Endurance run with a brand new BMW
How long does a Ninco slot car run until it is getting a technical problem? To get the answer to this question I decided to make an endurance run with a brand new BMW V12 LM98 slot car.
The slot car
The BMW V12 LM98 of Ninco is an excellent choice for an endurance test. The original car has been used for the Le Mans 2000 race. In that year the Thomas Bscher Promotion Team, with the drivers T. Bscher, G. Lees and J.M. Gounon, qualified on the 21st grid position. After 180 laps the car was off the track with a broken gearbox.
Ninco has produced several versions of this model. Unfortunately the nose of this type is not like the original, but besides the color of the mirror (this part should have been red instead of black) the slot car is a pretty good copy of the real car.
The Test
Before putting a new slot car on the track it is important to warm-up the motor. I use a separate track section that is connected to a transformer. By putting a tire under the chassis the back-axle turns free. After 30 minutes the car is ready to use.
Every day I have driven at least 400 laps with the standard "out-of-the-box" slot car. I drove the first hundred laps in the outer lane of my permanent track (Pleasuredome 2) and the second hundred laps in the inner lane. After cooling down the motor I continued in the same order again. The procedure is repeated day after day.
Each stint started with warming-up the motor during a few laps. It is important to get rhythm. I started slowly and speeded to the maximum in around ten laps.
Driving
For an endurance test it is to be advised to choose for a slot car you like a lot for every day you are racing with the same car. Without having an extra sympathy for the car the test drive could become a struggle.
It is also better to choose for a bright colored model. Running lap by lap means that you become tired after a while. When you become less concentrated a bright color will be better noticed than a dark color.
Take a position that gives you the best view on the track. You have to follow the car lap by lap. Your head is moving all the time. During the stint I changed frequently from position. An extension cable connected to your controller can be useful when you want to walk around your raceway.
Crown gear
The NC-2 motor is positioned along the length of the car (inline rear). The small pinion of the motor drives a crown gear on the axle. It is known for Ninco cars that the crown gear is the weakest part. Some people say that the crown gear is the most important spare you need. After 2210 laps the motor moved from the motor mount on the chassis and damaged the crown gear. The car started to make a terrible noise and the lap-times were going down. I had to stop the car and change the crown gear. It is remarkable that the original 2000 Le Mans car also had to stop the race because of a problem with the gear. After fixing the motor with tape to the chassis I could continue the test drive.
Service
After 3000 laps the car was serviced. I opened the car and cleaned the body and chassis. The back wheel suspension was changed and oiled. The motor was fixed to the chassis by tape. The pickup braids were cleaned. Be careful when you remove the guide. The spring of the guide is very sensible.
Problems
The back tires were worn out after 3300 laps. During a short pit stop the tires were changed. During the following stint the fastest lap was registered.
One of the braids came of after a crash at the 4712th lap. During the repair the spring of the guide was damaged in such a way that it had to be removed. During the continuation of the test drive I could not notice that the missing spring on the guide had an effect to the power supply of the car.
The second pit stop was scheduled after 6000 laps. The chassis, body, crown gear, pinion, rear axle and tires were cleaned. No parts were changed.
Perfect condition
After 7.500 laps I stopped the endurance run. The car was at the outside still in a perfect condition. No parts were broken off. It was still possible to run with the car, but the times were going down dramatically. The crown gear and tires were worn out. While changing and cleaning all the parts I noticed that the braids started to fray in such manner that replacing was the only option.
Conclusion
After driving about 25000 meters you need to change the crown gear.
Tires of the BMW V12 LM98 are worn out after 33000 meters.
It is very important to fix the motor to the chassis.
The braids of the BMW V12 LM98 start to fray after 75000 meters of racing.
More information
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