I'm not sure how many of you know what Burning Man is, but living in the SF Bay Area and working in an industry that is largely populated by people younger than me, I have been familiarized with it. It is a festival in the Black Rock Desert of Nevada over the Memorial Day weekend that is full of art cars, semi- (or fully-) naked people, techno music, art installations and a giant wooden man that is burned in effigy to all the problems the people at the festival have in the real world. The population at the festival makes it the 3rd largest "city" in Nevada for a week or so, behind Las Vegas and Reno respectively. So many people from around San Francisco attend the festival that traffic in the area is markedly less.

I equate the drop in email and message board traffic during the Fray to that of foot and automobile traffic during Burning Man. It sure gets quiet on HOWL and the HO sections of Hobby Talk, SCI and other message boards.

I also equate the re-entry into the regular world after the Fray to be like olympic athletes following their performances every 4 years. I once heard Jonny Moseley talk about his life after winning his gold medal in which he wanted to do ANYTHING but go skiing. He had spent every moment of his life for many years working to that point in his life. Having won a gold medal, he put up his skis for a long time before even thinking of hitting the slopes again. I imagine many Fray competitors suffer from T-Jet fatigue after running their 45 year old toy cars for 2, 3 or more days straight, especially after "training" and preparing for the event for weeks and months.

Here's how to apply these:

• Cut apart the individual images from the sheet.
• Dip the decal into lukewarm water for 1 or 2 minutes. Take the decal from the water and see if the image will move or slide on the paper backing. If not, return to the water for a few more seconds.
• Once the decal will slide on the backing, put the decal and backing on a paper towel for a few seconds to remove the excess water.
• Then bring the decal up to where on the model you want to apply it and slide the image from the paper backing onto the model. While wet, you can still move the image on the model a bit to position it just where you want it. If there are any air bubbles under the decal, gently push the bubble toward one of the edges of the decal with a wet Q-tip or edge of a paper towel to remove it.
• When the decal is in position, simply let it air dry and it will stay in place.

Many hobby shops will sell various decal setting solutions that will help the decal conform to sharply curved surfaces. Solvaset from Walthers, Micro-Sol and MicroSet from Microscale Industries are examples of decal setting solutions. We suggest trying out the specific solution you wish to use on an unused decal from the same sheet applied to a piece of scrap plastic to make sure the solution will not react with the decal. If you wish to spray a clear coat over your decals, the clear paint you intend on using should be tested first using the same method. Some people use Delta Ceramcoat's clear varnish. Another method of sealing the decals is to dip them in Pledge with Future Shine.

Unused waterslide decals may deteriorate over time due to storage conditions such as heat, moisture or exposure to light. If you have an older kit, you may wish to test one of the decals on the sheet in water to see what kind of condition they're in. Use one of the markings you were not planning on applying to the model or use the small kit number or copyright info markings usually found on the edge of the sheet. If they break up when placed in water, they're getting pretty old. One way around this is to brush on a clear decal film. This is a liquid product made by several companies including Badger, Microscale and others and found in many hobby retailers and online.

One last trick: exposing an older decal sheet that's starting to turn yellow to bright sunlight for an hour or so will usually clear that yellowing right up.

There are few people who stay active in this here slot car hobby of ours for decades. I can think of a few, Curtis Adams, Rick Philis, Bob Lincoln, Bob Beers and Henry Harnish come to mind immediately. I know there are many others, but they're escaping my brain at the moment.

I am a prime example of someone who has come and gone from the hobby a couple times. I started with slot cars back in the 70s with my Jackie Stewart set. That lasted a few years until junior high school when I needed money for bikes, movies and other new interests, so the slot cars were sold at a garage sale.

Then in the 90s, The Phantom Surfers released their "The Exciting Sounds of Model Road Racing" LP just as I was moving to San Francisco. I found a cool HO scale set at a sidewalk sale, set it up in the living room, Phantom Surfers blasting, and I was hooked again. However, I couldn't find any HO scale tracks, hobbyists or racers in my area, but about 10 minutes away was Slot Car City in Colma, CA. I ran there for a few years, enjoying 1/24 scale stock cars, sprint cars, can-am cars and drag racing. With the closure of Slot Car City, I sold my slot car stuff for a ridiculously low price and my interests grew in scale to RC cars. I tried that for a couple years, but due to living in one of the most expensive cities in the country, traveling to tracks on a regular basis was cost prohibitive.

Now in the early 2000s, I picked up a Super International track with cars, some other HO cars, pieces, parts, bits and bobs, as well as a wealth of information from those that I met online.

Where am I going with this? Well, as people fal out of the hobby for one reason or another (financial reasons, interests change, wives clean out the garage, kids grow up, etc), it gives us a chance to enjoy the fruits of someone else's labor and efforts, as well as introduce it to others who show interest.

While it sometimes might feel like pulling the boots of a fallen cowboy, I think it's more often appreciated by the person getting out of the hobby for carrying on their interest. Many times they may be able to continue to offer information and insight into their collection, as well as hints and tips for racing, painting, construction and collecting.

We are standing on the shoulders of giants and continue the lineage of slot cars, be they HO, 1/43, 1/32 or 1/24 scale. We are rich with information, historical vehicles, tools and equipment, as well as racing venues and competitors.

I've found some really good rear tires for my Fray-style T-Jets. They wear evenly, stick well and come in a variety of sizes. They should appear in the Rad! Store pretty soon.

I've also seen some new decals from C&R that look awesome. They, too, should be available in the Rad! Store soon.

Also, there's a guy out here on the west coast that's making HO scale F-1 cars by hand. They're exquisite works of art that actually perform very well. We're getting ready to make a launch video for them and put the up for sale.

Very exciting times here in the slot car world. What's your favorite new slot car thing?

For those of you that travel with your cars and tools from track to track, event to event, friend to friend, lugging your stuff all over in an organized fashion is important. Many have found fishing tackle boxes to be ideal for HO scale. There are some custom made wooden boxes, as well, for HO, 1/32 and 1/24 scale folks. Here are some do's, don'ts and interesting setups.

Do's
When storing cars for along time, keep the wheels elevated so they don't get flat spots.
Put a stopper on your oil when transporting it to keep it from spilling.
Keep it all organized. Remember the saying "A place for everything and everything in its place."

Don'ts
Don't toss stuff in the top and tell yourself "I'll sort it out later"
Don't bring everything you own. Keep it light, keep it simple.
When setting up at the track, keep your space tidy, compact and well-lit.

HO Scale
Plano
Whodat HO
Racers at the Fray in Ferndale
Scale Engineering
R4R Wood Products

1/24 & 1/32 Scale
Whitey's
Whodat
Slotcarracing.org
NTC

Build your own
http://www.slotside.com/tt/box.html 

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