Also to ensure this car stays put on the base during shipping, aside
from the small screw holding the car down attached to the chassis,
there is a light weight plastic dome that hits snugly over the car. So
even if the screw does come loose, the car won't bounce around in the
box....EXCELLENT!
Ok, now let's get that car out of the box finally! There are
certain liveries that inspire collectors and racers alike, the Gulf
liveries, the Jagermeister liveries, and the Rothman's liveries. This
Rothman's car (which comes with "Racing" stickers over the Rothman's
markings) is an outstanding example of this iconic race car.
Whether leaving the car as it is suits your taste or you feel the need
to show the world those cigarette logo's you can do what you like with
this car and it looks good either way. Along the sides of this
particular slot car the slightly darker "Racing" sticker is lined up
well on the car and is quite close tonally to the base color on the
body.
The paint on this car is opaque and there's nothing to catch the eye
and ruin that "new slot car" experience. There is overspray inside the
body, but hey...it's inside the body so who cares (photo below).
The stripes down the edges of the body and top deck of the car are
straight, even, and perfect. I don't take quality like this for granted
when I see it, so I thought I'd mention it.
The detailing on this
model is exceptional. One nice detail are small "Cibie" logos inside
the light covers on the nose.
Nearly hidden but still worth trying to get and eyeful of is the
driver. Detail, detail, detail...it's all good!
If we remove the usual two body screws and pull the body off we see the
"orange endbell" 21.5k motor (which actually turns 23k according to
tests we've done at Slot Car News BTW) and standard 28 tooth crown
gear. The motor is mounted on the endbell side and between it and the
crown is the magnet. No surprises here just the usual slot car goodness
we've all come to expect from Slot It.
On the 60+ foot wood track I did some testing on this car performed
exceptionally right out of the box. Pre-testing prep work was only some
lube on the bearings, motor and gears along with a few turns out on the
motor pod screws to allow a bit of rattle. I replaced the stock tires
with the S2's that come in a small bag with the car and off I went. Lap
times for this car were very, very good. The car nearly did a
5-second-flat-lap which is only half a second slower than highly
modified 956's that I race. Honestly I was apprehensive about the
high-torque "orange endbell" because I hadn't raced one before. I found
the motor quite well mannered and not overpowering for this car. It was
smooth out of the corners and blinding down the straight. This was my
first experience with a 962 as I mentioned earlier and I found the car
much better in the turns than the 956's, which tend to be a bit more
tail-happy than this car.
The bottom line is obvious I think... this is a car that every slotter
who's into Slot It's, Porsche's, or just has a pulse should buy. It's
simple, there are only 6000 of these to go around so WHAT ARE YOU
WAITING FOR?!?!
Thanks to Fantasy World Hobbies for supplying this car for review!
Dave Kennedy
Publisher, Slot Car News
