Jaguar XK120 and Triumph TR3 by Mark Gussin
JAGUAR XK120
This
car has remained in my loft for many years as a made-up static kit.
I
believe the same car has been sold by other manufacturers in the past,
most recently Lindberg. Time has marched on, Ninco wire wheels have
answered
the prayers of many a static to slot car conversion fanatic and EJs in
the U.S.A. have produced some Monogram style chassis again. An old
Riko
chassis would also do. The plan was to simply convert the Jag into a
good looking classic slot racer without any hassle. The body is an
extremely
simple moulding and after stripping I installed body posts, sprayed it
up, bare metal foiled the grill and laquered the lot. I really wanted
it to look mean so black had to be the colour. I also stripped the
wheels
of their chrome and painted them dark red. Wicked! I used a Ninco driver's
body but used an Airfix soldiers head as they have far better detail.
I also fitted a small aeroscreen instead of the rather poor quality
windshield
of the Lindberg kit.. Getting the Ninco wire wheels and axles adapted
to the EJ chassis was the real revelation. Using SCX grey plastic rear
axle bearings (Scalex white bearings also work) with the flange removed
with a sharp knife (scalpel) these push perfectly into the oilite bearing
holes. So all you have to do now is cut the axles down in length to
minimise
sideways play. I used the 13UO EJs motor and to get a good mesh removed
the brass gear and replaced it with a plastic scalextric/Ninco type.
Fit
the guide, wire it up and it is ready for the body to be fitted. Performance
is great with the longish wheelbase, low centre of gravity and good
grip
in the tyres. The other benefit of using such a simple body is than when
it does de-slot and tumble off the circuit all the bits don't fall
off!
Since writing this note Ninco have released their own version. It is
a good looking model but I just love the meanness of mine.
18th June 1998
TRIUMPH TR3
I have a problem with this car. I never used
to like it, I hate the grill area of the TR2 but I now love the TR3
and saw recently at Goodwood
Festival of Speed a couple of race versions and they looked wonderful.
I remember Robert Schleisher in his book doing a conversion on one.
I
had a fairly recently reissued Lindberg unmade kit but sold it because
it didn't look right. Well I found the body only at a recent National
Scalextric Collectors Club swapmeet. For £2 I thought I'd have a go.
The conversion itself was just the same as the XK120 but the minor
changes
to the bodywork made all the difference. The most important being that
the wheel arches were opened up slightly, they are now correctly proportioned
and the Ninco wheels fit beautifully. No windshield. I didn't have
one
anyway but the Lindberg screen was appalling in shape and proportions.
I put on an aeroscreen from the bits box instead. It looks great. The
other thing that sets it off is the roll bar. Made of brass rod 
which
is easy to bend. Cut to shape and sprayed gloss black it looks superb.
These cars look a million dollars if detailed up correctly. The little
man is also very important. I used an Airfix vintage driver, removed his
tie and cut part of his legs off(!). This and the XK120 are great partners
performing really well. I don't like over performing cars; what is the
need to have an XK120 able to achieve the same speeds and cornering as
a Porsche GT1 or a Viper? Matched racing is far more appropriate in my
view.
18th June 1998