Wednesday August 04, 2004
Quick & Easy Braid Adjustment
One of the basics that is very important, yet we do not
hear much about is braid adjustment. This is one of the single most important
items that helps make your slot cars run the way they should. Without clean and
proper braid contact you will most likely see your models "cutting out" (losing
power) on parts of your layout, or even cases of not running at all.
Most all models need some sort of braid
adjustment right out of the box. There are many different methods to adjusting
braids, however I have found over time one way that is very quick and easy to
not only adjust new braids, but to clean and maintain older ones. Adjusting and
cleaning your braids isn't rocket science, and it doesn't have to be.
On models such as those found from Fly, you can see how the braid is very flat against the guide. The first thing I do is take the braid and lift up on it slightly to give it a little more pressure towards the rails. This helps a great deal, but on some tracks you will need to spread (comb) out the ends of them for maximum contact.
If you have small enough hands you can spread these with your fingers. Given that my fingers are too big, I use 2 small needle nose pliers and grab the end of the braid as shown in the photo. I then pull (spread) the braid out as shown and get it ready for the final step. Once this is completed I attach the small wire wheel brush from our Dremel kit to the Moto-Tool and turn the power on.
SAFETY FIRST! Always were eye protection when using your Dremel
I start at the top of the braid and move down towards the ends. At the ends you need to apply a little pressure and you will begin to see the braid comb itself out. Make sure you place the wire wheel as shown so it rotates the right direction. As you can see, I started with the left braid and then I will just move over and do the right, keeping the Dremel in same direction. After this is finished, just make sure you have a slight arc to the braid and you are ready for the track. Sometimes you still might need to adjust the braid to work for different brands of track, but performing this braid maintenance gives you a good head start.
As I stated earlier, there are many different ways of doing this out there, this is just my preferred method. You can use this method on virtually every brand of slot car on the market and get very decent results.
- Harry
As always feel free to contact me about this article or just the hobby in general at harry@homeracingworld.com, or better yet drop into our Message Forum and share your thoughts with other enthusiasts!