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Mike, NASTE is an informal group. We don't really have memberships. Our numbers vary from race to race.

There is one club with a track in the Springfield area, Pelican Park. They have been oranized and racing steadily since the 80's. There is a link to their website on our "links" page under "Northwest Clubs, Tracks".

Another in your area are the tracks owned by Kimm Marshal in Eugene. You can get more info regarding his tracks on the OSCAR website which is also listed in our links.

----------------------Bill

Thanks guys, it was fun. As far as which car I preferred, that's a hard question. For a faster action type of class (something based on the Econo, FCR, or Pro-Trac), I like the idea of racing the Parma FCR cars. Like Bryan said the price is right, and I think with a little bit of tuning they would work well. The FCR chassis are 4.5" wheelbase cars, and model car bodies can be mounted with clear packing tape. The chassis appear bullet proof!

I really like the Classic vintage car. I would enjoy a vintage type class using lexan bodies. Actually the Classic car can be put into the same category as the Econo, FCR, and Pro-Tracs when it comes to overall speed (depending on motors). I ran my car with the brass pan modification Larry made, and without. The car is faster and better handling with the pan, but it works well without it also (just more challenging). These cars with Jel Claw rear tires are great fun to drive! The issue again with these is parts availability.

That brings us to the EJ's and Carrera cars. The 1/24 Carrera car worked surprisingly well right out of the box! It's slow and slides but it is predictable and a lot of fun! The only modification this car would require is shorter front tires to get the guide flag to sit deeper in the slot. Then there's the EJ's car, which to start with was my favorite. But right out of the box this thing does not handle. On my track the tires did not hook up at all, and when I switched to Jel Claws they hooked up too well, and then the motor overpowered the chassis. I'm going to give this one a little more work (not giving up on it yet).

So at this point here are my favorites (not necessarily the best cars) in order; 1- Classic,  2- Carrera,  3- FCR.
These ratings may change!   ------------------Bill

The bottom of the heap. This one was a disappointment, as I had high hopes for the Cheetah.

EJ's:

Again the problem seems to be with a lot of power and a light chassis. What adds to the poor handling characteristics of this car is the short wheelbase. As it is, assembled right out of the box it is a major handful! The rear tires had no grip. The car was unpredictable and extremely loose. A switch to Jel Claws on the rear took the car to the other extreme, way too tight and just as unpredictable. The lap times were better than the Carrera car, but only because the Cheetah was so much faster on the straights. I could not put together a string of more than 3 or 4 consistent laps. I plan to try some gearing changes to see if that helps, but my real feeling is this car needs less motor. This car definitely needs some work! Best lap = 6.116

The next car (performance-wise) was the Pro-Trac car. This car combines Cheetah motor power, a lightweight chassis, and Pro-Trac grippy 1" tall tires, with model car body. Probably not the ideal combination.

Pro-Trac:

This car was fast, but very hard to run at it's limit. Even after the tires got a little dirty and started sliding around a bit, it was still way too tight. For the motors power and the lightness of the chassis, this car has too much tire. I've seen and run these cars with weight added in the form of thicker brass side pans. This modification makes a big improvement in their handling. But my feeling is if you're going to go to all that work, you might as well just step up to an Econo car chassis. I am going to try experimenting with this chassis as an open wheel type car. We'll see...... Best lap = 4.956

What became obvious during the testing was these cars really represent two diverse groups. The Econo car, Parma FCR, and Pro-Trac cars represent the faster cars of the bunch. If high performance and ultimate speed is what you're looking for, one of these cars would probably be your best choice. All the cars were tested in "stock" configuration, and in all cases I'm sure some tuning and tweaking would improve their performance.

Parma FCR:

The Parma FCR chassis took second place on my score card. This particular car was fitted with a stock Parma 16D motor (actually and old "pink" endbell motor). Because this car was lighter than the Econo car it was actually faster on the straights. Cornering speed was lower than the Econo car, but predictable and smooth, even when fitted with 1" tall Pro-Trac rear tires. Handling could be improved further with some chassis tuning and the addition of some lead. This car is comparable to the Pro-Trac car, however it was much easier to drive consistently. The FCR's advantage over the Pro-Trac car is probably due to it's heavier chassis. I think this chassis would make a great foundation for a "big tire" NASCAR class. My next plans for this car are the installation of 1" tall wheels and tires all the way around, and to fit it with a NASCAR model car body. I'll test it again after the mods. Best lap = 4.464 sec.

-------------------Bill

Not looking like much of a deal now......

Bryan informed me the Parma FCR RTR chassis are available for $31.20.  ---------------Bill

How much was the "Buy-It-Now" price? Looks like that options gone now with the 5 bids....

Here's the Parma FCR chassis (available in RTR form) for "hardbody" cars. This is an example I have had for quite some time. These chassis use standard, readily available Parma parts. The front and rear axle bushings are the square type as used on the rear of the Parma Flexi cars. The bushings allow slight adjustments in ride height. The chassis is a solid one piece brass stamping although a little thicker and heavier than the Pro-Trac chassis. The wheelbase of this chassis is fixed at approximately 4.5 inches. The cost on these is around $40.

Advantages: 1) Brand new parts. 2) Multiple motor options as any 16D sized can can be easily fitted to the chassis. 3) Durable.

We've already had quite a bit of discussion on the vintage 36D cars. This particular one was assembled by Larry Cockerham. The one non-stock item on this chassis is the .090" brass mini-pan that mounts to the front axle. This greatly improves the handling of the car. I will go out on a limb and say I expect this car to be the best handling of the bunch! These cars typically are fitted with lexan bodies.

The chassis pictured is fitted with Jel Claw rear silicon tires. These cars can be picked up off Ebay. The are usually many examples for sale, and condition varies greatly. Generally the prices run from $20 to $50 depending on condition, and how complete they are.

Advantages: 1) Many types of lexan bodies are available that will fit these cars. 2) Collector value (although not as high as a "hardbodied" vintage car) but there is still potential to fully recover the cost of the car.

Lots of discussion going on regarding the vintage style chassis. My whole goal with this type of class would be to have a class of 1/24 cars we could race for years to come. Early on NASTE raced the original NASTE Chassis cars with RadioShack motors for years. We went through 5 or 6 seasons using the same chassis and just used different makes and styles of model car bodies for the different classes. We definitely got our money's worth with those cars! Most of us "old guys" still have our original cars, as do some of the "young guys"!

This time around I was looking for cars that are easily obtainable, relatively inexpensive, and don't require any major modifications or expert level building ability. So to further the discussion, here are some more prospects in addition to the vintage sidewinder 36D cars:

Listed in no particular order, left to right, front to rear; 1/24 EJs Hobbies kit (shown with the Cheetah body. There are other styles available), vintage Garvic, Pro-Trac RTR, Parma FCR (available as RTR). Testing to follow................

I guess what I'm really wondering is would they all be close enough in performance if we just spec'd the "orange" motors? Racers could run inline, sidewinder, or anglewinder - their choice, in any type car. Or maybe designate a body class (i.e. vintage sports car, can am, or endurance?). We'll probably need some more testing to determine how equal the different configurations are in performance. Who would be interested in scheduling a couple "test" races? Maybe one on my 6 lane 1/24 track, and one on Randy's plastic track? Both races would be non-magnetic.
    -------------------------Bill