| Dec. 3 2003 Review |
|
 INDY GRIPS New Silicone Racing Slicks By Shawn Smith (SJSlots) Click here to have Genie read this review out loud to you in Microsoft Agent AUDIO! Every now and then it is really nice to shift gears a little and focus on something other than all of these new slot car releases! Yeah, right! Who am I kidding? Ok, so I love all of the new slot cars we've been seeing lately but with lots of new slot cars comes the need for slot car parts and accessories and when it really pays off is when a new accessory becomes available that can actually improve the performance of our slot cars for a minimal amount of money. Today's review will cover such a thing. Better tighten those seat belts! So what are we talking about? Tires!  Ok, so maybe its more than just plain old tires. What I received in the mail from Andy Smith of Professor Motor was actually 4 pairs of their new tires. Brand new silicone-compound tires that fit a variety of cars. Brand new INDY GRIP Silicone Racing Slicks to be more precise.  So you're beginning to wonder what good silicone tires are when your slot car already comes equipped with perfectly good rubber tires? Let me just start by saying that most stock rubber tires are rarely ever "perfectly good".  After-market silicone tires are one of the best, easiest and most cost effective upgrades you can add to any slot car and we'll discuss many of those things here in this review. As you can see in a couple of the pictures above we actually have three different tires to look at. Those three different tires pictured are the stock tires from several cars, the new INDY GRIP silicone tires as well as a brand of tire that we'll call "other" for the sake of this review. First off you can see some major differences in both width and height of the different tires available. If you think the differences end there… think again.  They're called INDY GRIPS so let's start with a look at the new INDY GRIPS tires on a 1/32 scale 'Indy' car. The picture above shows a side-by-side comparison between the stock Scalextric IRL Dallara rubber tires on the left and the new INDY GRIPS silicone tires on the right. Aside from the noticeable lack of sidewall tire lettering there are also some other differences. While the overall tire diameters are very similar these new INDY GRIPS tires are actually a few millimeters wider than the stock tires. As Pontiac says, "Wider is Better" and they know what they're talking about.  A wider tire puts more rubber on the track surface and while you might not think those hundredths of an inch count I can assure you that they do.  Where else a good pair of silicone tires will show an improvement is when using them in place of normally treaded tires. Not only does width make a difference but it also makes a difference if a tire is one scale foot of wavy tread or one scale foot of flat 'grippy' silicone rubber.  Now add both wider with flatter and throw in improved compound and guess what you get? That's right, increased performance! These tires are plain and simple some of the best replacement tires I have tested. They look great, add width and provide improved traction running both with and without magnets.  But where does this "improved traction" come from besides a flatter and wider tire? According to Andy Smith of Professor Motor these new and improved INDY GRIPS Silicone Racing Slicks are a product of several things. First and foremost these tires are compound tires. They are a silicone rubber compound mixed with other types of rubber that create a greater grip level than you can get with normally processed natural rubber. They're also made using a new 'high pressure/high temperature' process that virtually eliminates bubbles in the material or other production voids in the tires.  This production method also creates a silicone based tire that is highly tear resistant, which is something older silicone based tires aren't known for being, and eliminates any type of residue also something found to be a problem about older and lesser quality silicone replacement tires. All of this means that you are left with an end result that provides 30% more traction than conventional silicone tires on most track surfaces and if the older silicone tires improved performance levels over stock you can add that much more with these new and improved models.  So what about those 'other' tires? Well, we'll look at them briefly as well as they too boast much of the same improvements. From several of the pictures above you've probably noticed that the 'other' brand of tires is quite a bit smaller than stock tires and especially the new INDY GRIPS. How much smaller?  Lets first take a look at the competitor's silicone tire back on our Scalextric Cadillac LMP. Pay close attention to the width of the tire as well as the straight and sharp edge of the tire sidewall.  Now take a look at the new INDY GRIPS tires and you'll notice both a wider tire as well as a smoother, more rounded, tire sidewall. Think it's just the Cadillac tires?  Notice the same characteristics about the offered replacement tires for the Scalextric GT40 MKII. What does this mean to you? From my testing anyway it means an occasional "tip and flip" when that sharp edge of the 'other' tire catches and grabs during hard cornering.  This is not the case with the new INDY GRIPS tires as the rounder edge of the tire doesn't offer the same drastic grabbing characteristic and in my opinion it makes for smoother performance. It is possible to "sand down the edges" of the other tires but with an already thinner and narrower tire how much would you really like to sand off?  Based on all I've said however you might think I'm condemning other silicone tires and that is not the case. While you can sand down the 'other' silicone tire it is actually not recommended with these INDY GRIPS silicone tires. In fairness however I didn't see where any sanding was needed with the INDY GRIPS so in the scope of things, which tire wins? One other advantage that could otherwise be missed about the 'other' brand actually stems from its smaller size. Because the tires have a shorter overall profile than the INDY GRIPS it does do one major thing. It actually lowers the magnets closer to the rails and that equates to added magnetic grip that can have just as much, if not more, effect on overall traction as having sticky tires. Still, a smaller diameter tire means less distance traveled during a normal full rotation of the wheel and that means lower top end speed. Also becomes a moot point if you like to run your cars non-magnet. At the end of the day it will be you that will need to decide what is most important to you. Both sets of aftermarket silicone tire replacements offered noticeably improved traction and handling over stock tires. Only one however provides a more esthetically pleasing profile and is backed by the name Professor Motor.  Something else to consider about the new INDY GRIPS is that soon there will be 81 total production numbers available of the new INDY GRIPS tires. The picture above shows the number 09 molded into the tire and that indicates INDY GRIPS product number IG1009. Those 09 tires fit the Scalextric Trans-Am Mustang, Camaro and Corvette L88 while other product numbers like IG1007 (07 on the back of the tire) fit the Cadillac LMP, MG Lola and new TVR Tuscan 400R. With several product numbers already out to improve the traction of your Scalextric cars and "seventy-something" more product types on the way to cover the rest of your slot car collection… I think the choice is simple. No rim would be complete without them. Special thanks go to the Andy Smith of Professor Motor for providing me the chance to get an up close and personal look at the new INDY GRIPS Silicone Racing Slicks. As always, feel free to contact me if you have any additional questions and I will be happy to answer anything that I can. Happy slotting! Shawn Smith SJSlots@hotmail.com |
Back
to the main reviews section for a complete listing or
take a look at some listed below.
About SCG |
Swap Meet | Photo Gallery |
Home | Projects |
Forums |
Email
FAQ | Vintage Slot Cars |
My Tracks | Links |
SCG News | Web Ring Info |
Tips & Tricks
