FOR RACERS, COLLECTORS AND BUILDERS

PROM

OTIO

NAL I

SSUE

www.slotcarmag

.co.uk

No.1 UK

Slot Mag:The

ultimate

Slot Car

bi-monthly

magazine

PROMO COPY

Slot car history goes back as far as 1912 when asystem was marketed in the USA by Lionel (USA),and throughout the following years various

attempts were made to kick-start the hobby. It was,however, mainly a pastime of the enthusiast, usually witha rail system rather than a slot, until the late ’50s saw thetinplate “Scalex” cars adapted to run on a rubber trackwith a basic on/off switch to control the cars. This was thebirth of slot racing as we know it today.

During the 1960s slot racing boomed across the worldand many manufacturers started producing sets andaccessories. The glory years were numbered, however, andmost of the industry collapsed with the advent ofcompetition from other toys at the decade’s end.Scalextric, however, survived and has become a genericword to the public for slot car racing.

After a number of wilderness years, the hobby is nowback in full swing and perhaps we have never had it sogood. 1/32, 1/24 and HO are still the main scales, but withcomputer technology advancing at a fast pace, digital setsare the new big deal.

The club scene still thrives and racers still travel to othercountries to test their skills against fellow competitors.Tracks are made by such companies as Scalextric, SCX,Ninco and Carrera, and of course the more dedicatedchoose to rout their own from wood or occasionallypolymer materials.

SlotCarMAG has been created as an informativeindependent magazine to look at the hobby from theinside out, but not just focusing on the mainmanufacturers.; we also look at the small cottageindustries producing small runs of car bodies made fromresin or acetate – individuals who painstakingly research acar to produce as close-as-possible an exact replica inminiature of their favourite racing machine.

Basically, this magazine is what’s been missing from theEnglish-speaking public’s coffee table – a good afternoonread. Oh, and perhaps the chance to win a fantastic prize!

SlotCarMAG is produced bi-monthly and is sold as ahard copy or pdf file. Visit our web site at:www.slotcarmag.co.uk for more details on how topurchase your edition.

Slot Car MAG – The magazine for racers, collectors and builders 1

FOR RACERS, COLLECTORS AND BUILDERS

PUBLISHING / WEB: Wayne Tooke: info@slotcarmag.co.ukEDITORIAL: Ric Woods: ric-woods@slotcarmag.co.ukART & DESIGN: Marc Abbott: marc-abbott@slotcarmag.co.uk

Cover photo: Cars supplied by Paul Bizzell, photographed by Marc Abbott

SlotCarMAG is an independent magazine for the Slot Car enthusiast. It is produced bi-monthly and available for purchase via our on-line store at www.lulu.com/uk andprinted in hi- resolution digital format. It is also available to purchase as a pdfdownload from the SlotCarMAG web site.

For further information, please contact the publisher via email. Address opposite.

Disclaimer:Whilst every effort has been made to accurately compile the information contained herein, SlotCarMAG or any of its contributors or advertisers accepts no liability for any errors and omissions or any inadvertent disclosure of any informationnot meant for publication. SlotCarMAG neither endorses or accepts responsibility for the reproduction of material supplied that is of sub-standard quality, such as photocopies, laser prints, pre-printed photographs, low resolution digital imagesetc, and reserve the right to refuse the use of such material, products or services of advertisers in this publication. Opinions expressed shall not necessarily be that of the SlotCarMAG. All information should be verified before being acted upon.Copyright:Contents of this magazine or our web site, cannot be reproduced in any way, shape or form without the written permission of the publishers. FIND US ON FACEBOOK

FIND US ON LULU.COM

2 The magazine for racers, collectors and builders – Slot Car MAG

Pit BoardHello!Firstly let me say “welcome”

and “thank you” for looking atthis online promo copy of themagazine SlotCarMAG.

In each issue we will endeavourto bring you features coveringmany areas of the slot car hobby:club focus pieces, scratchbuilding, scenery how-tos, newsfrom abroad and anything elsewe can squeeze in.

In issue one we saw an articleby Adrian Norman, all about thehistory of the Scalextric GT40.

We also ran the Graymalkinstep-by-step guide on how torepaint and decal a car. Over themonths, this morphed into aSlotCarMag NASCAR!

Slot cars have a diversity ofindividuals who lay claim to bepart of this hobby: club racers,rug racers, collectors and thebuilders. Hopefully, whoever youare, you’ll enjoy reading this mag.

Whichever label or title yougive yourself, we are sure thatyou will find our pages of interestand, more importantly, a goodread.

To the right of this column, youcan see the covers of the firstthree editions of SlotCarMAG,and by examining the headlinesyou will note that we have storiesfrom around the world and alsoacross time itself.

Happy reading and thank youfor looking!

Wayne Tooke

Past issue covers:

Slot Car MAG – The magazine for racers, collectors and builders 3

Page examples from issues 1, 2 and 3:

4 The magazine for racers, collectors and builders – Slot Car MAG

Page examples from issues 1, 2 and 3 continued:

Slot Car MAG – The magazine for racers, collectors and builders 5

6 The magazine for racers, collectors and builders – Slot Car MAG

Great photos

Our writers are always encouraged

to supply hi-quality photos at the

highest resolution

Slot Car MAG – The magazine for racers, collectors and builders 7

With the advent of digital photography, taking adecent photo has become easier - if it’s nogood just delete it and try again! However,

composition stills requires care and thought and, perhapsmost importantly, high resolution for a magazine such asours is paramount.

For photographs to reproduce at a double-page spread(that’s an A3 size) file sizes are going over 70mb. This isessential to capture the small models we are looking atand bring out the finer points (or indeed imperfections) ofa car or kit that is under review.

It also helps readers with their own projects... It helpsgive confidence and the thought that, if so-and-somanaged to do that and make it look good, I can too.

These pages show a Ford Anglia, designed, built andpainted by George Turner.

8 The magazine for racers, collectors and builders – Slot Car MAG

Club Focus

Each month we let a club

have their say.

There are many clubs around the world and eachmakes its own unique stamp on our hobby. Somerace standard Scalextric, others shy away from

magnets whilst some race bullet-fast hand-built metal-chassis blobs that barely resemble a “real” car. They mayalso favour 1/24 or HO over the favoured British/European1/32 scales.

We aim to try and cover everything by giving focus to adifferent club each month and let them tell the story ofhow their club was formed and the style of racing which ispreferred.

If you would like your club featured, send us an email –but there is a waiting list!

Slot Car MAG – The magazine for racers, collectors and builders 9

10 The magazine for racers, collectors and builders – Slot Car MAG

Car CustomisingFollow our step-by-step guide on stripping back the

paint and starting with something new

Slot Car MAG – The magazine for racers, collectors and builders 11

Throughout our issues we are featuring the step-by-step process of customising existing models.Perhaps you have bought a plain-white kit from

Slot.It or, as in our case, a rather horrid looking Nascar thatreally does need a spruce-up.

Richard Bennett (AKA Graymalkin) is revealing all thesecrets of relivery. This includes stripping back the originalpaintwork, priming, painting, making and applying decals,sealing and finishing.

The actual physical time to do these works of art is nottoo bad... it’s the waiting that is the key. Patience whilstthat paint dries for 24 hours!

These pages feature two cars by Richard.

12 The magazine for racers, collectors and builders – Slot Car MAG

Tricks

Some models look just too plasticky!

Have you ever thought about making your car appear to

have really raced?

Slot Car MAG – The magazine for racers, collectors and builders 13

Okay, so you’ve bought that brand-new ScalextricBeetle or Slot.It GT40 and it looks great... as ashowroom exhibit.

Real racing cars (and road cars for that matter) get dirtyand damaged. Rally cars get covered in mud, dust andsometimes snow. Le Mans cars are taped up to help themfinish races.

There are certain tricks to help out and these pagesshow how editor Ric Woods, produced this battle-wearyFord from NSR.

“One car which really captured my imagination was the1967 4th-placed Ford Mark IV. It finished the race in arather sorry state... the engine cover had come adrift,become damaged and various bits of tape (plus a trouserbelt!) had to secure it down.”

14 The magazine for racers, collectors and builders – Slot Car MAG

Scenics

There’s nothing worse than a circuit sitting blandly on a

carpet. Learn some tricks to bring your racing alive!

Slot Car MAG – The magazine for racers, collectors and builders 15

Lynne Haines is a master with scenery and will useanything to try and make her circuits look life-like. Inissue 2 we saw how basic dirt from the garden can

be filtered and then scattered to produce a stunningeffect.

As the issues come out, hopefully she’ll reveal moreabout making other items such as buildings, rocks, fencesetc etc.

Lynne is resident in Australia and is full of ideas – so whynot tap into her thought processes via SlotCarMAG?

16 The magazine for racers, collectors and builders – Slot Car MAG

About Us

SlotCarMAG sprang from an idea first mooted on SlotForum

by Wayne Tooke (sunsetman). Wayne, a fairly recent

returnee to the hobby, bemoaned the lack of all-

encompassing slot car magazines and was wondering how

difficult it would be to start one. He is in the process of

finding out, as he has been joined by Marc Abbott (abbo)

and Ric Woods (Mooster). Marc, as well as being a very

experienced slot car racer, is extremely accomplished in

graphics and layout, as well as website design, and he has

a number of books to his credit. Ric, another experienced

racer, has been writing on a wide range of subjects for many

years and found himself with SlotCarMAG when he

suggested they should find a proof reader…

Put simply, SlotCarMAG aims to cover all aspects of the

hobby of slot car racing. The idea is that there should be

something in there for everyone, whether they are new to

it all or a race-hardened veteran. SlotCarMAG will initially

be a bi-monthly publication, available via the website

(www.slotcarmag.co.uk) as a magazine or as a PDF copy.