New Member-Old Cars

[NOBLNG]

I don't see anywhere else for introductions here so...Hello from Winnipeg, Canada!
I have two old Strombecker sets that I have hung onto since my youth and I would like to get them up and running again. I am hoping someone here can point me in the right direction for parts. The main things I need are tires, motors and pickup brushes. I have found a smattering of parts on e-bay, but I am hoping to find a vendor that specializes in Strombecker maybe?
Thanks in advance, Greg

[strummer57]

Hi Greg

If you read the 6th comment on the thread I started ("Another Project") you will see the name of a dealer who (the master builder himself ) Chris Walker recommended to me.

Perhaps at some point you can share some photos of your stuff...

Mark in Oregon

[chrisguyw]

I

I have two old Strombecker sets that I have hung onto since my youth and I would like to get them up and running again. I am hoping someone here can point me in the right direction for parts. The main things I need are tires, motors and pickup brushes. I have found a smattering of parts on e-bay, but I am hoping to find a vendor that specializes in Strombecker maybe?
Thanks in advance, Greg

Hi Greg, depending on the wheels on your Strombeckers', (they are not all the same) you may find some originals tires from EJ's hobbies. Paul Gage (also a Winnipeg boy ) makes a wide range of tires, and he does make a couple of Strombecker variations. (He has his own location on this site). These tires are made from the original moulds, and are made of urethane........will last forever, and have better grip than the originals. As Paul gage is almost your next door neighbour, I would try him first !!.
You can also replace your wheels with newer versions (not Strombecker), but, I would try and get your old stuff running before spending any more than necessary

As far as pick-up brushes/braid, you do not need the original stuff,..... actually the new stuff works much better as it is softer/more flexible, so it actually not only conducts better, it aids the cars' handling , as being softer, it tends not to try and push the front end out of the slot. You can buy spools (1 meter) from Slot-it, NSR, etc.etc. at any online slot shop, including, Slot Car Corner, LEB Hobbies, and Cloverleaf racing,....who all have their own direct links on this site.

Motors will be harder to find, again, depending on what you have. EJ's Hobbies does have some motor brushes for a couple of the Strombecker variations, but, no complete motors.
Like the tires, Strombecker had quite a variation in motors, and they are generally fairly specific to a particular chassis, so a picture or two would help.
Generally, the older motors rarely went "poof", so , they may just be in need of a good clean (internally), and a drop of oil. Again, a pic would be nice, and depending on what you have, I can help with some advice.

Again pics would be nice, and shout out if you need further help..

Cheers
Chris Walker

PS there are a few clubs in the Winnipeg area that build/race a variety of 1/32 cars.

[NOBLNG]

Thanks, Mark and Chris! I did manage to learn of Paul's existence here but have not contacted him yet as I am still trying to get my cars to move. I have one that still does on it's own. The loose motor had one of the armature wires broken and wrapped around the shaft. I re-attached it and got it running briefly. I took it apart again and may have put the magnets back in wrong? The other green motor had two armature wires broken and I have fiddled with it unsuccessfully. The motor in the white chassis does not have removable brushes like the green ones. One side was burnt right off so I made an experimental set from some thin copper and managed to get it to rotate.
Do you know the model # or any specs for these motors? I feel I will have to totally rewind them if I want them to work at all.

[chrisguyw]

Hi Greg, The "green" Strombecker motors were used in their later set cars (later being a relative term ) , and while these have long since disappeared from any shop shelves, they do appear quite frequently on ebay (usually in chassis/cars), and they are inexpensive. (This is the route I would go)

If you are going to rewind the arms, 110/120 Turns of 32/33 wire would fine.....just make sure the motor brushes/springs, and comm. are all in good shape. (Ej's hobbies has motor brushes for this motor).

The motor in the white chassis (Eldon) is a Johnson, and while it looks like the motors used in "current" plastic cars, it is dimensionally larger, so current motors will just not snap in.
Like the Strombeckers', I would look for these on ebay.

Cheers
Chris Walker

PS the wheels/tires on the 2 Strombeckers are aftermarket sponge, with set screw aluminum wheels (likely from TwinnK/Aj's), so, it might be best to use the spare Strombecker wheels/axles in the pic. for the rear end of both cars.

[NOBLNG]

Thanks for the info Chris. The original windings mic out at 0.005" which would make them 36 gage I believe. I will count the winds when I remove them. That said, I guess this would be a good opportunity to hotrod these a little! Brushes and comms all seem to be OK. I picked up a few small motors at Princess Auto for $1.99 each and hot-glued one in place just as an experiment . It is way faster than any of my originals. What RPM are the stock motors supposed to run at do you know?
Thanks again, Greg.

[chrisguyw]

Greg, the older aftermarket motors rarely (very rarely) had any performance specs posted by the manufacturers, and "homeset" motors like these virtually never had posted specs.. so, I have no idea of the RPM rating for these....sorry.
They are likely not performing their best after sitting all these years, (the comm slots are probably full of old oil/junk) so you can give them a shot of contact cleaner, or better yet, run them at low power submerged in a glass of water for a couple of minutes, dry them out, and lightly re oil the can and endbell bushings.


If the Princess auto can be made to fit, you can't beat the price..............from the pic. it does appear to be a bit larger than the "green" motor,......does it clear the interior of your cars ??

Cheers
Chris Walker

[viejoronnie]

Welcome to HRW.

I love Strombecker and Eldon stuff. You can try the Giri app to check motor rpm.

Ronnie

[chrisguyw]

Welcome to HRW.

You can try the Giri app to check motor rpm.

Ronnie

You certainly could, ...but, ....if the motor is not performing up to snuff, how would you know what RPM it was originally intended to spin at ??

Cheers
Chris Walker

[NOBLNG]

Thanks Ronnie. P/A has a digital laser tach going on sale tomorrow for 35 bucks so I think I will pick one up. Yes Chris, the P/A motor should have no trouble fitting under the bodies. I desperately need tires, as my cars have a tough time making it up the slightest slope. I will have to get ahold of Paul soon! I managed to get some track set up in my garage. I still have to anchor it better, especially the High-Low crossover. I also managed to score an Eldon Corvette that didn't run. Turns out one wire had just come loose at the motor.

[viejoronnie]

Back in the Golden Era my dad checked the rpm of my stock Strommie and Eldon motors somehow, but dont recall the results.

[viejoronnie]

Greg:

I like your paper clip track design that utilizes most of the table space. Here’s a garage floor mock-up of my “
2lane “Wall 2 Wall” Raceway using 80 ‘ of vintage OOP Artin track. It will fit on a 6’x12’ portable table. It will have full borders. I run multiple 2.4Ghz slot cars with wireless proportional velocity control using some old Eldon/Cox double lane changers grafted in to change lanes.

[NOBLNG]

Nice layout Ronnie! Mine was pictured on the back of the boxes I have. I relocated the cross-overs to even out the left and right hand turns. I am curious about the track in the bottom left hand corner...it shows four lanes made using larger radius 30 degree curves. Has anyone seen these ?

[NOBLNG]

I run multiple 2.4Ghz slot cars with wireless proportional velocity control using some old Eldon/Cox double lane changers grafted in to change lanes.

You lost me there. I am still trying to learn the lingo. LOL!

[viejoronnie]

Greg:

To explain: I decided I wanted the ability to run multiple cars in each slot with the capability to change lanes for passing. There are digital slot car sets for this but I’m on a budget and I had a bunch of out of production “vintage” Artin 1/32 track. I found some inexpensive Chinese 1/32 RC cars that fit the bill: proportional speed control, decent speed @ 18fps, modifiable wheelbase for 1/32 and 1/24 scale cars, indestructible polyethylene construction., etc. They operate at 2.8 GHz frequencies which allow an unlimited number of cars to be run at the same time. Drivers can walk around to any position with wireless controllers. I glue a fixed vertical guide or pin on the bottom of the chassis. I can run just using the car’s LiPo battery (up to an hour per charge) or install a wired slot guide and adjust the track power to 3.7 v with a variable voltage 5 Amp power supply. The guide is wired into the car radio receiver power circuit. Lane change is possible using the lane change track from the 1973 Cox Super Scale 1/40 scale sets grafted into the Artin track ( Artin and Eldon/Cox track are the same width and slot spacing). The lane changers are “speed control” lane changers. Basically controlling the speed of your car determines which lane you go in. With the limited steering of the RC car you can also stay straight or change to the other lane. It’s all manually controlled without any digital track bits.

I wanted as much track as possible in the area I had. Thus it is all technical with no highspeed runs. However I can add two lane track 8 wide to the track in the foreground and/or extend the far end with straight track another 10’ out the garage to a high bank 180 with another table to get about 225’ per lap.