Constructing an RC Track - Need Advice!
 

Hi. I am a noob to RCU from One18th.com (RIP).

That said, you can probably guess I mainly like smaller scale RC's... however, I own several 1/8 & 1/10 nitros and electrics too.

My problem is that the cops have started giving us grief for driving in the 100% empty school parking lot across from my home (non school hours, never past 7-8pm with nitros... damn porkers...). Anyways, I have been itching to make a track of my own in my mostly unused backyard anyways, so it seems like the time to do it.

I want a dirt track that will mainly be used for 1/18 cars on up to the 1/8 nitros. What is the minimum track width I should use for a track that will run 1/8th nitros? Just the minimum for a fun race, as I will often be using smaller cars. Also, what would the minimum square footage I would need to use be?

I think that is all I need to really know at this point. Knowing the min track width and track area to use I can do a Google Sketchup of the track and then post that here to get further advice.

Btw, if I have room left I'd like to do a 1/18 only concrete (or something similar) figure 8 track, any tips or anything on this? has anyone done this before?

Thanks in advance, and I appologize if I posted in the wrong place!



-Adam

RE: Constructing an RC Track - Need Advice!
 

how much is your space?

RE: Constructing an RC Track - Need Advice!
 

I'd conservatively guess about 80 wide by 60 deep. I'd like to do the minimum size that will still be fun to drive on, as I just got a dog and I want to leave her some room when she gets big... but I don't want to bother with anything too small to enjoy.

RE: Constructing an RC Track - Need Advice!
 

80ft by 60ft???

you can really make a real nice and big track for a 1/18 but i wouldn't bother making it wide enough for a 1/8......

RE: Constructing an RC Track - Need Advice!
 

Thanks rc rock.

So what is the minimum I should use to make a fun/drivable 1/18 track? What should the lane width be?

Just out of curiosity what is the standard (or min) lane width for 1/8th tracks? I read somewher that 44in was standard, but most track lanes I see in vids seem larger, so I question that info.

I'd probably never have more than 5 1/8th nitros driving at once, and maybe 10 1/18's at the most.

I am starting to think your right though, maybe I should make the hour+ drive to the nearest local track for the bigger guys...

So yeah, I guess the main info I need (and I have tried to dig on google for this) is what size I need to allocate (sq/ft) and what lane width to use to drive comfortably and have a good time?

Thanks again!

RE: Constructing an RC Track - Need Advice!
 

Btw, that is the max I would prob have with all my friends who drive over at once... normally it would be more like me and my girl and my best friend... so 3 cars would be normal. Only more if I'm having a cookout or the stars alight and more friends can get together at the same times... :-)

RE: Constructing an RC Track - Need Advice!
 

Just guessing here but 80 x 60 seems big enough for 1/8 to me. I'm not familiar at all with track building but even if you make the lanes 10 feet wide you've got enough space for 6 lanes x 8 lanes and a few 20 foot jumps in between...or is 10 feet not wide enough for 1/8?

RE: Constructing an RC Track - Need Advice!
 

I see two major problems with your idea.
1] it's all but impossible to build a track with enough versatility to run everything from 1/8 to 1/18th. The little ones need smaller tracks with small jumps that would be child's play for larger cars and trucks.
2] If you are considering a backyard track consider that your neighbors aren't going to be hip on the idea of hearing nitro blasts no matter what the hour unless it's Sat. morning when people are cutting grass.
IMO you need to pick a scale and stick to it and design your track around those parameters. Check on youtube.com as there are plenty of tracks and it should give you a general idea of what to shoot for.

RE: Constructing an RC Track - Need Advice!
 

the lanes for 1/8th nee need to be atleast 6 feet wide but to use hat kind of rack for 1/18th would be insaine

the jumps would have to be big for teh bigger cars and trucks and the track it self would be preety pig for a little mini to be driving on

maybe if you have some empty spaec in your house you can make a track for the 1/18th

RE: Constructing an RC Track - Need Advice!
 

^^^Agree. I've seen 1/18 trucks running on big tracks and they look like a tiny fish lost in a huge ocean.

But it's probably more fun trying to run a 1/18 on a 1/8 track than trying to run a 1/8 on a 1/18 track.

edit: I've seen some on-road tracks that can be reconfigured - move a few barriers here and there and convert to a smaller track. It might take some planning but it can be done with an off-road track.

RE: Constructing an RC Track - Need Advice!
 

LOL

And running 1/8 trucks on small tracks is like getting a a Grave Digger-style 1:1 monster truck through a NYC traffic jam.

RE: Constructing an RC Track - Need Advice!
 

Okay, point taken. Thanks alot for making that clear for me guys, I don't know why that didn't hit me sooner, but your right, I suppose it would be pretty much impossible to make a track for both 1/8 - 1/18 scale... I am only going to do a 1/18 scale track then. But still, I would like to know the minimum sq/ft to make it fun and the min lane width to make it usable?

I have watched some youtube vids, but I was hoping for some hard numbers, are there standards for this sort of thing? What about jumps and other track obsticles? How would I know how big and how far apart to make things?

If anyone has had some experience with this and could help me I'd greatly appreciate it, as I'd like to rent a tiller and get started this weekend! :-)

Thanks!

RE: Constructing an RC Track - Need Advice!
 

You should experiment with different sizes. Instead of digging in the berms and jumps for a permanent track right away you should start with a temporary track. Mark temporary lanes and turns with pipe or rope or anything that won't become a hazardous obstacle, then run a few laps - see if it's too narrow or too wide, or if a sharp turn is too close to a 20 foot jump you'll carry too much speed and never make the turn. Unless you've built 1000 tracks those are things you have to experiment with to get it right. 6 feet seems like a good starting point - enough to put 6 trucks side by side on the starting line.

RE: Constructing an RC Track - Need Advice!
 

My own personal experience with 1/18 offroad is that lane with is usually somewhere between 4 and 6 feet, oval tends to be wider.
Personally as far as making a layout my advice would be to not make it too busy, too many turns with too many jumps so you're not wrecking all over and having to run and flip a car over all the time.
And if it was me instead of trying to build jumps out of soil which end up being poor angles and hard to repair, to make temporary jumps that you can remove at the end of the day out of plywood and astroturf. That way you can return your yard to some semblance or normalcy when it's not being used for a raceday. And that way it's a little easier to tryout what works and what doesn't and rebuild them as neccessary.
I've raced a lot indoors and that's what they use on carpet offroad tracks, and I can tell you the jumps are better and way more consistent.

RE: Constructing an RC Track - Need Advice!
 

i agree about to many jumps... you want some kindof "dificulty" so the track doesn't get "old" real fast, but then again, you don't want to play "run and flip the car, drive again, flip the car, drive again....", IMO you need at leatst 2' (for "single file), and 3'+ for multiple cars, those are some rough numbers that i can think of, other than that, just lay stuff out, that is my favorite way of doing it, lay it out, drive it, throw in a few little wooden jumps... and have fun, in the end you may want to keep it that way with the temporary stuff because you can easily change things around if you get borred, as for a good lane marker, i use 3/4" (forget the "sch" of the pipe, but it was rly thin walled and cheap) PVC pipe, that width is enough to "strand" any lane jumpers yet is low enough to drive over if you want to hit a jump again:)

RE: Constructing an RC Track - Need Advice!
 

i'd say 5 feet for a nice enjoyable 1/18 track.....

RE: Constructing an RC Track - Need Advice!
 

Thanks everyone for the advice! I really appreciate the tips and info!!!!!!!!!!!
I hope to get started on this project this weekend, depending on the weather. I will share pics when I'm done.

RE: Constructing an RC Track - Need Advice!
 

GOOD IDEA