New Cars: NSR Canon F1 86/89 #5 and #6

 I picked up a couple of new cars yesterday. These are out of my normal "classic" era class of cars, so they'll be in their own category. 

NSR Canon F1 86/89 #5 and #6

Nelson Piquet [#6] and Nigel Mansell [#5]

First, it's important to note that these cars are quite different from what I usually run. While Classics run with 21k Sidewinders, the F1 cars run a long can KING 21 EVO/3 motor, which while it still runs at roughly the same rpm as the Classics, the long can motor has a built in magnet, adding 350gm/cm to the grip. That'll make the cars quicker and better handling in the corners. I would consider the Evo King running alone as a light magnet, which wouldn't be as strong as if it was in the kit, but strong enough. 

The Evo King fits very nicely in a pod, which has an open area for access to the gears. There are places for two more pod screws, which were curiously enough not included. Maybe it's for a suspension kit, which really wouldn't make much sense for a magnetized car.

It also has a curious magnet installed just in front of the motor. So these cars were pretty much intended to run with some magnetic pull, even though I suspect the magnet in front is just to help distribute the grip a little better in the front half of the car. I don't think that either the motor alone or the magnet alone would be strong enough to keep the car on the track. I could take it off, which would be a permanent move, but I want to try it as it is first. The magnet is heat-molded in with plastic, so it would not be easily put back.

Also, since it'll be running with magnets, I'm not going to bother with much in the way of tire work. I'll do a bit to get a solid patch, but that's going to be it. I really don't think I need to mess with tires while I have magnets. 

Okay, while I could see the desire to have current F1 cars, and I'd probably collect them if they were available, I don't think they necessarily have to be the current liveries, or even modern day cars. 

Overall the cars look great, and I'm hoping to get them on track tonight. Bonus points for being a Canon livery, as that's what I use for photography. One of the other reasons I got them, to tell the truth. 

On the track, they run with magnetic grip, however light. You can go faster, but expect the back to come out if you push too hard. Spin-outs happen much more often than end-over-end crashes. That's always a good thing at 75 bucks a pop. I was pleasantly surprised by this, as I was expecting magnetism at least as strong as what comes standard in the cars. But it doesn't seem to be as powerful of a downforce. Sure, you can rip through corners, and it'll definitely set a much better lap time than any of my Classics in their current condition, but it's not infallible. Perfectly possible to spin out from simply too much gas coming off the corner. 

I think the cars are balanced very well overall. Small pod adjustments have effects, so there's tune-ability. 

I won't be running these against the Classics, as I suspect these will soundly beat them. They'll instead be used for racing against each other and for unofficial times on various tracks. I'll use a win/loss system for them, since a points system is...pointless.

Before these arrived I thought I would look at some others to expand the field, but I'm not completely sure I want to do that just yet. Classics are my main thing, and unless the F1 cars prove to be more fun than expected, I'll probably just stick with these two cars. We'll see about that. I haven't even gotten them on the track yet; just lube/oil. Besides, I just found a couple more Classics that I need.