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Thread: Finally starting our track build

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Dec 2012
    Location
    Sullivan, WI
    Posts
    15

    Finally starting our track build

    Weve had the track home for a year now and have started assembly.
    The track is setup in the upstairs of our 30x90 pole barn in the 30x35 2nd floor hobby room

    Plans for the track
    Two 70 or 90 amp iota power supplies
    6 farad capacitor
    2 marine deep cycle batteries
    Lane direction switch at each station

    Still trying to decide on track lap software system

    The first picture is from the add on here
    Second picture is how it looks so far


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  2. #2
    Join Date
    Dec 2012
    Location
    Sullivan, WI
    Posts
    15
    Any input and or advise is greatly appreciated.
    Jon

    Sent from my GT-N8013 using Tapatalk 2

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Mar 2009
    Location
    Everett, Wa.
    Posts
    520
    Wow! Nice pole barn upstairs!!
    You'll get plenty of input soon from people with experience. If you check Mark H.'s thread he just recently did a very thorough Did well/Do different post about 2-4 days ago in the Track Builder forum.
    Guy Middleton
    Everything I was taught in Engineering school I had already learned from slot cars....

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Location
    Denton, Texas
    Posts
    198
    Good to see that track is still alive. It came to life in New Braunfels, Texas. Then went to Waxahachie, Texas. Lost track of it after that. One of the unique features of the track is that the outside gutter area at each turn is extra deep, affording the opportunity for an errant, de-slotted car to be far enough out of the way so as not to interfere with approaching traffic on the outside lane. There's no guarantee it won't interfere, but there's a lot more room than usually found on typical tracks. It was such a popular feature of the track, that the feature was built into a new Gerding flat track in Garland, Texas. They(Gerding) balked at first as it was an unusual request. But Kyle Stokes insisted on this feature for his new track in Garland and it came to be.

    Oh yeah, John and Gwen Myers of Texas built that track and deserve all the credit for that track and it's unique feature!

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Feb 2005
    Location
    Irvine, CA
    Posts
    327
    Nice space! Us SoCal guys are always so envious of anyone with space for a pole barn, or a basement for that matter!

    Enjoy!
    Dennis Samson

    Scratchbuilding is life
    Life is scratchbuilt

    Samson Classics

  6. #6
    Join Date
    May 2003
    Location
    Great Valley,NY
    Posts
    1,227
    Very nice. Have fun with it!

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Jan 2012
    Location
    DeSoto Mo
    Posts
    266
    JonC, I have Lap Master and really like it. Absolutely no problems, easy install on this refurbed $100 computer, it has a qualifying mode if that is important to you and many unique features. In our club most are running Trackmate with good function.
    As far as power you plan to run, it seems like you could weld with little power starvation. Why so much capacity? Two 90 amp PS, you can find them in the OWH store, and a 2 farad Cap per PS should be more than enough.

    Looking forward to watching your build.........
    Have a Great Day
    Mark

    "Racing is life........Everything else,,,,,,,,,, is just waiting" Steve McQueen in Le Mans

    "There are only two things in this world that make me feel alive. Racing is one of them." Mark H

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Location
    Denton, Texas
    Posts
    198
    CORRECTION: I've been informed that Kyle Stokes' track in Garland was built by Ogilvie, not Gerding; my apologies for the misinformation.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Dec 2012
    Location
    Sullivan, WI
    Posts
    15
    Thanks for the compliments on the building. The pole barn is back in the middle of the woods, no body would even know its there. If this track turns out good we plan to open up a club, there are about 6 friends and family members that raced at the local tracks years ago before they shut down.

    As for the power system I wanted to be sure that at the start of the race there would be no lag in power. I would like to be able to run/test any and all cars.

    Are you saying deep cycle batteries are no longer needed?
    I can source a 6 farad capacitor from a local car audio shop for under 75 bucks.

    I wil look into the trackmate and lap master systems.

    We want to be able to run a full race with qualifying and lane rotations.

    3 of the guys in our group are IT for local hospitals and have pitched in parts to build a computer.

    We have a power drop and conduit routed to the peak of the ceiling for 3 tvs to be hung in a triangle pattern for timing/race data.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Apr 2011
    Location
    Cleveland, TN
    Posts
    709
    Gp 12 and above really like battery power, especially the coms. Many places can't use batteries though and run strictly on power supplies and seem to do fine.
    Alan Ingram

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Dec 2012
    Location
    Sullivan, WI
    Posts
    15
    I will probably just run batteries, they wont hurt and in case of a power outage we can still race for a bit.

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Jan 2012
    Location
    DeSoto Mo
    Posts
    266
    If the power goes out I hope you have a bunch of windows for lighting.

    Batteries will give good service when maintained properly but will need replacement over time. Paul has the the Iota Power supply listed in the OWH store. One of the guys in my office, Electrical Engineer, told me that the Iota, Rivergate and ???? are made by the same company and sold to customers under different names as mentioned. These are basically RV or Electronic Equipment Power Supplies. He chose the Iota for his use and I have had no problems on my track.

    With the capacitor, a 6 Farad is a lot of power. Way more than the demand at stat should be. My understanding is the Cap serves two functions, provide power for surge so PS can catch up if needed and to filter out AC ripple. Others here may have better explanations.
    Have a Great Day
    Mark

    "Racing is life........Everything else,,,,,,,,,, is just waiting" Steve McQueen in Le Mans

    "There are only two things in this world that make me feel alive. Racing is one of them." Mark H

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Dec 2012
    Location
    Sullivan, WI
    Posts
    15
    Now that boat season is over here in Wisconsin we put in a full 8hrs yesterday and have made decent progress on the track. All thats left is a few braid sections to be repaired and wire the track.
    I still need to pick out track software and get a few power supplies ordered.


  14. #14
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Location
    Dirty Jerzey
    Posts
    130
    Lap Master is your best idea for track software, up todate and windows based... we have it at the club and it works awesome
    Jay Rogers
    Mic Byrd .....PowerPlants!!!!
    GARDEN STATE ISRA
    CRUSH GRAPHIXS...custom numbers and paint masks... just ask
    Balance By Bill Bugenis !!!!
    www.TheISraUsa.com

  15. #15
    Join Date
    Jan 2012
    Location
    DeSoto Mo
    Posts
    266
    I agree with Jerzey JayRo, Lap Master is very good. It is close to twice the price of TrackMate but has a few things within the software you may find interesting. Qualifying, Track Records, Race leader and others are on my list of likes. That said, our club primarily uses TrackMate and it has all the basic functions most would want. Lapmaster comes with a wireless remote. TrackMate requires an aftermarket piece you can find at ebay. For the cost I am surprised it just isn't included with TrackMate.
    Have a Great Day
    Mark

    "Racing is life........Everything else,,,,,,,,,, is just waiting" Steve McQueen in Le Mans

    "There are only two things in this world that make me feel alive. Racing is one of them." Mark H

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