NINCO Plastic Angle Winder Gear Set Pinion Replacement

By Michael Ashton

I am a fan of the red plastic angle winder gear set that NINCO has used in the Sport line of slot cars for ages. I have at least a dozen NINCO GT cars that use this gear set and they are all fast running, good handling cars — among my favorites. These gears can be somewhat noisy at first, however, they break in relatively quickly and eventually become smooth and quiet.

There is one downside to these gears that I am not a fan of: the pinions tend to develop stress cracks. This happens most often over time although I have had several cars that came this way out-of-the-box. When the pinion develops this type of crack it is unmistakable. Gear mesh sounds terrible and the negative impact on performance is quite obvious. I would estimate that this has happened to least 25% of the cars that I have with this gear set. The following photos show how the crack usually appears. They are barely visible to the naked eye, however, the effect is fatal to the car's operation. The white arrows in the two photos below highlight the location of the crack.

Once this happens the pinion cannot be repaired and must be replaced. Unfortunately, the pinion is not available as a separate part. So, the only way to obtain a replacement pinion is to purchase the entire axle set and use the pinion from the set.

The NINCO red plastic angle winder gear set is not expensive. And if you have a use for the spur gear axle assembly and/or the second axle and bushing that come with the set, then buying the entire set is probably worthwhile. If not, then the extra parts are just wasted. In this case there is another option available: the NINCO #80249 ProRace V.03 pinion. This is a brass pinion that is held in place by two set screws, which make it very easy to install and adjust. The cost is slightly less than the complete axle set. In my experience, when adjusted correctly, the ProRace pinion meshes perfectly with the red plastic spur gear. The advantages of the ProRace pinion are no wasted parts and you are never going to see a crack in this pinion.

The original plastic pinion is a 12 tooth, therefore, a 12 tooth ProRace pinion is selected for replacement in order to maintain the same gear ratio. If a change in gear ratio is desired then a ProRace pinion with 11 or 13 teeth may be substituted.

Now, for those who have never taken the body off a slot car before, it must be noted that there are a couple of tools that are needed to perform this type of repair. These are tools that I believe are among those that represent an absolute minimum requirement for anyone who plans on performing even the most basic slot car maintenance, repair or tuning. They are: a gear press/puller for installing and removing press-on type drive train gears; and a 0.9 mm hex driver for the M2 set screws that are used to secure set screw type drive train gears and wheels in a wide range of slot cars.

There are many available from a number of manufacturers with a wide range of prices. Good quality versions are not expensive and they all perform the same basic functions.

The first step is to remove the defective pinion from the motor shaft. To do this properly, the motor must be removed from the chassis. When removing a motor, I always pop the rear axle assembly out first in order to avoid any damage to the motor shaft during motor removal. If you are fortunate, the crack will have compromised the plastic pinion structure to the point where the pinion can be pulled off the motor shaft by hand. If not, the gear puller must be used.

The following photo shows the orientation of the motor shaft in the puller section of the tool. The motor shaft is placed in the slot between the pinion and the motor's can. The shaft at the end of the threaded turn bolt fits inside the hole at the end of the pinion, contacting the end of the motor shaft. The bolt handle is then turned clockwise, forcing the motor shaft down and out of the pinion hole.

Eventually, the pinion will separate from the motor shaft. It may be necessary to pry the pinion off the turn bolt shaft with a screwdriver blade or by backing the bolt all the way out to the top of the tool.

When installing a set screw type of pinion on a motor shaft I find it best to first reinstall the motor without the pinion and before reinstalling the rear axle.

Insert both set screws into the pinion with a few turns, then slide the pinion onto the shaft, approximating its position where it will contact the spur gear. Tighten one of the set screws so it is just snug.

Now reinstall the rear axle.

There are a number of documented tricks that are used to obtain optimum gear mesh in an angle winder set up. For example, placing a slip of thin paper between the pinion and spur gears, adjusting the gears for a tight fit, then removing the paper. I have always obtained good results through trial and error, feeling the mesh as I go.

Using the 0.9 mm hex driver, loosen the set screw that was previously tightened and move the pinion slightly on the motor shaft until the faces of the two gears' teeth are centered. Tighten the one set screw, then turn the wheels in the forward direction feeling and listening to the mesh. You are looking for a smooth feeling with no binding or skipping. Repeat the process, moving the pinion in or out by a small amount each time, checking that the set screws do not make contact with any part of the chassis, until the smoothest feeling of the mesh is obtained. Tighten both set screws.

Next, lubricate the pinion teeth with some plastic-safe grease and run some laps. Listen to the gears and check lap times. If the mesh does not seem smooth in the running car or the car is noticeably under performing, repeat the previous adjustment process until the best performance is achieved.

The new gear combination will require some time to break in. But if the installation and adjustments are preformed correctly, the car's performance should return to the identical level prior to the demise of the plastic pinion.

__Michael Ashton

FLYSLOT Porsche 917 LH Slot Car

By Michael Ashton

One of the numerous cars that I have gazed at longingly over the past few years is the FLY Classic Porsche 917 LH. But like many of the cars on my virtual wish list, they are simply beyond my price tolerance limit. Do a quick search on the on-line auction sites and you will see what I mean. So, when I saw that FLYSLOT (the reincarnation of the now defunct FLY company) has reissued some of the FLY Classics at a very affordable price point, just like Chief Dan George in the movie Little Big Man, "My heart soared like a hawk!".

The FLYSLOT releases of these venerable classics are referred to as the Alpha series. And they differ from their forebears in some significant ways:

• A chassis with in-line drive train replaces the familiar side-winder set up.
• The detailed interior of the Classics departs for a lightweight, shallow "half" tray.
• Exterior detail is reduced slightly.

The big question is, for me anyway, does a commensurate reduction in quality and performance accompany the new lower price?

THE 1:1 CAR

The #18 Porsche 917 LH was entered in the 1971 24 Hours of Le Mans by the JWA (John Wyer) Gulf Team and driven by Pedro Rodriguez of Mexico and Jackie Oliver of England. Rodriguez captured the pole position and the team lead the race for the first eleven hours before being forced to retire due to mechanical problems (oil pressure). But in spite of not finishing the race, the #18 car has some notable distinction. The qualifying time of 3'13.9" that secured the pole position remains to this day, the fastest qualifying lap time ever recorded at the Le Mans circuit—track modifications notwithstanding. And the car's average speed of 222.304 km/h (138 mph) through its eleven hours of active competition was a record that stood until 2010, when it was finally eclipsed by the Audi R15 TDI Plus.

THE MODEL
   

The eight photos that follow show various views of the FLYSLOT Porsche 917 LH #18 exterior. It is identical to the FLY Classic version of the car with a few exceptions, which will be noted further on in the review. The model deviates from the 1:1 car most notably in the nose area and in the shape and position of the headlights, as did its FLY Classic predecessor. This has been an issue for the CSE (critical scale enthusiast) in the past. Apart from those areas, scale accuracy seems reasonable, certainly good enough for me.

The FLY Classic version (shown inset in the above photo) has an additional Gulf logo on the inside of the tail fins, as did the 1:1 car. It also has the Firestone logo text on the tires and painted silver hubcap detail on the wheels.

One area of curiosity is the headlights. The black headlight housings are very similar to the FLY Classic cars, but unlike the FLY Classics, the FLYSLOT model does not have headlight lenses. I have seen photos of the FLYSLOT 917 LH on the Internet that do have headlight lenses and others that do not. The ones with lenses could have been promotional prior to actual product release. So, right now I'm not sure if this is a cost cutting measure or they were forgotten during product assembly. Note that the driver-side headlight assembly sits lower than the opposite one. This is because the two housings are attached to each end of a plastic "bar" that is, in turn, attached to the body. The driver-side end of the bar is bent downward slightly causing that housing to be lower. This is easily correctable.

Fit and finish, apart from the issues previously noted, are basically good. The paint and Tampo printing are quite good, with an excellent deep, clear finish with no noticeable sign of bleed through or ragged edges. There was flashing in just about every vent opening and along many body edges. This is most noticeable in the front view photo above. I have to say that this is a quality control issue, although it is completely correctable.

The interior is a shallow "half" tray type with minimal detail. The entire interior is black with the sole exception of the driver's head. This seems to be a more common approach now even in more expensive high-end slot cars. The prevailing justification for their use is to reduce weight in the name of performance, however, there is no doubt that they also reduce cost.

 

MECHANICAL

 

The following two photos show what is certainly the most significant difference between the FLYSLOT Alpha and FLY Classic cars: the chassis. The FLY Classics used a two-piece chassis which separated the side-winder drive train from the front axle and guide (I hesitate to call the rear half a pod). I for one was never able to discern any obvious benefit from this. The FLY Classics also used stub front axles, which usually exhibited significant off-axis play.

The FLYSLOT Alpha chassis is a simpler design with an in-line drive train. Gearing consists of a 9 tooth plastic pinion driving a 27 tooth crown. The front axle is now a single, solid type, spinning inside closed loop axle holders which allow several millimeters of vertical movement. The rear axle bushings are plastic. The bushings in this particular car were very tight. To the point where the axle was binding and did not spin freely. Rather than attempt to replace the bushings, I decided to lubricate them generously and allow them to break in. This seems to be working as the axle now spins much more freely. I wonder if this was a mistake in bushing selection or a clever approach to providing bushings with minimal play. Time will tell.

The motor leads are routed neatly and securely underneath the front axle through two thoughtfully placed guide loops terminating in what appears to be the standard guide assembly that FLY/FLYSLOT has used for years. Braids are the relatively stiff copper kind found on most mid-priced slot cars. The Mabuchi-type FC130 motor in bell-end drive configuration looks identical to the black end bell motor used in some past FLY models, however, lack of any external identification makes it impossible to tell with certainty.

A bar magnet that appears to be slightly weaker than that of the FLY Classic models is securely installed in a chamber just behind the motor. The magnet can be moved to another chamber in front of the motor in order to allow some drifting of the rear end. Or, a second magnet could also be installed in the forward chamber.

If I remember correctly, all my FLY Classics exhibited chassis warp to some degree. The chassis on this car is perfectly flat.

One characteristic of this chassis that may present an issue for some is the integrally molded spare tire at the rear (see above). The tire rests above the underside of the body's rear deck and actually makes contact with the body. This tends to preclude the ability to set the body to float — at least in the rear. I loosened the rear body screws as much as I dared and was able to obtain only minimal body float. As of now I don't know how much improvement in performance more body float would provide, especially in no-mag running.

The wheels appear round with minimal flashing and show no sign of wobble. The rear tires are round and true but one of the front tires has some minor shape issues. The tires could all benefit from some truing but that has not been an issue for me in the past because NINCO track tends to take care of that for me.

PERFORMANCE

First, the steps for basic N-Digital conversion and operation were performed:

- Instead of removing the magnet, it was moved to the forward magnet holder.

- Installed the Slot.it (CH26) Racing Guide (for me this is automatic for FLY Classics). The guide is a perfect fit. The braids are NINCO ProRace, tinned.

- Lubricated the guide post, front axle holders, rear axle bushings, motor bushings and gears.

- Installed an N-Digital decoder chip.

* In the following photo, the white arrow shows the N-Digital chip removed from the red case and protected by electrical tape. The red case would not fit in the limited space available inside the 917 LH body. The red arrow shows the "quick disconnect" plug system that I use to install most decoder chips.

After completing the above listed steps, I ran the car at low-to-medium speed with the rear tires raised off the track for about 20 minutes in oder to provide some initial break-in and to loosen the tight fit of the rear axle in the bushings. This seems to have worked well. Then I took the car straight to the track and ran some un-timed practice laps using the N-Digital system's professional throttle profile. After the first few laps my impression was that the car handled very well. The drive train is surprisingly smooth and quiet. Speed on the straights and handling in the corners are both good, allowing the car to stay in the slot even when driven hard.

Next, I removed the magnet. To my great surprise, this FLYSLOT Porsche 917 LH did something that none of my other FLY Classics were able to do under the same initial circumstances: it completed an entire lap without de-slotting. It actually completed a number of laps without de-slotting. In other words, this car ran quite well in the absence of the magnet with virtually no modifications other than the Slot.it guide. I have three FLY Classics that required modifications to the stub axles, addition of ballast and complete replacement of the drive train gears before they got to that point! There was also no evidence of fish-tailing which I thought might be a problem because of the 917 LH's pronounced tail section.

For the timed testing I ran the car in three different combinations of magnet configuration and N-Digital throttle profile: 1.) professional profile with the magnet in the rear; 2.) professional profile with the magnet in mid-chassis; 3.) amateur profile with the magnet removed. For those not familiar with N-Digital: the so called amateur throttle profile is roughly analogous to 9-10 volts maximum in analog with a mild response in the lower end of the throttle curve for an adjustable (PWM) electronic controller. The professional profile is closer to 11-12 volts maximum with a steeper response in the lower region of the curve. The car was run for about 100 laps in each combination

A lap time comparison for the various combinations is shown in the following table:

CONCLUSION

When it comes to appearance, the FLYSLOT Porsche 917 LH #18 is somewhat of an enigma. On balance, it is a good looking model. It retains the basic appearance of its now rare and expensive predecessor. But there are a number of quality issues and the reduction in detail, although acceptable to my eye, may be more than the CSE can tolerate. Regardless, all the issues that I was able to perceive are easily correctable with minimal modeling skills and resources.

Performance and handling, on the other hand, are surprisingly good. Definitely superior to the FLY Classics in stock condition. The new chassis and drive train seem to be an improved, cleaner, more efficient implementation. The lap times that I experienced indicate that this car, although not a rocket sled, runs really well over a wide range of magnet and track voltage setups — at least on NINCO track. This should allow it to be made competitive not only with the prior FLY Classics, but a significant range of existing slot cars of its era. I found the car to run exceptionally well with the magnet in the mid-chassis position and plan to run the car most often in that configuration.

So, if you like to run iconic race cars like the FLY classics, want reasonably good performance without a lot of added expense, but also want the potential to improve performance through tuning, then I recommend this car without reservation. And the price that you will have to pay will make it easy to justify.

__Michael Ashton

Tuning and Upgrading NINCO 1 Slot Cars

By Michael Ashton

The first NINCO 1 cars were introduced to the U.S. market in early 2009. These cars were NINCO's version of the "crash resistant" or "entry level" class of slot cars, intended specifically for home racing. They were priced somewhat less than the Sport line of cars and came equipped with a low-power NC-11 motor, rated at 16,000 rpm and 100 gcm of torque, making it ideal for younger and/or beginner slot enthusiasts. To reduce cost, the cars are produced without an interior, a plastic drive pinion and plastic rear axle bushings. However, unlike cars in this classification from other manufacturers, NINCO 1's have dark tinted glass (as opposed to black painted glass) and relatively high quality and detail in the body decorations.

In addition to being very good cars for kids and beginners, NINCO 1's turned out to be ideal for digital slot racing. The lower power and higher level of control are well suited to the more frenetic conditions that result from having four, five or even eight cars running simultaneously on a two-lane home track. And they exhibit superior performance when running on a NINCO N-Digital track without the magnet using the more aggressive professional throttle profile.

Because the NINCO 1 line is designed for a more casual home racing environment, the cars tend to run quite well out-of-the-box for their intended purpose. However, this should not belie the fact that, as with just about any modern slot car, they can be tuned and tweaked to provide measurably increased performance. This article will present a series of tuning measures that can enhance both level and consistency of performance over a spectrum that ranges from subtle to momentous. The measures themselves range from the relatively mundane: fiddling with magnets, to downright life-changing: upgrading the motor. The goal of this exercise is to establish (or perhaps uncover) tuning methods that can maximize the potential of the NINCO 1 class for the broadest appeal to slot car enthusiasts possible.

The car that will be used throughout this exercise is the NINCO 1 Renault Megane Trophy N4, pictured below.

Replacement/upgrade parts that will be used at various stages of tuning are shown in the following photo.

From left to right: the NINCO NC-13 EVO motor; the NINCO ProRace Suspension Guide and ProRace Braids; PineCar tungsten putty weight (ballast); and at center-bottom: two BRS [Hobbies] bar magnets; and finally, a NINCO standard brass 9 tooth in-line pinion (for the NC-13 motor). All of the above parts were provided by BRS Hobbies for use in testing.

Pictured below are top and underneath views of the Renault Megane Trophy N4 in its stock configuration. This includes a 9 tooth plastic pinion, 27 tooth in-line crown, the standard spring suspension guide with relatively stiff copper braids and a quite powerful bar magnet positioned just behind the motor, underneath the pinion. All NINCO 1's come with 20 mm x 10 mm front and 20.5 mm x 11.5 mm rear standard NINCO rubber. The red thing between the front axle and the motor is the N-Digital decoder chip.

In order to observe and document any effect of the tuning measures, it is essential that a performance baseline be established for both magnet and non-magnet operation of the car it its stock configuration. That baseline is represented by the recorded lap times listed in the following table:

Lap times will be recorded for each subsequent individual tuning action and compared to the respective (magnet or no-magnet) baseline data to determine its effectiveness. Basically, the tuning measures will be applied and left in place which will allow the lap times to reflect a cumulative effect. The BRS bar magnets will be the only exception and will be removed after the NC13 EVO motor upgrade. In addition to the measurement data I will also provide subjective evaluation when appropriate, especially for situations where lap times may not tell the whole story.
 
Testing was performed on my 60' relatively technical NINCO N-Digital track. All lap times were recorded while using the N-Digital professional throttle profile. For those not familiar with N-Digital, the professional profile would be analogous to 11-12 volts maximum on an analog track with a relatively steep response in the lower region of the throttle curve.

ProRace Suspension Guide and ProRace Braids

The first tuning measure is to replace the stock (standard) spring suspension guide and copper braids with their NINCO ProRace equivalents. This is something that I recommend for any NINCO car that is going to be raced competitively. The longer ProRace guide flag provides increased stability, especially in the turns, and the softer, more pliable tinned ProRace Braids allow the guide to sit lower in the slot while providing superior electrical contact. This is especially important for N-Digital racing where the control data are transmitted via the slot rails and there are many joints and gaps in the rails which the more compliant ProRace Braids seem to handle better.

For those who have not changed a guide/braid assembly before, or who may have encountered problems when doing so in the past, the following is a short, illustrated step-by-step example of one approach to the process:

A new NINCO ProRace Suspension Guide comes with two pre-cut sections of ProRace Braid material. If you don't have the pre-cut braids, or if you are replacing worn braids in an existing guide, cut two sections of ProRace Braid material that are between 22 and 26 mm in length.

Note on braid length: I have recommended a range of length above because specific track characteristics may dictate the actual required braid length. For example on N-Digital tracks, if braids are too short, cars may hesitate on dead strips. The best advice here is to experiment in order to find a braid length that is optimal for track(s) that you run on.

First, use thin needle nose pliers to crimp the end of each braid section as shown in the two photos below. The crimp should be about 2 mm in length.

Make sure that the un-crimped end of the braid section is tightly woven and has a clean edge that is not frayed. If the end is frayed, you may need to pinch it close to the end with the needle nose pliers in order to be able to insert it into the "eye hole" of the guide.

Carefully insert the end of the braid into the eye hole. I find that tilting the braid slightly and inserting one corner first while pushing down on that corner works best, as shown in the following photo.

Once the braid is inserted into the eye hole...

...push it all the way down with your forefinger until the crimped end contacts the top surface of the eye hole. Make sure that strands of the braid at the crimped end cannot contact the suspension guide's spring.

Then, holding the guide flag between the thumb and forefinger of one hand, and holding the crimped end tight against the eye hole with the other hand's thumb, bend the braid toward the underside of the guide's base with the other forefinger, as seen in the two photos that follow.

Repeat the previous steps with the second braid section so that the result looks as depicted in the next two photos.

I find that poking a scribe or similar sharp, pointy tool into the eye hole helps to form a hole in the braid material that makes it easier to insert the metal ferrules on the end of the motor leads for the first time.

Once the guide/braid assembly is inserted into the guide holder in the chassis, while holding the chassis with the fore and index fingers of both hands (as seen in the following photo), use your thumbs to press down and forward on the braids.

 This will loosen the weave of the braid material and fan them out in a tapered fashion as seen in the following photo. This insures maximum electrical contact with the rails. Once again, this is essential for good operation of the N-Digital system.

Finally, make sure that the braids are angled downward at about 30°, as shown below.

I find it to be much easier to connect the motor (or decoder chip) lead wires to the guide with the guide removed from the chassis guide holder. There is also less danger of breaking the guide holder due to the high force that may be necessary to press the ferrules into the eye holes. So, whenever possible, I recommend removing the guide (if it is installed) and sliding the motor leads down through the guide opening in the chassis. Then reinstall the guide after the motor leads are attached.

When preparing the motor leads to receive the ferrules, strip the insulation to expose bare wire that is about twice the length of the ferrule. Insert the bare wire into the ferrule as shown below.

Next, bend the section of wire that extends through the bottom opening back against the outer surface of the ferrule.

Holding the guide assembly with one hand, use the forefinger to press up against the braid to prevent it from being pushed down through the eye hole when the ferrule is inserted from above. With the other hand, insert the ferrule into the top of the eye hole and use the forefinger to push the ferrule down into the eye hole. Note that the exposed lead wire is facing back toward the braid.

Normally the ferrule can be pushed all the way in by hand using this method. However, if the fit is very tight and the ferrule will not go all the way in, use small needle nose pliers as shown below to squeeze the ferrule all the way in while keeping the braid from being pushed out of the eye hole. Do not use excessive force here.

When both leads are attached with the ferrules pushed all the way in, the result should look as depicted below. The guide can now be installed with the leads properly threaded up through the chassis opening.

With the ProRace Suspension Guide installed and adjusted it was time for track testing. The car was run for three 25 lap sessions, first with the stock magnet installed and then without the magnet. The results are shown in the following table:

There was a slight improvement in lap times, however, given the limited testing the result cannot be seen as conclusive. Subjectively there is no doubt that the car drove better. Especially over the bumps, gaps, undulations and lane-change sections of the NINCO/N-Digital track. As previously noted, installing the NINCO ProRace guide and braids should be S.O.P. for a N-Digital track.

BRS Bar Magnet 

The next tuning measure is the replacement of the stock NINCO bar magnet with (two) BRS bar magnets.

The stock magnet that is installed in the NINCO 1 cars is very powerful. In fact, I believe too powerful for the majority of the NINCO 1 cars — especially those with a low ride height. And its position located just in front of the rear axle serves only to further intensify the overwhelming down force. In the case of the NINCO 1 Renault Megane Trophy represented in this article, I can run the car around my 60' N-Digital track at full throttle with the exception of one R1 hairpin curve, even when using the professional throttle profile. I don't feel that this is what the majority of slot car racers, especially digital racers, are looking for.

A single BRS bar magnet has approximately 25% of the down force of the stock NINCO magnet. So, two BRS magnets stacked vertically and placed in front of the motor should provide something less than 50% of the effect of the stock magnet. This would seem to be a more reasonable approach to increasing traction. The following photo shows the two BRS magnets secured just in front of the motor mount by hot glue. This is a secure installation that does not alter the chassis and is easily removed at any time.

With the BRS magnets in place, the car was returned to the track for another series of three 25 lap sessions. The resulting lap times are shown in the third row of the following table, just below the original mag and no-mag baseline.

Obviously the lap times are slower than the stock magnet baseline. The real point here is that the BRS magnets installed in this fashion provide a significant reduction in lap times over the no-mag baseline. Cornering speed is noticeably faster, however, the driving experience is much more realistic than that of the NINCO magnet. It is now necessary to reduce throttle through all the turns and it is possible to occasionally slide the back end out without encountering the calamitous "snap" spin out that is characteristic of "stuck down" magnet cars. I believe that this is a significant tuning measure that enables a NINCO 1 car to become a credible magnet slot car and much more exciting to run.

NINCO NC-13 EVO Motor

The NINCO 1 line of cars was originally intended to satisfy the requirements of the beginner or less experienced slot car user, and all indications are that it does this quite well. However, the high level of detail and quality of the NINCO 1 exteriors also made them attractive to the more advanced user. So, it's not surprising that a number of the more serious slot enthusiasts who bought NINCO 1 cars eventually became dissatisfied with the lower power drive train. And then, NINCO released the NINCO 1 PLUS series of NINCO 1 cars that feature an enhanced chassis design that includes an angle winder drive train previously found only in the SPORT series, and the NC-9 Sparker motor — rated at 20,000 rpm and 145 gcm of torque — instead of the usual NC-11. This created even more demand for an upgrade path for the existing NINCO 1 cars to a performance level on par with the NINCO 1 PLUS.

Enter the NC-13 EVO motor. Created as a drop-in replacement for the NC-11 with specifications virtually identical to the NC-9 Sparker. So, this next measure can't really be classified as tuning. The stock [NINCO 1] NC-11 motor will be replaced with the NC-13 EVO motor. This is better described as an upgrade. The NC-11 is rated at 16,000 rpm and 100 gcm of torque. The NC-13 is rated at 20,000 rpm and 135 gcm of torque. Both at 14.8 volts.

Shown below is the NC-13 EVO motor installed in the Renault Megane Trophy chassis, fitted with a NINCO standard 9-tooth brass pinion. Note the replacement of the plastic bushings with NINCO #80407 brass bushings. This is not really critical to overall performance, but because the wheels were loose and needed to be glued onto the axle, I took the opportunity to change the bushings while the wheels were removed. Also note that the BRS bar magnets were left installed for the first round of testing with the new motor.

With the NC-13 EVO motor installed, after some initial break-in, the car was run for three series of 25 laps for each of three configurations of magnet (225 laps total). The resulting lap times for each configuration, compared to the baseline, are shown in the following table:

Not surprisingly, the addition of NC-13 EVO motor creates a much different car from a performance standpoint.

The combination of the NC-13 motor and the stock NINCO magnet effectively make the car a "magnet missile". However, my feeling is that, even with the increase in power over the NC-11 motor, the NINCO magnet is still too strong for the car. But performance was more realistic and a higher degree of driving skill was required when compared to the stock motor/magnet configuration. As always, this is a matter of preference.

The BRS magnets were a different story. Performance and handling were much closer to that obtained with the combination of BRS magnets and NC-11 motor. Very good speed through the turns but not at the expense of a feeling of control. The big difference is greater speed on the straight sections owing to the increased power provided by the NC-13. Overall the car was fun and exciting to run this way without being stressful.

Running without a magnet yielded lap times that now place this car squarely in the middle of the NINCO 1 PLUS line of cars. The Megane Trophy has its own unique handling characteristics, most likely due to the in-line drive train versus the angle winder of the NINCO 1 PLUS cars. But there is little doubt that the NC-13 motor provides the necessary upgrade path to be compatible and competitive with the line of NINCO 1 PLUS cars.

Tungsten Putty Ballast

The final tuning measure is a novel method of adding ballast (weight) just about anywhere in a slot car. Tungsten putty is a very dense (i.e., heavy), malleable putty that can be formed into any shape required. It can be pressed into "nooks and crannies" of a chassis (or body) and it will conform to the shape of the receiving space. Once pressed into a given space, it tends to stay secured in that space. If necessary, it can be secured further with any adhesive that can safely be used in the chassis or body, such as hot glue.

Note: There is a caution on this product's packaging that states: "Wash hands after use. Keep away from mouth and food." Make sure that these instructions are followed by anyone who handles this putty.

 In the Renault Megane Trophy, a very effective place to add weight is in or around the "V" shaped chamber just behind the guide holder that is formed by two reinforcing ribs. This is highlighted by the three red arrows in the photo below.

The first step in using tungsten putty is to knead the whole piece by working it with the fingers until it becomes very pliable and does not flake or crumble.

Step two involves estimating the amount that will be required and braking that off as a smaller piece. The amount does not have to be exact at this point because small amounts can be added as you progress. Once again, work the separate piece with the fingers to make it as pliable as possible.

Finally, form the selected piece into the approximate shape of the area into which it will be pressed. This could involve rolling, flattening or any number of possible shapes. In the case of the Renault Megane Trophy, I formed it into several small balls and pressed them down into the chamber behind the guide holder until it was protruding from the top. I then used the tip of a very small flat head screw driver to press it further into the chamber while also smoothing and rounding the top surface. The result is shown below. Based on the weight of the original piece, I estimate the weight of the installed putty to be 8 to 10 grams.

With the tungsten putty in place, it was back to the track for another series of laps. Three sets of 25 laps first without the magnet and then with the stock NINCO magnet installed. The lap times below compare the cumulative tuning/upgrading to this point with the addition of the tungsten putty.

Obviously the powerful NINCO magnet obscured any effect that the putty (or any other ballast) might have. However, when running without the magnet, the effect was subtle but measurable. And there was a discernible increase in headroom when going through the corners. 

In Summary

The following table lists the performance results of all the tuning and upgrade measures, grouped in the order of application:

With all the previously described tuning and upgrade measures in mind, Brian Swanson of BRS Hobbies has proposed two NINCO 1 racing classes:

The first would be named the NINCO 1 SPEC class, which is a stock NINCO 1 car with the addition of NINCO ProRace Guide and ProRace Braid. The only options would be the choice of a 9 tooth or a 10 tooth brass pinion gear and tungsten putty added to the chassis for ballast. No other modifications to the chassis or body would be allowed. For Ninco tracks, the Laprene compound tires would be allowed as replacements. For non-NINCO tracks, a suitable compound rear tire of similar dimensions may be used.

The second would be called the NINCO 1 SPEC PRO class and would be based on the same rules as the SPEC class. The difference would be the upgrade of the drive train with the NC-13 motor. And, given the above test results with the NC-13 motor, the NINCO 1 Plus cars will very likely fit into this class.

So, even though the NINCO 1 slot cars are considered entry level, they still have a lot of potential. If you have one or more NINCO 1 slot cars I strongly recommend trying any or all of these tuning measures.

__Michael Ashton