Which Track would you recommend for me

[mithuth]

Hi guys. I have a slight dilemma. I have a nice heated garage to set up a track in. Warm winters and cool summers will make it nice for all season racing. My problem is not knowing which track would best fit my needs, as I know very little about them. Here is some of the factors to consider:

Space: I have an area about 8' x 15' to set up a track. (Unless I get bored and clean the garage. lol.)
Users: Currently there are about 6 people that would be racing on the track off and on. Usually 4 people are there at a time when I have "track days". Mostly it's just me and my son racing.
Storage: I can repack the track when not in use to keep it clean. Not really an issue.

Anyhow, that's all I can think of off the top of my head. I am debating between a Mini-96 and a Wide L. They both have pros and cons. I prefer a more technical track, but my son crashes into everything he sees. I want something fun AND challenging that will not discourage him from racing his car.

The Wide L seems kind of boring to me, 5 lefts and 1 right doesn't excite me. It does leave more room for errors though. The Mini-96 looks like it would teach us car control, but is way less forgiving.

So please take a moment to vote which track you guys think would fit my desires.
Thanks everyone, and comments are encouraged.

[arch2b]

mini96 with the expansion kit- a must for that many cars

[ruknd@aol.com]

Originally Posted by arch2b

mini96 with the expansion kit

ditto...best hop up I got

[bolter9]

definitely what Arch said. Check out my gallery, I have a similar amount of space in my garage (10x18)...you can get an idea of what you can do with a mini96 in that space.

Expansion kit will help take some of the frustration out of your laps until you get the hang of it, and help when you get 4 or 5 cars on the track.

[TNB]

In my opinion, the Mini Tile-96 is too narrow and too small for four racers, so you would need the expansion pack or at least another Mini-Tile 96 to help spread the cars out. Myself, I would save for three wide Ls (or ask one of those other racers to purchase a 1L) especially if you plan to run 6 cars at the same time and have room to store the track--in other words, park the car outside, clean out the garage, and flip the door open and extend the track outside if needed. Either way, enjoy whichever track option you purchase and have fun.

[briankstan]

I would clean the garage and go with 2 or 3 wide "L" tracks, I personally have three and love the versitility of them. I also like the wider lanes, and I think you will need it running 6 cars.

We typically run 6 to 8 cars on the wide "L" and you still have lots of traffic to deal with. that's my 2 cents.

Brian

[rkk]

Good place to start especially for your son. Plus if you get hot motors mini 96 seems tight to me.

[ct-mini]

I too was debating on which to get... It's all depends on your driving habits... Me, I like to go fast, so I ended up getting 2 L's... I'll probably add a 3rd one in the near future...

[saiyan]

The mini-96 would be $200 and with an expansion will run ya like $100 more roughly. The 3 wide Ls would cost ya $600. The lanes of the mini-96 are like 20" wide and would be 30" with an expansion pack. The wide L lanes are 40"wide i believe. For the amount of racin you would be doin with multiple cars i would probably go with the mini-96 with the expansion kit and gear down your son's car to slow him down some so that he can have increased reaction time, then you wouldn't have to clean out the garage. But if you think by having an indoor place to race will increase the likely hood of your buddies coming over you can get some really nice layuots with 3 wide Ls, but you would have to clean out your garage to fit it.

For me livin in a 2 story Townhome with no garage space is an issue. So i'm leaning towards getting a mini-96 with an expansion pack. If i move the kitchen table and chairs on to the patio then that gives me plenty of room in my dinning/familly room area wich is about 12'x17' plus i can dip into the living room and under the stairs. We also have a GTG here in Phoenix with about 5 other racers and occasional access to an airconditioned clubhouse, so the 3 wide Ls would be better for that. Indoors during the summer hear is practicly mandatory as it's still around 105* after the sun goes down.

Basically i'm in the same boat and don't know wich way to go either.

[imxlr8ed]

Gasman's Mini 96 works well, he's reconfigured a bunch of times too. He has an expansion pack also. It's cool to run some sections narrow on his, but he also has bought some clear plastic angles from Lowes to bond to the rails. They work to keep the cars from sticking into the rails, and getting sideways. (let's face it, not everyone can keep it off the rails.) It's easy to get around someone who's wrecked when the track is expanded, but pretty hard to do when the Mini is at it's stock width. But with these "guards" installed, you don't get caught into the foam rails. So, cattle chuting in a group of cars at high speed isn't as nasty. He's got some pics in his gallery on our site. He'll be back from his vacation in about 2 weeks if you want to inquire about the material he used.

[bolter9]

Just set up your mini 96/expansion so that the straights are 3 tiles wide (90cm)..that's plenty of width for 3-4 cars at full throttle- you're not going to be slow in the corners anyway, since RCP really doesn't have a "sweeper" turn.

[ruknd@aol.com]

Originally Posted by bolter9

Just set up your mini 96/expansion so that the straights are 3 tiles wide (90cm)..that's plenty of width for 3-4 cars at full throttle- you're not going to be slow in the corners anyway, since RCP really doesn't have a "sweeper" turn.

If you connect turns back to back in an s fashion (without a straight inbetween) you can get a 45 degree turn...not a sweeper but a nice high speed turn

[TNB]

Originally Posted by bolter9

Just set up your mini 96/expansion so that the straights are 3 tiles wide (90cm)..that's plenty of width for 3-4 cars at full throttle- you're not going to be slow in the corners anyway, since RCP really doesn't have a "sweeper" turn.

Did I miss something? Mituth wrote something about running 6 cars and having a son who crashes into everthing. A standard Mini-Tile uses about the same material as a 1L. Even if the straights were expanded on a Mini-Tile 96 to 90cm, it would cost an extra $100 which would put the cost much closer to owning 2Ls. In my opinion, purchase 2Ls and pursuade one of the other racers into purchasing a third L which can be added on during race time.

Don't you like my turns?
http://www2.mini-zracer.com/albums/album660/LL20_2.jpg
http://www2.mini-zracer.com/albums/album664/LW13.jpg

[ruknd@aol.com]

It seems that 2ls would be $400 while a 96 and expansion would be $300...certainly a big difference. His son crashes but he will learn soon enough how to drive well. The 96 jsut offers more layout options and allows easy alterations to get around obstacles. Its also easy to set up a small practice or test track with a mini 96. With lots of space and $600 4 wide Ls would be ideal but I think teh mini 96 is the best option. Also, a second expander can be added to widen it even more, or use 2 expanders in some spots and none in others.

[TNB]

I started on a LHS 4L RCP Track, then purchased a Mini-Tile 96, then I expanded the Mini-Tile, and then I got into the larger set ups. About all I have left to write on this topic is that I would like to see some videos of people running 6 Kyosho Mini-Zs with at least an X-Speed and 7T gearing all at the same time on a Mini-Tile 96. I may even turn up the sound just to hear all the crashing.