12v to power a Scalextic in a field

[Jack155Q4]

I am setting up for a charity event a big Scalextric track. This is to be used at a fair which won't have much in the way of plug points (as far as I know).

My idea is to rent from HSS a generator with a 240v output and simply plug in to that. However....I don't want to run the generator the whole day...nor do I want to restart it every time someone has a go.

Would a better solution be to use a car battery keep it topped up with the generator for 30 mins here and there.

Or, what is the likelihood of a car battery lasting the whole day?
Lastly...I have a 12v booster pack too with a 12v output through a cigarette lighter socket....I think I could use that?
No idea how much use the Scalextric will get though but I don't want a power drop off.

Any advice would be really appreciated.
Thanks,
Jack
Thanks

 

[ericmark]

James May did this and used batteries. There is a volt drop problem and I am sure there is a way around it. But to start with google his attempt and see if that answers your questions.

 

[Jack155Q4]

James May did this and used batteries. There is a volt drop problem and I am sure there is a way around it. But to start with google his attempt and see if that answers your questions.

Thanks for the reply. Yes, I remember that. He only needed it to work once though. I need cars to lap on and off for the day.

 

[flameport]

The battery is probably the answer.

Note that the '12v booster pack' and most other things related to car electrics are not actually 12v, and will easily damage items not specifically designed to run from vehicle power.

 

[conny]

Whats the bet it goes on all day?
Especially if you have an interesting/well planned layout as opposed to the simple figure-of-eight.

 

[Jack155Q4]

This will be about 1.5 to 2 boxes of track combined to make one big one.
Difficult decision now about whether I hire the generator or not....

 

[conny]

This will be about 1.5 to 2 boxes of track combined to make one big one.
Difficult decision now about whether I hire the generator or not....

Do you mean one big 2 lane loop without cross-overs etc?
If its for a charity function and you want to raise some serious funds you would be better designing a track that will require some effort to drive on rather than just watching them go round and round a simple loop.
You could even have time trials with the fastest circuit of the hour getting a small prize, (Say a refund of the entrant 'fee'), with a decent prize for fastest time of the day over a measured number of laps.
Also, if you can prove it is for a charitable event some hire companies may hire you a small generator in return for advertising their product or handing out flyers for their shop.

 

[Jack155Q4]

This will be about 1.5 to 2 boxes of track combined to make one big one.
Difficult decision now about whether I hire the generator or not....

Do you mean one big 2 lane loop without cross-overs etc?
If its for a charity function and you want to raise some serious funds you would be better designing a track that will require some effort to drive on rather than just watching them go round and round a simple loop.
You could even have time trials with the fastest circuit of the hour getting a small prize, (Say a refund of the entrant 'fee'), with a decent prize for fastest time of the day over a measured number of laps.
Also, if you can prove it is for a charitable event some hire companies may hire you a small generator in return for advertising their product or handing out flyers for their shop.

It is quite a complex track (not entirely sure how much I have...it might be over 2 boxes worth (bought a big job lot of rusty stuff for a tenner. It has ups and downs, crossovers, tight turns ect.....not a basic layout.
I see it as a cross between Suzuka and the Nurburgrung
It is set out on a 244x122cm MDF.
It is painted green and just needs prettying up now with accessories..

The idea is a time trial through the day with a Top Gear style leader board. £50 up for grabs for the best lap of the day (I will have a proper digital lap timer) plus the hourly prize.. Sweets for all competitors etc

Good point on the free hire for advertising....I will ask HSS. It is only £15 for a day but a saving is a saving.

 

[big-all]

i used to have a railway layout with the same motors[not can motors] it was quite a big layout so used 2 car batteries with 50% out the circuit on one battery as i found 18v was the best level with the drain off 12v light and the resistance off the bt phone wires and the track being a scale 1.25 and 1.35 miles around the attic the layout was 12ft by 35ft so the cuircut was slightly smaller if you can get actual 16v dc at the controller you will get away with around a scale mile [4mm to the inch 1/76 scale]
if its a big curcuit then 2 or 3 wires to different points will reduce the volt loss
should mention the batteries where the back up system so the trickle charge would maybe make the actual voltage around 10% more at 20v but after time delay as they wernt charged for months perhaps 19v

 

[Jack155Q4]

i used to have a railway layout with the same motors[not can motors] it was quite a big layout so used 2 car batteries with 50% out the circuit on one battery as i found 18v was the best level with the drain off 12v light and the resistance off the bt phone wires and the track being a scale 1.25 and 1.35 miles around the attic the layout was 12ft by 35ft so the cuircut was slightly smaller if you can get actual 16v dc at the controller you will get away with around a scale mile [4mm to the inch 1/76 scale]
if its a big curcuit then 2 or 3 wires to different points will reduce the volt losspoints

Thanks for the input (no pun intended). I must admit that what you are saying is beyond my basic electrical knowledge..sorry.

 

[big-all]

ok how many metres or feet is the total cuircut length from start to finnish[start point] and do you have "can motors "

 

[Jack155Q4]

ok how many metres or feet is the total cuircut length from start to finnish[start point] and do you have "can motors "

I do have can motors (this is the type in the car):
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/FOUR-BRAN...lot_Cars_ET&hash=item256496099a#ht_1179wt_952

The track is very roughly 12 meters.
Thanks,
Jack

 

[big-all]

ok you will probably get great results from a car battery on a boost charge [plus 20%=14.4v]as opposed to trickle charge [12.8 to 13.5v ish]

if you have a slow down mid cuircut add further power wires to that point to get less power loss more speed

 

[bernardgreen]

Many years ago I did a four lane track for a hospital fete. That was supplied by car batteries. One in use and one of charge, change over by crocodile clips.

Layout was a rectangle with a few curves in the back "straight". I recall that most people just "hit the gas" and cars spun off at the end of the straight and some bed pillows were "obtained" to act as soft impact zones to reduce damage to cars.

Scaletrix were very generous and donated several cars and a considerable amount of track to the hospital. In spite of the pillows quite a few of the cars were written off by the end of the day

Running any sort of competition was impossible. Without a cross over the outer track was longer that the inner one which meant the driver on the inner track had an advantage. It was run as pay your money and do so many laps and then next customer. That was the faster turn round for customers and the quickest way to get cash from them.

The track was in direct sun light and got hot enough to deform. This meant the electrical connections between sections failed. I had several feed points spread around the track which saved the day. You will need people to replace cars on the track. If you have optical sensors for detecting cars and counting laps then be aware they may not work in bright sun light. Mine didn't

 

[timtheenchanter]

what type of cars are you running, my understanding is the older "analog" cars had speed controlled through the voltage going to the track, this would have a larger voltage drop issue as you could only feed power from one point.
If you have the newer "digital" cars, the speed is controlled in the car, so you can do as James May did and have power connected at various points around the track.