New Releases from Monogram Spied!

Just for the readers Slotter Blotter here are three of Revell/Monograms next slot cars. It’s no secret they were on display in Las Vegas last week at an industry show, but these should be the first time you’ve seen them. There will be minor changes before the production run. First is the red and white number 21, 1963 Galaxie of Marvin Panch.

Next is the yellow number 27 ‘65 of good ol’ Junior Johnson. It may not show here but the yellow on this one is a little too bright. It’ll be more pastel in the production version.

Both of these Fords are RTR like the Jarrett and Roberts cars. Also for my examination is the new Ferrari 275P. So beautiful I wanted to steal it. It’s the 1964 Sebring winner just like the good old days.

This will be in kit form for you folks including the same size case and clear cover as the ready-to-runs. The graphics are tampo printed on and protected with a clear coat. The chassis is the MRRC that we’ve seen on the Chaparral 2, King Cobra, and Porsche 904 but you will assemble it. Accompanying the 275P will be a GTO/LM number 30 from Daytona also in kit form. It wasn’t there to take pictures of. I think somebody stole it. He,he.

The Fords will probably be June releases while the Ferrari kits a month or two later. I did try to ask about production numbers for these cars and why the Galaxies were sold out so fast. The frustration at Revell under the new owners keeps them from betting on slot cars very heavily in their overall investment. We are a much smaller niche than they’d like. It could also be the market of people wanting these old 60’s racers is shrinking.

Are you shrinking? Take more calcium tablets!

Seriously. If you like what Revell is doing, write them. They need encouragement. Not criticism. a letter from a customer is a powerful thing. Tell them we want models, not toys.

Written by Mike Delaney

How Could You NOT Want One of These?

Hey boys and girls, let’s examine the latest revelation in modelcar racing. The two car “Limited Edition” set of Lotus and Eagle from Scalextric (Hornby). We were notified of this exciting pair by our reliable friend Vincent Vega way back in December and now they’re here. And Wow! Nice! Labeled “1967 The Year of Legends” you get the remarkable Dan Gurney Eagle Weslake V-12 from the Belgium Grand Prix and Jim Clark in his victorious Lotus Cosworth 49 from the Mexican GP later that year. Even though Jack Brabham in his own creation won the World championship in 1967, these two were winners in their own right that year and frequently shared the front row. And I think this is a more famous pairing by far. Nice job Scalextric. This set is limited to only 7000 worldwide. And already there has been such a big stir, many hobby shops are already out of their shipments. I had to call all around to find one. Lucky me, I got it. Now if this is any indication of the impending value of one of these, I’m going to buy every single one I can find. Even if it means selling my GE stock to do it. These can’t possibly be as bad an investment as my stocks have been this past 12 months.

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Scalextric has been very busy lately with their Legends of Racing cars. The first issue a few years ago of their 1957 250F Maserati Grand Prix car was the old standard Mabuchi can in front-motor position with a drive shaft. The number 1 car was the great Juan Manuel Fangio. Like all Scaley’s it had the traction magnet I’ve come to detest so much, and the tires were marginal making the car tricky to drive. However the car is a beautiful model. Silicones were better but the look of drag slicks on an old F1 seemed awkward. Once I mastered this creature I still couldn’t find any friends who could, so now she lives on the shelf. Then there are the Vanwalls, I just had to have the Stirling Moss Vanwall. Here’s a car that I converted to a Ninco NC-1 powered non-mag racer that is fun to drive. And we widened the track just a bit too. But that’s another story, and a story in itself. Stay tuned.

The next nice surprise from the folks in Margate was the slimmer 60’s Formula Ones, the Cooper Coventry Climax of Jack Brabham (Sir, now) and our own World Champion, Phil Hill’s super Ferrari 156 sharknose from 1961. These are really nice models. Each car has subsequently gotten team-mates released too. (I think the Von Trips car outsold the Hill car for some morbid reason. Could it be they just released fewer of those?) For these slim bodies Scalextric chose the new FF motor previously used in the current F-1s but with no reduction in rpm so they are “bursty fast". If you like to drive at full 12 volts and depress the throttle all the way on the straights, these cars will scare you. And being magnet cars they can come off the track with a lot of velocity. I had my Ferrari only a week, before I was looking for a shop that stocked the spare suspension pieces and wheels. They broke as fast as they raced. Here’s another great project for a slower motor like the Maserati. but that’s another story. Watch this blog.

Previous releases in Scalextrics CLASSIC RANGE of Grand Prix cars.

Now back to our stars of the day. And possibly the “models of the year” to many of us. What could possibly be wrong with these? Not much. Scalextric did a lot of homework, these are almost perfect. Of course they have those nasty high revving FF motors in there. You’ll want to run them on less than 12 volts for sure. If you run them at all. I’m thinking I’ll get a set to look at, and a pair to run. But before I tell you how they run I’ll tell you what I see. The color blue on the Eagle should be darker and metallic. The number roundels are a different white that the stripe on the car so I think they modelled it after a restored one. My books from 1967 don’t show a shade difference, they should be the same white. And of course the transmission in back wasn’t so dang huge. But that’s that way to enclose the ring gear as a slot car. It’s even more noticeable on the Lotus. I do wish both cars had rubberized tailpipes like they’ve been doing to the mirrors on the LMP Audi R10 and Porsche Spyder. Easy breaky! I thought everybody knew Jim Clark had a dark blue helmet, not black, but I’ve got paint. While the Eagle has nicely lettered Goodyears, the Lotus got stuck with unlettered blackwalls. My reference shows gold lettered and striped Firestones on the Loti. Of course I’ll pretend he’s on loaners from Dunlop.

Now how do they run? Have I broken one yet? They are both so nice and well made they can handle more voltage than I thought they could. And the tires run straight and true and I don’t even want to sand them bald. The Eagle handles a little better than the Lotus. But that may just be my track causing that. Yes these are the very same high RPM FF motors we suspected. I do suggest that if you can lower the voltage, that you do so. There is however a solution out there in the aftermarket. If you want to change the motor. But that’s another story. And it’ll be my next installment.

A McLaren and a Ferrari living together in the same box. I can’t believe it!

In conclusion, I must confess that these two, the Lotus and the Eagle, got me so ga-ga over the historic Formula Ones that I couldn’t resist grabbing up another set that I skipped last year, because I just “knew” we wouldn’t race them. Shelf Queens, I hate ‘em! This is the 1975 pair of Jame Hunt and Niki Lauda. Pretty, huh? Now I gotta find me some 1/32 Marlboro decals.

Written by Mike Delaney