Tires, Tires and more Tires
The first race in the Austin Slot Car Clubs 2019 calendar is this coming Saturday and although there is a limited number of things you can do to improve the handling of your Group C contender the one item that can have a huge effect are your car’s tires.
Just like 1 to 1 racing, the tires you run can be the difference between finishing first or finishing somewhere else, and no one wants to finish somewhere else. The catch to the tires is that there are multiple choices you can run. Unlike the races held in the warmer months, the races in January and February can be down right frigid. The unconditioned club room can have an ambient temperature of 40 degrees with track temps not much warmer. This is a 50-degree swing from the temperatures in July and August. These colder temps mean the tried and true Slot It F30 tires do not have the same grip they would have in the summer. So the question is: what tires should I run? How about some F22’s? They have a lot more grip in the colder temps but don’t push them too hard accelerating out of the turns or they might start to blister. If that is the case, how about some N22’s? These have better durability than the F22’s but really need to be glued to the rim to hold them in place otherwise they can chatter during hard cornering. Then you could just go with standard F30’s and hope everyone’s personal heaters warm up the room to a temperature they will find some grip. What about some little tire warmers?
The forecast for the start of the race on Saturday is 60 degrees. Three choices of tires – F30’s, F22’s or N22’s. What will your choice be for the first race of the season? Let’s see who has chosen wisely.