought they were cooler than the Tyco HO slot cars I got one Christmas in the 80's. Granted, they Tyco starter set became one HELL of a track later on. Now, one of my Dads friends is into 1/24 slot cars, and talk of a "Vintage league" has come up. One of my car buddies back in Michigan is going rally old school in using plastic model kits for slot cars (he started a facebook group "Full Detail Slot Cars"). Sadly, there aren't any tracks near me, otherwise I'd be doing this myself. Thanks for bring back so many happy memories Casey. I'm going to watch your next slot car video now.

[@raceoramahobbiesraceways602]

I have a slot car shop in Ohio

[@kingbillybob]

I had several cars in the 60's. There was a hobby shop in town that had 4 or 5 huge tracks. I used a MRC controller. I used to have tons of magazines on how to build custom, and re-winding the motors. I remember making them scream, and sometimes fly off the track they were going so fast.

[@ajpetrlak]

Axles - $0.30; New "Silastic' slicks $3.00; as I remember most of the motors were 'Mabuchi' motors. You would rewind the armature, and the commutator could be slightly offset from the armature plates. I even remember some 'skewing the armature plates' slightly, before you epoxied the windings and then balanced the armature. Allowance was always the problem and getting Mom to drive you across town to go to the track. I always wanted to build a car with an elevated wing that would actuate just like Jim Hall's Chaparral.

[@paulcarmi8130]

I would watch a weekly podcast with you in it sir. 44 minutes ain't long enough lol!

[@CaseyPutsch]

Maybe someday and thank you!

[@paulcarmi8130]

@@CaseyPutsch of course!

[@TheMdavis07]

Hey Casey super cool of you to show the other side of motorsports that is hidden to many. GRew up playing with 1/10 stadium truck. Learned alot about suspension geometry from it. Always wanted to get a slot car chassis but never got round to. Thank again really fun video

[@saxmusicmail]

Your box... memories. By the end of the '60's we were running microcell rubber tires so soft that they would develop flat spots just sitting on the tired for a hour or so, and be pretty bad in a day. So we stored the cars upside down in the box, setting them on the tires only to race.

[@youknoweverything7643]

And the way we setup rc cars is exact same as slot car setup as in setting body on chassis and durometer readings tire softness and hardness roll out and weights I have three different bodies for every tenth scale car I race to help with setup so I got the right body setup for the track condition on the carpet for that race day even though it's indoor carpet the track changes and weather plays a huge role in how the car handles and tracks traction levels

[@classicrecordings]

That’s a great box! I would love to see it in a bit more detail and how you built it.

[@_steffinwolf_]

My father used to be the motor winder (hot-rodding factory cans), for Team Guano and later Team Boola. He also played team chemists, coming up with what became “Boola Goop” for tire traction. I have some of his collection, as does my brother. We raced from about 1968 to 1971, then I stepped away from the sport. He and others on the teams, with whom we raced stayed at went Pro. A local track, Buena Park Raceway, still holds races. Since my dad passed we’ve lost touch with most of them. I know Gil Gunderson was Pro for years after. I reconnected with an old teammate, Fast Eddie, on FB, who has his own track in the basement of his house.

[@mcfast52]

I did some 1/24 scale slot car racing it was called a G20 it was a wing car, we had a big wooden track neer by it was around 119 feet long and 12 wide I was pretty fast and then I started to modify the car and once I figured what made it go fast I was the fastest and unbeaten, had a great time playing with all kinds of slot car.

[@JK-zq9vw]

In the 90’s I got into 1/24 scale drag racing. I loved it. For me, it was all about how much money you could drop into it. One of the guys working had a top speed record for a couple years. I would love a nice wide track road course with no guide grooves. I’ve been trying to do !/24 scale drifting inside my house because I spend a lot of time at home.

[@NYCBluesTRio]

I raced 1/24th scale as a kid in the 60s and I would love to see your vintage cars

[@biff85ta2]

I always wondered why a 1/12th scale pan car didn't work till you started pushing it. The aero grip vs mechanical grip makes perfect sense.

[@jjones1920]

I am into RC racing, but found a slot car track just down the road. It is at Apex Raceway right outside Nashville, TN. They have 2 different road tracks and a drag track. It is really cool.

[@BigDaddyCaveman1]

Learning to wind and gap the electric motors. setting the timing, balancing etc.. Understanding draw and amps, Power consumption.. I can see this giving a student a HUGE headstart on the future for when we all go Electric,

[@twizz420]

We used to buy 1/24 model car kits on sale and use the bodies and stuff on our cars and mix different parts... I never realized slots were really that popular. I only ever knew of one track, and nobody ever came there except me and my brother. They shut down after a couple years.

[@erikmodzelewski8405]

Another element of 1:24 slot cars that I'm into is drag racing. They have scale 1/4 mile and 1/8 mile tracks. The 1/4 mile strip is 75 feet long. It utilizes a full timing setup exactly like a full size drag strip. The cars travel that in 1 second flat at 50mph on average. Some of the ultralight cars with hand built motors and lexan bodies can do it in half that, at over 100mph! Most of the cars are on hand built chassis. There are a couple stamped steel chassis. Like the road course cars there are a lot of different types of chassis and ways to set them up. You can run a rigid car with or without wheelie bars, or a no-bar flex chassis (like the one you have with the hinge in the middle) The cool thing about the drag cars is that they don't crash like road course cars so you can build cars with extremely detailed bodies. Most guys run styrene plastic model kit bodies or resin bodies, often with engine details sticking out and full model kit interiors. I personally like to build funny cars with flip top bodies with full model kit chassis and engine mounted to the stainless steel chassis. This of course makes them heavier, but they still run 50 to 60mph. I have introduced my 2 daughters (6 and 4) to slot car racing and they really like it. My 6 year old is becoming a half way decent driver too.

[@raceoramahobbiesraceways602]

I own a slot car shop in Ohio with a 1/4 mile drag strip

[@chrismartin6544]

I got a little excited when I saw this posted thought you were going to show us some racing not that I didn’t appreciate your display but was hoping for some racing maybe at a later date 😎I do think it could be cooler than the hot wheels stuff

[@amraceway]

Here is some racing down under.kzbin.info/www/bejne/lX2biXihj5yad7M

[@bigbirddriver94]

This was a very cool video! I never did slot car racing as a kid (only rc for me) but know that my father did. My motivation for rc and slot cars has been reignited! With the resources available one should be easy enough to make. Please do the video on your vintage slot cars! My father and uncles all raced slot cars back in the 60's.

[@fc3sboy1]

1/10thscale rc car was my thing that got me into mechanics and ultimately fabrication. You mentioned the aero vers mechanical grip cross over. This is extremely apparent in 1/12th and 1/10th scale pan cars on carpet asphalt and concrete. You either had to be wide open or ultra slow. Especially with the smaller 1/12th. Also found the same on dirt oval. At slow speed they were almost uncontrollable but at high speed would handle amazing.

[@beachboardfan9544]

No track time!? What a tease! Gtp body is super sexy, but would love to see that wing car get some track time especially compared to a car that doesn't really have any aero...

[@arc1105]

🏁😎🏁 Love the tactile vibe of slot car racing compared to vid games. Great that you highlight the history of things that fuel the future. My friends and l used to combine our tracks to make monster circuits. We also put a little putty in the wheel hubs to help with the "down force" :) You are so right, wonderful learnings for Jr. Engineers. Who knew we were little geniuses in our garage. Shout out to all the pit crew Mom's and Dad's that sponsored us by supplying snacks. Speaking of engineers that don't drive, in regards to your Corvette steering wheel, where were the test drivers that are supposed to provide input into development? Hopefully your message and that Hot Wheels video of real cars accomplishing the loop on the iconic orange track sparks future interest in these creative joys of the past. Cool mini car case too! Thank you for sharing your enthusiasm in these fireside chats. Have you heard from the Grandfather and his grandkid, your gift was a heart hugging gesture. Happy day, driving your way!

[@simonfozzy8061]

I did pinewood derby when I was a wee lad. I'm 20 now, but I had no idea this existed. This video felt like it was 10:00 long I was so intrigued the entire time. Please break out the classic slot collection, I MUST KNOW MORE.

[@CaseyPutsch]

OK! More to come man!

[@raceoramahobbiesraceways602]

I own a slot car shop and have 20 yrs. in the hobby, if there is anything I can do to help let me know

[@CaseyPutsch]

@@raceoramahobbiesraceways602 Hey Karl, call me up! Let's do a video at your place.

[@themadscientest]

Pinewood Derby was why I got into the Scouts, I always made it on the podium and managed to finish my career with a second place finish at regionals, it was down to the thousandth and I blame the number sticker placement.

[@danlearned6199]

Deja Vu??? Tom Thumb Hobbys on Wilson Rd, Cols Ohio???? Wonder if this is the same place I remember?? A childhood pal n' I raced there almost every week ...51-52 yrs. ago!! This is back in the day when Russkit guys were kickin' butt, Auto World was the best source for modeling and slot cars n' the owner of AW, Oscar Koveloski was just getting into SCCA road racing. When he moved to semi pro, he sponsored a huge spaghetti dinner after the 1980 Can Am race at Riverside Raceway when I was working with Bill Tempero's Lola I recall there was a slot car track on Broad St. near Hague Ave and another in Hilliards with a drag strip track. Set the 'Way Back' machine, remember bronze oilite bearings, rewinding armatures, soldering brass tubing chassis. There is a huge facility in Orange Cty, Calif, 5 road race tracks, one drag strip with digital timing to the 0.000 sec. readout. So busy that Saturdays are practically standing room only!! Agreed...slot cars are a great hands on intro into basic DIY mechanics, and appreciation for set up and preparation. Thanks tons for the video and good memories!!! Now on west coast, former race fab, crew chief, military aircraft lead loftsman/tool designer.

[@billdaily1502]

Good stuff Casey, HO slot cars got me into cars, the Petty/Pearson set, I had no idea who they were, then while playing with the cars, the Daytona 500 came on...and there they were Petty and Pearson! Hooked.

[@nate7046]

This is definitely real cool, I haven’t got into slot cars but I race 1/10 Rc trucks witch have a unreal amount of tuning you need to do. You have the ability to change most the suspension geometry / dampening / spring rate. To aerodynamics and every thing in between.

[@southjerseysound7340]

I used to race in the 90's and my friend and I used to kill the old guys. It really helps your reaction time more than you think too. I actually know a lot of real drag racers that go to my local track in the off season to keep sharp and my track is owned by a guy that races full scale cars too. It really is a great hobby and taught me a lot and last but least is they are still one of the fastest accelerating things on the planet. The open class wing cars go 0-60+ in tenths of a second.

[@rts2468]

Please let us see the old slot cars, I use to do this when I was like 3-4 years old(1993-1994)[Bless you, Bless you]. Would love to see if you had what my grand father had. Appreciate it Casey!

[@cobalt8888]

Great video. Makes me want to go dust off my cars and get back after it. Used to be pretty deep into the hobby, but...life, track closed, kids...the usual stuff. I know there’s a track a couple hours away from me. Might just have to take a day trip sometime soon. Thanks!

[@modelracecar]

I raced RC cars 40 years, 1/10th rock crawlers were the best challenge, 1/12th pan cars the closest racing, 1/10th offroad the most adjustable, 1/10th RC Drifting the most outrageous but in 2015 went to the local Slot Car Club and I haven't raced RC cars since. Slot Rally is my favourite and look forward to another few decades of building, modifying, tuning and of course racing.

[@billymanilli]

Slot car racing is SO MUCH fun!! Trouble is (in my area of NJ, anyway), EVERY time a new place opens up to race them, it goes out of business within 2 years or less. :( Last time we had a track nearby, I brought some of my old "flexi" cars, a friend, and my daughter to try the new place. Of course, I got bit by "the bug" (again) and eventually ended up with some really sick, EXPENSIVE, 1/24 "wing cars"... Expensive Koford chassis', lightweight bodies, lightweight rear wheels (with all the holes drilled in them) "cobalt" motors, etc... A few of them were REALLY "trick"... even used "solid core wire" running down the frames with insulation stripped off, to save weight. ...oh yeah, also bought the EXPENSIVE controllers with the circuit boards sticking out of the top with the dials on them, and "blast relays"... I have that "problem", where almost everything I do, ends up going full-tilt. lol Lastly, they added a drag strip there, and I decided to try that. Bought all the parts to build a drag chassis, a motor & wheels... I made it a "hardbody" Fox Mustang notchback, and after spending 2 months or so at night after work building it, I finally took it to the slot car track, went to pull the door open, and it was locked... I peeked inside and almost everything was GONE!! :( What a bummer. I gave up and sold just about all of them after that... I do have my drag car still, a Cobalt 12 wing car, and really nice grp 27 wing car... Just couldn't part with those ones for some reason! Now they sit on my shelf as displays.

[@blackvic5157]

When you told that story about Pops and his grandson visiting the track, I could see it coming. The deal you made was you through and through, Casey. I hope I get to meet you some day.

[@doug960]

God, I logged HOURS on my dad's old Revell Hi-Bank track when I was a kid. So many good memories. He's got a couple cool ones including a corvette Sting Ray from the late 60s. That track is still around, but it's really crusty and brittle now.

[@revengefullobster4524]

I had HO racing sets (and trains as well) when I was a kid. I used to get the older cars because they ddn't have the magnets to stick them to the track. Once I actually started working, I started building and racing RC cars, which is simialr to the 1/24 slot cars. I'm thinking about getting back into slot cars, though i don't think I have the space for the larger scale.

[@ryurc3033]

Me and my son have been experimenting with aero on 1/10 scale on road RC cars. Brushless, can gear up and do 70. Same thing. Tuning, go faster. But off road 1/10 trail trucks give us shock building. We spend hours together" playing " in some people's mind. But i see what we are building up to.

[@ridermak4111]

I had an HO track in the ’60’s but never jumped into the big boys. I do remember seeing the wing cars for the first time on a very big 8 or 10 lane track. 😳 The downforce was so great it looked to me like they never lifted from WFO. My eyes couldn’t even lock on to a single car. They were lapping this huge track in what seemed like a couple seconds. Oooookay......now I understand aero downforce. Off to the side of that giant track, against a long wall, was a very genuine looking NHRA drag strip. Just beyond the finish line was a “catchers mitt” chamber of chunks of super-soft foam to stop the top fuelers and funny cars. Soooo quick I don’t think a hamster would have survived the g-forces. All about reaction time. I was amazed that the cars survived the foam box.