I recently acquired the Ninco Porsche 911 SC Martini rally car to run on a home N-Digital track. IMHO, all the cars in this particular series look great and, as I have learned, handle and run very well.
Converting most Ninco cars to N-Digital is very easy and this was no exception. The current N-Digital decoder chip comes with push-on terminals so installation was little more than removing the stock motor/guide leads (also push-on which was a pleasant surprise), pushing the chip's motor lead connectors onto the motor terminals and pressing the chip's guide lead eyelets into the guide. So, this particular N-Digital conversion is really not a hot conversation topic. What is interesting about this conversion is the light kit that I decided to install at the same time.
There is a new light kit available from a third party supplier made specifically for N-Digital. The kit itself is very simple and would probably be relatively easy to make for anyone with average electronics knowledge and soldering skill. However, it is priced very reasonably to the point where obtaining the correct LED's, resistors, plugs and spending the time to put everything together may not be more economical. The light kit is made to connect to the light terminals of the N-Digital decoder chip and comes with a detachable connector specifically for this purpose. The N-Digital chip's light terminals provide a constant regulated 12-13 VDC regardless of the position of the throttle. This precludes the need for a light circuit PCB, hence, the simplicity of the kit. Also, when a car's lights are connected to the chip they (all cars as a group) can be turned on and off from the N-Digital power base.
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Picture 2 below shows the installed N-Digital decoder chip sitting in the chassis. The light kit is installed in the body and plugged into the female connector, which is connected to the N-Digital chip terminals at the upper right of the red protective case.
Picture 2
The 911 SC Martini has headlight lenses that attach to the body with clear plastic mounting posts that are inserted into relatively large holes in the body's headlight housings. This allows significant light to shine through from the back of the lenses. Therefore, it was not necessary to drill holes or modify the body in any other way for the headlight installation. The LED's were simply placed up against the lens mounting posts and hot glued in place. Light leak from the headlights was minimized by applying electrical tape over the headlight areas. This also helped secure the light kit's wires. See Picture 3 below.
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I don't know if the taillight panel of the real Porsche 911 SC looks like this. But I don't care. I think that this looks cool -- even though my point-and-shoot camera and limited photographic skill don't do it justice.
So if you're an N-Digital user and you would like to add lights to any of your cars, this is a good way to go. It's simple, economical and takes advantage of the lights management/protection capability that is built into the N-Digial system without adding unnecessary electronics to the car.
by Michael Ashton
I like Scalextric cars but they are a challenge for me to get running well without the magnet on my Ninco N-Digital track. That's not surprising because they are designed for magnet racing, they have fixed front bushings which don't fare well on Ninco track, the unique design of the guide makes it difficult to install the decoder chip and the guide flag is quite short and thick. So, when I took the Pioneer Notchback Mustang out of its case and removed the body it seemed to have "Scalextric" written all over it. My fear was that its no-mag N-Digital performance would be similar to what I have experienced with Scalextric, Carrera and the front-motor Monogram cars. Well, I couldn't have been more wrong!
Here is what I did:
- Removed the magnet (I still can't use a compass while that magnet is within a quarter mile of my house! :-P).
- Removed the guide and entire wiring harness from the motor.
- Installed a Ninco ProRace suspension guide without the spring. This requires the Ninco guide post diameter to be reduced slightly by sanding with a narrow strip of very fine grit sandpaper. The HSR suspension guide could also be used here, however, the guide post is rather short for the Pioneer guide holder which prevents the retaining screw from being turned all the way in, which could place stress on the top of the screw hole in the post. The Mustang comes with an alternate guide with a deeper flag but I believe that both the Pioneer guide flags are too thick for the Ninco slot. In any event, the Ninco guide seems to traverse the bumps, undulations and other anomalies of the N-Digital track sections better than any other.
- Installed one of the older N-Digital decoder chips. All my older chips now have the micro plug system that I use for quick swapping (the light[s] connector is now the Molex type that comes with the N-Digital light kit). The internal setup of this can be seen in the earlier Seat Leon article.
I was able to fit the chip forward in the area of the Mustang's DPR chamber by removing the DPR cover. The white arrow in the first photo below shows the chip in position under the output connectors. The chip is completely wrapped in electrical tape to insure that none of the chip's components can come in contact with any metal part of the car or the track rails. It should be noted that this conversion will work equally well -- in fact probably easier -- with the new, smaller format N-Digital chip in the red case which will also allow for quick switching between analog and digital operation. Also, the smaller format N-Digital chip should allow the DPR cover to be left in place.
The chassis screws were backed off by about 3/4 turn. The screws that secure the chassis to the interior were left out. This allowed a small amount of float without affecting the ride height, which I like on this car.
The resulting performance was like nothing I expected. Instead of a ploughing, lumbering car it was nimble and smooth, although slightly tail happy. It is fast and has good handling characteristics in the turns and stays in the slot remarkably well. It's still breaking in so I have not recorded lap times but I can already tell that it runs only a few tenths behind the standard-chassis Ninco GTs. IMO that is exceptional no-mag performance -- especially on my N-Digital track. I can run this car with the same confidence that I run the Ninco GTs with. The more I run it, the more I like it.
In summary:
- There were no physical modifications required by this conversion. All stock parts are in tact, allowing the car to be returned to absolute stock condition at any time.
- This has reinforced my opinion that the Typhoon 18 K RPM motor is the choice for a FC-130 replacement bargain-price motor for [NC-5 class] performance in N-Digital 'amateur' throttle profile.
- If you're an N-Digital user and have not converted a Pioneer Mustang yet, don't wait any longer. The cars look great and with only minor tuning and a guide change the Mustang handles at least as well on the N-Digital track as anything similar in my stable. Now I'm really looking forward to the Pioneer 67/68 Camaro when it's available.
by Michael Ashton
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The Speed Light SCX motor adapter is used to mount an NC-5 size long can motor in an SCX 1/32 slot car that comes with a standard size RX-42/42B motor. Unless you use a NINCO NC-7 motor which has a longer motor shaft, you will need to use a Speed Light long pinion gear or axle collars to keep the rear axle centered. It is best to trim slots in the end of the SCX motor pod to provide clearance for the motor terminals. The price is $6.95. Here is the link to our store listing - Speed Light SCX motor adapter
