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Post by da big ragu on Jan 16, 2008 21:16:42 GMT -7
 i look all over the board and see all kinds of talk about size and scale feet ect... can anyone tell me what i need to know about a 1/4 mile vs 1/8 track in feet ect... also i get the idea that ho car scale is not all the same help!!! thanks to all for any help ragu 
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Post by nightrider on Jan 16, 2008 22:29:39 GMT -7
Ragu... 1/4 is 1320ft 1/8 mile is 660ft.. AFX is 1/64th scale.. tjet is around 1/72 most scale dragstrips are in the area of 17.260 ft in length.. with another additional length for staging before the start line.. and then the ever necassary shut down area ..
Chris
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Post by Deleted on Jan 17, 2008 7:22:44 GMT -7
The HO Drag Racers Association (www.HODRA.org) official length for a 1/4 mile scale drag track is 20 feet 7.5 inches. This does not include the staging or shutdown areas.
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Post by da big ragu on Jan 17, 2008 12:34:20 GMT -7
so the hodra 1/4 mile scale strip is 20+ most scale 1/4 mile strip is 17.260 + staging and shut down now i need to see how much room i really have!!! ???is there a big deal between afx and tjets scale in terms of who wins at the end thanks guys for the info. ragu 
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Post by nightrider on Jan 17, 2008 12:39:18 GMT -7
Ragu..
I would go with teh 20 foot 7.5 in.. as Walt stated...
Walt.. Thanks for the corrections.... for some reason the number I put up was in my head.. Should have sent him off to HODRA for the official numbers..
Chris
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Post by da big ragu on Jan 17, 2008 12:51:14 GMT -7
ok so 20feet7.5 in it is now to find the room  thanks again! ragu. 
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Post by allstarhr on Jan 17, 2008 19:08:05 GMT -7
The scale that H.O.D.R.A. uses is 1/64th scale or Hot Wheels scale and the 1/4 mile or 1320' divided by 64 is 20.625 feet or 20'-7.5". Anther scale used by some track owners is the HO train scale which is more along the lines of the origional Aurora scale of the vibrator and tjet cars at 1/87th scale or 1320' divided by 87 =14.517' or 14'-6.24" which is what psychoslots uses. Another group goes for the middle ground or half way between those two groups at 1/75th scale which works out to 17'-6". To any of these you would need to add about 9" behind the starting line and a proper shut down. If you use heavy wire in the shut down and short out the two wires in each lane to each other the cars will stop very quickly.
Take a look at hodragraceregistry.com to see the many different lengths, power supplies used along with the overall track lengths used by many different tracks. My personal track had to be short to fit into the room that I wanted it in. (I'm in Florida and wanted A/C) so it's only a 8'-9" timed 1/75th scale for a scale 1/8th mile track. We have a ball as I have kept the voltage low and therefore it's still a valid race where anyone can win.
Do we hit 100 real mph? No way. Do we have a lot of fun? Yes we do. Is it the only way? No way! Loved to have had more space but the older I get the less fun it is to walk to the other end of the track after each pair of cars. (Yeah, I know guys. I'm so lazy I build a return road into it so I don't have to even walk a scale 1/8th mile!)
Personally I've raced on 20-7" at 20 volts, 14'-3" at 24+ volts, 11'-6" at 13.8 volts, 15.18' at 13.8 volts and my 8'-9" at both 18 and 20 volts. Do I think one is better than the other? No. It's good, fair competition that's the draw. Not who goes quickest or fastest in my mind. I have to admit that I haven't seen the USDRA guys 17'-6" tracks at 26+volts with highly modified in-line cars going over 110 real mph. Must be awsume to watch. Don't want to get hit by one of those buggers though. And I wonder if they don't just become reaction time races as the differences in the cars must be vary little with the speed and quickness of both cars or else the guy with the significantly slower car would get depressed very quickly. That's when they don't come back.
I know as I ran a couple of 1:1 drag strips and the "track champion" in the slow or Sportsman classes always ran off the new guys after a few weeks. You can go to just about any drag strip in the country that bracket races and there will be 3 or 4 "heavy hitters" that everybody knows will be in the semi's and finals each week. Makes it very hard for the new guy to want to spend his time and money coming back each week to get his butt handed to him by these guys. He quits and goes fishing or autocrossing or ? It's why many drag strips are hanging up their bracket races this year. I just don't want the same thing to happen to me at my track. I don't have to win every time and don't want anyone else to either. Make it so it is competition with some skill involved but with enough "unknown" that a new guy can win. JM "very lengthly" O. (Some day I do want to race with the "fast guys" on a high voltage-fast track" and yes I know...they will kick my butt.) Hope you end up having as much fun as everybody I talk to is.
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Post by allstarhr on Jan 17, 2008 19:17:35 GMT -7
Having raced 1:1, having promoted 1:1 race tracks and later raced 1/24th scale drag cars and now HO drag races, I have to tell you. HO is fun!
No rainouts, no sunburn, no waiting for hours in the staging lanes for the track crew to clean up the 3rd oil down of the evening. No pushing the car back on the trailer because that last oil down was ME! No unexpected big bills for parts. No nail in the brand new slick. No one stealing my generator or tools while I was in the staging lanes. No PA speaker yelling in my ear ..or.. no track PA system that ...doesn't work when my class is called to the lanes.
Still competition, still good friends getting together for some laughs and fun. Yes..I do miss being pushed back in the seat and feeling the speed. But when I think of all the negitives I just listed above...I don't miss it that much. The red lights still hurt though. damn it...
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Post by da big ragu on Jan 17, 2008 19:18:27 GMT -7
yeah your right if it ain't no fun it ain't. thanks i will make it fun or at least try to again thanks ragu 
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Post by da big ragu on Jan 17, 2008 19:23:33 GMT -7
you are right about all of that but if i had dough ;D i would drag race!!! a big car it's in my blood ragu
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Post by allstarhr on Jan 17, 2008 19:29:40 GMT -7
Cool. Bet you do! By the way. I just realized I did say something not quite right. Even though we only run 8'-9" or 1/75th scale 1/8th mile at 18 volts. We still pay attention to who owns the track record in et and speed. We still go "wow" when someone breaks the track record. It really doesn't make any difference in my mind what the speed or et is as long as it's fair, even competition. It's why the guys that hold the NHRA E/FS National Record at 16.74 sec. is willing to spend so much time and money on it when my wife's Northstar V8, AWD SRX Caddy Crossover SUV will run high 14's totally stock. They are comparing apples to apples. They know that they are the best at the class they race in. I hope they are having fun. I am.
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Post by nightrider on Jan 17, 2008 20:09:28 GMT -7
I have had the high end H.O. Double wound , dewind.. minimal ohm motor, with rare earth traction magnets so strong they ripple the side wall on silifoam delrin mounted tires... so much bite it would tear up the crown gear at the line.. Ok,, so it was cool.. the money wrapped up in it was insane. Back then we hadn't built the timing system.. We had/have no idea who won... the cars were so fast ,, you couldn't see em.. 3ft of shutdown with tire glue added to the surface.. foam wedge stop box at the end of it.. still launched the car 20 ' into a parking lot through and open door.. ok,, so what is my point? Guess it would be ,,if you have the money to dump into it ,,the timing system, and decent competition as well as alot of area to run it... it's ok.. After all... everyone wants to fast like their 1:1 flopper or T/F driver..
With the availablity of information and parts for pancake motors, after experiencing the forementioned racing,, I think most slotheads today would rather have a car they can see go down the track with a cool hardbody that resembles a car they, a buddy , or someone they recognize had. Plus, if you can see em , you can get a sense of competition, instead of hitting a switch and watching for the win light..
I confess,,I like the 300+ top fuel and funny cars in 1:1,,but we can see them! Where a 110 mph H.O.. kinda difficult..
Bottom line for a hobby, Do what you makes you happy, then it is fun. You don't have to have a high dollar set up to have fun... nor do you have to have a high dollar inline motored car..
If you have read the 57 build oh this board. Sam and I have taken a baseline AW (entry level if you will) car, have set our own allowances on what we are modifiying.. this is fine for this situation, basically a streetrace situation..I strongly suggest if you are going to try to get some people together follow the rules of a Association in your area..
Hope some of this helps you..
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Post by SKR on Jan 17, 2008 22:14:31 GMT -7
Well said Allstar & Nightrider. Get a track and have fun. It doesn't matter if your track is spec for a certain organization. Get two lanes and a decent timing system. First one to the stripe without a foul, wins. I wouldn't get caught up in how fast you are or what records you have set nationally. It only matters in your club.
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Post by da big ragu on Jan 18, 2008 20:49:00 GMT -7
i have to say your right! guys. having fun is what it is all about. ragu
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thanks again! ragu. 
