Building our first (Blu)track
It's been quite a busy weekend, but still managed to get some work done (trackwise).
First of all, tried something with plexiglass for the transition, simply because i had some lying in the old shed. Didn't work exactly as i hoped for (thickness of glass creates too much of a bump in the road), so next try will be with aluminium (I'll take a look at your videos first Chevy).
As you can see, i had some fun with grass (not that kind) to make the track look a bit more exciting. Want to make some scenery for the transition too, but first it has to work properly.
And last but not least, tried to create a decent starting gate. Although it's made of leftovers, i'm pretty happy with the result (it works lol).
With some luck (and if the lady let's me) i can do some proper testing this sunday. Hopefully the results will show some consistency!
Oh yeah....I'm all about the diorama!!!
- Tobacco Road — LeagueofSpeed
- Never tried it before, but there's a first for everything. So far so good! — DDRacer
Looks awesome! What is your track timer running on? Arduino?
I think a solution would be to get a wooden dowel whose circumference/thickness would slide under the track where the two pieces of MDF meet aka the Drop and the runout.....and removing the plexiglass..
- Also, lighter tension on the wingnuts closer to the transition as well may help...or tighter? — LeagueofSpeed
- ....and I'd make thre strips with the wingnuts longer on the drop, so you could have a wingnuts for tension closer to the transition. — LeagueofSpeed
- You can put foam rubber under the transition to cushion it as well — 72_Chevy_C10
As requested a testmovie from a few years back with some Matchbox cars I had at hand. There has been two changes at the track since then: a lower starting point and a smoother transition. I'll try to upload some pics of them when it's build up again.
- Good recap of an older build...one of the better Blutrack things I've seen put together. Glad it worked out for your...certainly want to see a Today view. — redlinederby
- Great to see, thanks — CutRock_R_Marc_D
Great looking track, what have you done at the bottom of the ramp where it transitions, with regards to the MDF battening?
Kevblokey
- Hi Kevblokey, i'm really sorry for my very late answer. Things at home changed a lot due to COVID, so the track and forum weren't priority for a period of time. But here i am, ready to answer your question (lol)! First of all, thanks for the compliment. The answer: The transition has no battening! Because the battening hold the track in place everywhere, you can put tension on the track so it stays in place near the transition. Sometimes, when the blutrack is kept in the box for a longer period of time, the track bends a little in the middle. I normally use some ordinary transparant tape, to tape the small edges to the transition plate. Together with the tension, this will hold the track firmly in place. — DDRacer
- Hope this will still help you and if you need a picture, just send me a PM. — DDRacer
I didn't realize I was mentioned in this thread :) Yeah, if you look at my videos, you'll see that my hill is aluminum. It is a piece of .125" x 6" 6061 aluminum that is about 6' long.
The reason I use the aluminum is because it bends into a nice arch and gives, and gives a little as the cars go down the hill...making for a nice, smooth transition to the flat.
I really like the way the track reacts, but that's just my two cents :)