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The NASTE Forum → Posts by wb0s
Sorry about the Saturday race date Doc, but you are making more money than I am for sure!
The hummingbird was not happy. It had finally made its way upstairs and was beating itself up against the window. That was where I was able to finally catch it. Even with the overhead door wide open it was unable to find its own way out. I walked it outside onto the deck to let it go. When I opened my hand it just sat there for a minute or two. Then up and off it went......
Thanks for the nice comments guys. I really enjoy having all of you racers over. My time spent on the track is time well spent. I actually enjoy working on the track more than working on my cars!
It's Wednesday before the race and time to start prepping the track. First off thank you to the guys that offered to help me with the track cleaning. I really appreciate the offers but, I am totally anal when it comes to my track. I have a certain method/procedure I follow when I clean the track, and I am just most comfortable executing that process myself. The care I take when cleaning the track surface and braid is probably extreme and over the top, but I have my reasons! It isn't hard, and it does not take a great deal of time. I just crank up my music and get to it. I hope nobody gets offended by me declining their offer to help, it's just me.
It is 3:00pm and I am finished. I started around 11:00am, had lunch from noon to 1:00pm, and finished up after spending a half hour or so capturing a humming bird that found its way into the shop. I had the overhead door open for ventilation because I use Naptha for the track cleaning. Evidently the bird did not mind the smell.
Tomorrow I may do a quick cleaning of the braid. It doesn't look bad because I just did a thorough cleaning of the braid the last time I cleaned the track. I inspected the braid and it all looks good. There was only one small spot where it has curled just a little, and I will repair that with a little adhesive tomorrow.
My philosophy as a track owner is to have the track 100% ready for races. I want there to be NO issues with the track and or its operation. Any handling problems or deslotting issues need to be either car set up or driver caused. I need to do my best to assure racers those types of problems are not track created. All I ask from racers is diligence in being sure the car you are running on the track is not causing any damage to the track braid or racing surface. This primarily means checking your car for proper ground clearance, especially under the crown or even more importantly, the spur gear. Other areas of concern are the edges of pans and screw heads. Lastly please remember, no additional tire glue. It is OK to CLEAN or add conditioner to your tires (i.e. muscle rub or similar creams). Your tires should feel dry, not wet or greasy after cleaning/conditioning. This track is for you guys, the racers. Please treat it as yours!
Lastly, since I became the caretaker of Inslot's Checkered Flag, I have completed a great deal of work on it. In addition to the redesign and reconstruction of the "Dead Man" curve section of the track track, I have reconstructed and moved the driver's stations, reconstructed many of the side walls, and rewired the entire track adding more power taps. The wiring has been customized for the ability to select different computers and timing/lap counting systems. I have also completely rebraided the track. This is the one task I do not enjoy, at all! If we all just stay on top of our cars maintenance the braid should be good for many more years! But, when the track gets to the point of needing to be rebraided it will be time for the track to move to a new home! I am over 70 years old now and I will not rebraid it again!
Thank you all for racing here, and I am looking forward to seeing everybody on Saturday for the Sportsman race!
IROC Slot Car Race at Electron Raceway
Hello everyone,
As some of you know, I’m planning a special IROC-style slot car race at Electron Raceway. The event is scheduled for Saturday, June 13, 2026.
Inspired by the original International Race of Champions, this event removes equipment advantages and puts the focus where it belongs—on the driver.
All racers will compete in identically prepared, bullet-proofed H-Bracket chassis (2NASTE and Scholer), fitted with 1/24-scale Ferrari F430 plastic bodies. The result is a true test of smoothness, consistency, and racecraft.
I’ve prepared five identical cars—one for each lane plus a dedicated spare. Cars remain on their assigned lanes, and racers rotate. Racers may use their own controllers, and a few loaners will be available if needed.
The entry fee is $10 and includes lunch. Doors open at 9:00 AM, with racing beginning shortly after lunch. My goal is to complete the event by 6:00 PM at the latest.
The field will be limited and filled on a first-come, first-served basis, and several spots have already been reserved. If you’re interested, please contact me to reserve a spot or to ask any questions.
I’ve also created a new video that explains the IROC concept and includes images of the chassis, bodies, and completed cars. The video is accessible to everyone—see the link below:
IROC Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VeTo1Bg8I6Q
Attached is a PDF of the race flyer, along with an image of the finished cars. I have also included a text only version of the race flyer below
I hope you’ll consider joining us for a fun, competitive, and truly driver-focused event.
Best regards,
Rich Vecchio
PS - You may get a duplicate copy of this email because you are on more than one of my mailing lists. Disregard one of the copies
Race Flier Text
IROC Slotcar Race
Electron Raceway – June 13, 2026
Where: Electron Raceway – 420 Cascara Lane, Roseburg, Oregon
When: June 13th 2026
Entrants:
· Field will be limited
· Accepted on a first come, first served basis
· Fee: $10 (includes lunch)
Cars Provided:
· Four H-Bracket Cars (2NASTE, Scholer) equally prepared; one for each lane.
· One dedicated spare (used only if a primary car fails)
Format: IROC
· Cars remain on an assigned lane
· Drivers Rotate
Schedule of Events:
· Doors open at 9:00 A.M.
· Lunch 11:30 P.M.
· Race Program Begins
To secure your spot or ask questions, contact Rich Vecchio
· 458- 314- 0841
· Email: vecchio.richard@gmail.com
We definitely need to address the chassis durability issue in the rules. We need to decide what chassis modifications are allowable and specify it with appropriate rules for guidance. Hey Bob, how about a meeting for those interested to discuss Midget rules?
Jim, you are absolutely correct! These Midgets are a crowd pleaser whenever and wherever we race them! Everyone that has one has done a great job of painting and detailing them. The races are actually really close, especially when you consider the handling characteristics of these things! The crashes are epic! Bottom line is; they are a lot of fun!
The last race of the night was for the Midget Class. I will admit, I am amazed at the popularity of this class! It has to be based on visual appeal. the cars look awesome! But from a racing standpoint.....not so great in my opinion! For the uninitiated, think of bad handling Womps! Anyway, they ARE popular, and I must admit; they are FUN to race! Bob got a handle on his Midget and the track to take the win over Bill Henry. It was a close battle with the top three all completing over 90 laps!....I just can't believe how much fun these cars are!
Midget Results:
So there you have it. Lots of racing. Three sprint races for three different classes, dinner, and still done by 8:30 PM. Along with some really great racing, I got to enjoy the company of my friends! Again, thank you all!
Pictured left to right: Jerry, Steve (Howie2), Daniel (Doc).
Left to right: Douglas, Steven (Draggin' Guy), Bryan (Flyin'), Al (Meat), Bob (Nak Nak), Jerry. Center: Bill Henry.
Left to right: Gerry, Gary (new guy), Terry (new guy), Mike, Larry Jones (old friend of mine that raced with us in NASTE 1996).
Left to right: Howie, Tim (Tiny), Gerry.
The pace was stepped up dramatically in the Flexi race! The track was hooked up for this race! The cars were faster (of course), the lap times were quicker (of course), and the racing was even closer than the Womp race! 15 of the 16 racers had lap times under the 5 second mark! There was a lot of door to door, side by side racing!
Flexi Race Results:
Inslot's Checkered Flag Raceway hosted the CRSCR Odd Monday Night Race yesterday, February 9 2026. I sincerely hope everyone had as good of a time as I did! Racer attendance was outstanding, and we had five visitors check out our program. I got to see and visit with a few friends that have not made it up for awhile. It was a great evening for me! Thank you all!
Now down to the details. We started off the event with dinner supplied by my beautiful wife Diane. Diane made us a generous portion of sloppy joe sliders. Thank you Diane, I love those sliders!
After the casual dinner we lined the start line with Womps, the first class for the night's racing. Womp races are always close and this race was no exception. The top eight placers all finished with lap totals over 100! Doc was able to take the lead and stay out front for the win. On a side note; Bart raced in my place, and the following racers lost one lap due to deslots across the lap counter: Bob, Al, Bart, and Doug.
Here are the results:
Thanks Howie, I really appreciate that. You and I have talked about my promise to Bob McFarland that I would make the track available to the racers interested in racing PASER style cars. Although PASER raced some classes other than inline scratchbuilt, they focussed mainly on the inline motored chassis. With other sanctioning bodies now covering anglewinder and sidewinder chassied cars, I have limited the PASER classes I will race at Inslot's Checkered Flag to the inline motor classes. That is not to say there won't be any Northwest True Scale or Columbia River Slot Car Racers sanctioned races held here in the future.
With that said, I think racers need to look closely at the NASTE Calendar for upcoming races, and take note of what sanctioning body the races fall under. Finding the rules for each class on the NASTE site is not difficult, but you need to know which rule set to follow.
For the past few years PASER has not been a very active group, or probably more appropriately, a very active sanctioning body. The rules as listed on the NASTE website were taken directly from old PASER Rule books, or pages there of. For two reasons I took the liberty to edit the rules governing the bodies for the Can Am Class; 1.the original Can Am class had split and gone in different directions leaving the PASER version of the class abandoned. 2. Retro (IRRA) racing chassis have become readily available. With the IRRA style chassis available for purchase, I felt it was reasonable to have the rules reflect the original PASER standard of inline motored chassis classes.
I have recently had some conversations about the upcoming race with various interested racers. Some had questions about racing the old Can Am cars they had raced before. With these conversations in mind, I returned the rules regarding bodies for the Can Am Class to the original verbiage:
Body Group: Only Can Am cars that actually raced in the Can Am series, using Lexan Bodies to Scale with a minimum thickness of .010”.
However, I added this to cover races after the February 21st race: (After the Can Am race on April 25, 2026 the minimum body thickness of .030” will be observed requiring the use of Team Bluegroove bodies).
My hope is this will allow racers to participate with any Can Am cars they may have built for PASER in the past, without the need to purchase a new body before April 25th. After the April 25th race the body rule for .030" Team Bluegroove bodies will go into effect. I think the Team Bluegroove bodies will better support PASER's Hardbody Racing theme than the traditional thin Lexan bodies. I apologize for any confusion or difficulties this may have created. =======Bill
Wednesday February 4th I will be dropping off at Howie's Rapid Raceway, all the remaining Team Bluegroove bodies I have in stock that are suitable for the Can Am and Le Mans classes. Please make arrangements with Howie if you're interested in checking out what is left. This will place all the available bodies in one location. If you are unable to find something that suits your needs we may need to discuss putting together a group order.
Wednesday February 4th I will be dropping off at Howie's Rapid Raceway, all the remaining Team Bluegroove bodies I have in stock that are suitable for the Can Am and Le Mans classes. Please make arrangements with Howie if you're interested in checking out what is left. This will place all the available bodies in one location. If you are unable to find something that suits your needs we may need to discuss putting together a group order.
Just for grins I Googled "2 NASTE chassis". here's what I got:
"2 NASTE chassis" refers to a specific type of brass chassis used in 1/24 scale slot car racing, known for being a pre-built, easier-to-assemble alternative to scratch-built chassis, often used in classes that want to level the playing field. It's a common term within slot car enthusiast groups, often discussed with other brands like Scaleauto or Scholler, and sometimes requires minor adjustments like thread chasing for optimal performance.
Key Characteristics:
Material: Made from brass for strength and handling.
Type: A screw-together design, making assembly simpler than traditional scratch-built chassis.
Purpose: Used in slot car racing to provide a standardized platform for different builds, especially for racers with less building experience.
Variations: Can be used for various body styles, like Nastrucks, with models designed for different container sizes (e.g., 20' or 40') or configurations.
Where You'll Find It:
Slot Car Forums: Discussions on Facebook groups (like Nastruck group) and dedicated forums for slot car enthusiasts.
Manufacturers: Associated with specific brands or local producers in the slot car hobby.
In short, if you see "2 NASTE chassis," think easy-to-build, brass, 1/24 scale slot car racing frames.
Thanks Steven! You are going to be a busy boy!
This small box was an Ebay purchase I had made a number of years ago. It was pretty badly damaged in shipping, but I repaired it to the point of it being useable. I did not do much in the way of the cosmetics, I just cleared coated it leaving the "battle" scars. Being so small and with how the shelves and drawers were arranged inside it was not much use as a 1/24 racing box until
.....Steven and his neighbor came up with this really cool idea for an attachment for race boxes that would house your controller. Well, I had to have one and Steven was nice enough to hook me up (thanks again Steven!)! I attached the controller trunk to the backside of this little box. It fit perfectly! It is hinged on one end and has a magnetic latch on the opposite end. It works perfectly for this box!
This box was one Gary "Goose" Gossett had used to carry his race stuff. I will be using it as my new race box. It is a little bit bigger than the Hoffman 1200 I was using, but overall weight isn't much more. Goose had a few stickers on it, I added a bunch!
I don't remember exactly where I picked this box up. The lid had a silver plate (probably from a race event somewhere) that just happened to say Checkered Flag Raceway. It also had an original Hoffman sticker still in place, and some other damaged stickers. I replaced the damaged Redline Racing Lubricants with a reproduction one and added a vintage "Hobby World" sticker as a tribute to my buddy Dave Smith. The front fold down door retains its original hand lettered "Slot Cars Unlimited", and I added a Rat Fink repro sticker and an MRRC repro sticker, both purchased off Ebay.
While I had the clear and the brush out, and I was in the mood, I decided to get some clear on some other boxes.
This box has an old Northwest Model Car Racing Association sticker on it. In my opinion a real prize indicating this is a true vintage slot car race box!
This box only had two stickers on the lid, the Northwest Model Car Racing Racing Association and another that was pretty much scratched off. I placed a new sticker over the damaged one, and added a couple more repopped vintage stickers. You can get
reproductions of most any of the old vintage slot car or automotive racing stickers on ebay!
I finished applying the clear coat to my latest Ebay box.
It doesn't look any different but, it is sealed now so the exterior won't regrade further.
I managed to get a few photos during the race.
Pre-race everyone was preparing their cars.
Terry and Bill working the turns.
Mike ran a great race finishing third.
Rapid Raceway is a fast and challenging course!
The race monitor is positioned well for all the racers to keep track of the race info.
Drivers and turn marshals were focussed during this event!
I just received this message from Jim Mitchell today.
"Hello Slot Racers,
I am happy to announce that Dust Devil Slot Cars is now open, up and running as of 10:00 A.M. Dec. 26, 2025.
The track is an eight-lane circuit, around 155 feet long. There is a "Parts Department" for sales, service, and repairs. Power outlets are located at all driver pit tables and there is plenty of seating / parking, slot car displays, and memorabilia.
We will be running: CAN/AM, Le Mans, and Sports Cars classes, all in hard body and Lexan body. The Trans-AM challenge class will be Lexan only.
Dust off some of those old slot cars which have not been used in years, and come have fun with them again!!!
We are located in Powell Butte, (in Central Oregon, 97753)
Thanks for your interest,
Jim."
I was lucky enough to get a look at Jim's new shop and the track before it was completely set up. This is a top notch racing facility! I am looking forward to getting in some laps here!
Awesome Cobra GT Jim! Great job on the paint Nicki!
I can't argue with you on the FCR based cars. However, I tried the H&R chassis (both the early versions and the later versions) and they are junk! With that said, in Roseburg they race a couple of different classes using modified H&R chassis. They add thick brass side pans bolted to the sides of the chassis. They also race an Indy Car class cutting the chassis to fit model car Indy Car bodies. They seem to like them.
From time to time I get questions about Inslot's Checkered Flag. Here are some of the more common questions and answers:
Q). What is the total lap length?
A). 81.833 feet (on centerline)
Red lane = 81' 11 3/4"
White lane = 81' 10 1/4"
Blue lane = 81' 9 1/4"
Yellow lane = 81' 9"
Q). How long is the longest straight?
A). 17 feet.
Q). What is the track voltage?
A). 13.4 volts = RV Power Converter Charger.
Q). What is the depth of the track braid.
A). The braid is recessed approximately .030".
The NASTE Forum → Posts by wb0s
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