Track Time
When my 1st born son was old enough to put a car on a track we had started a small HotWheels raceway. That was 17 years ago.. We moved and I got rid of the track, 35 cases of Hotwheels keeping only a few collector cars. The memories of the 2 of us laughing and having some fun stayed with me and are Pricless to me & I hope one day he as well.
I recently started modding Hotwheels after seeing JD Project videos and knew I should have continued on with this hobby from day one (hindsight).. So my quest to buy cars and parts to mod started. Recently I had to get smaller and correct tools :-) , Needed a paint booth indoor painting, airbrush & paint just to start with.. Then I joind a FB group for Mods and found 3DBotmaker... Oh my... This was cool as Im 57 years old and never seen any diecast racing with all the time spent on Youtube.. Man its tough when you see how many people are just like you and you never knew it existsted..
So after watching hours & hours of race videos I started hunting cars that I could fix up mail out & race.. Then started the reaserching How too's videos so I can do it right and most cost effective... One video gave the info that Dollar Tree has the best deal for 2 piece HW straight track @ $1.25.. I automatically started shoping with no luck.. 5 DT's later I went online and ordered a case of 24 to start a test track.. It arrived 2 days early and Iam excited as more track parts are getting ordered this week.. Now it is time to get basement cleared up and design a track that I can convert from testing to racing. I live in Central Missouri with no tracks close by nearest is 3 hours away.. So why not get one going here is my mindset... This will be a process as I have 3 things to prioritize for this #1- Start small and simple, #2 Add on as time & $$ allow #3 Do it right the 1st time with research & with Q & A times on here... SO below is my first shipment and Ill start to layout a plan and get the base layout this week..
Thank You to all of you for sharing a ton of info and sharing what your tracks and expierences have been.. Cant wait for my cars to meet you all out on the tracks how ever slow thay are :-)
Discussion
Welcome to the hobby! A home test track is great to have when you want to start entering mail-in tournaments. You don't need anything long or fancy. Just a straight two-lane orange drag track. I recommend starting by finding your fastest unmodified "stock" car. Then, mod cars until you can beat that car. Then keep modding to beat it by a greater distance. You will need a small hobby scale when you get serious enough to enter tournaments so you know how much weight to add.
Make sure you search all the great articles and posts in the archive here on Redline Derby.
Best of luck!
- I have been diving into a lot of articles on here & online trying to keep focused to my goals. Which are basic learn & try and repeat... — Desert_Rat_Diecast
Jblotner42 has recently been building the Ozark Mountain Speedway. He may be a little local to you? (I know Missouri is a big state - just trying to possibly make a connection for you).
Thanks for sharing your story! Indeed it can be a long, fun journey as you build tracks and experiment with cars to find speed. You've definitely found your people here...welcome and I hope you enjoy your time here sharing and being inspired. There's a lot to munch on in the Forum here, or the forum Grab Bag can be fun for random finds.
- I read your story how you started out and it has grown into so much more then just a car race. Thank You RLD for keeping at it as you have to give us a spot in the online world. Its a great place & a great group here... — Desert_Rat_Diecast
Dutch is correct, I am in West Central Missouri by Osceola, MO.
Welcome! I also started recently with MODing and track build, although mine is a bit more ambitious than a simple drag strip.
Must clear all visitors with the wife first, but then it's ON! ;-)
Great read. Sounds like my story but I got a 3 month head start on you lol. Can't wait to see what you build.
Welcome. Good luck on your build.
have fun with it and don't get discouraged if your first few mods don't work out. When I got into this hobby in 2015 I was sending cars down the track with my daughter who loved picking a car and kicking dads butt. I discovered Diecast 64 and decided to try my hand at modifying. I sent in 2 cars, one a rip and race and a themed Star Wars character car for the modified race. Disaster to say the least. My first build and I made it slower than it was stock. But it was fun watching it on you tube competing against other cars. I was hooked. Then I found Redline Derby and made a lot of online friends and round lots of places to race cars in mail in tournaments.
you'll learn a lot from Redline Derby and just by asking questions here on this forum. Hope to see you in future races soon.
cheers. Brian (41-14 Racing)
Good luck to you. Word of caution once you start you won't be able to stop. It's more addictive than cack or meth hahaha. Seriously good luck and you joined the best community. The diecast Racing community is awesome.
Congrats and good luck!