Our little RC cars take several hundred amps at start up.
That's peak current for some amount milliseconds.
Accelarating fast at around 10 - 20 A.
Cruisng at couple of Amps or so.
A 7.2 A hour battery is done in under 10 minutes.
So that's 7.2 V x 1 A hour or for 10 minutes that's 6 A hours.
Now double the voltage for the slot car and it could well be up to:
a few hundred Amps for milliseconds
10A for accelarating
and a few Amps cruising.

Those sparks on slot car tracks don't come with low current.
Also those sliding contacts have ressistance and hence add to the issue.

Therefore:
No problem, dude seeing that those little cars can draw lotsa Amps

Amazing, eh?

I'd try:
http://www.fairradio.com

for one of their surplus high current supplies for old radios.

-Walt

-----Original Message-----
From: Alan Pearce [mailto:A.B.Pearce@RL.AC.UK]
Sent: Wednesday, March 22, 2000 9:14 AM
To: PICLIST@MITVMA.MIT.EDU
Subject: Re: [OT] PSU for slotcars


>
>I find it super hard to believe that these slot cars take 104 watts each!
I
>strongly suggest you get out there and measure some currents your self.  I
>would never accept laypersons figures in such a matter.  I don't doubt
there
>are some serious surge currents, but 832 watts is bolderdash!

I would not be surprised at a high current draw. When I was at secondary
school
I remember guys rewinding the motors with about 8 turns of 16 gauge wire,
and
then encasing it all in epoxy so it did not fly apart with centrifugal
force. I
do not know how long the brushes lasted, but I could well believe some of
the
figures quoted in the original request, although they would be taken under
ideal
conditions ( wires fixed to car on rolling test bed) and would be reduced
somewhat by the wiring to the hand controls. I would still work on the basis
of
several amps per track.