Arc Air Controllers

[Tim-346617]

Hi there, first post on here. Thanks in advance for any advice.

I recently bought an Arc Air Controller set (second hand) and I'm finding the cars harder to control with the wireless controllers than with the old wired set I had. Going in to a bend it is much harder to slow down without stopping, and there is a small lag pulling away, which can then lead to excessive acceleration and a crash on the next bend. I've done some timed laps with the same layout and cars, and the wired set up always produces faster laps. Response is a bit on-and-off around the track. One or two cars won't even get all the way round, but do on the wired set up.

The set is in the garage where it's quite chilly but dry, and the circuit is about 20m long. I've just sent off for some booster cables from Jadlam - trying anything to improve things really.

Has anybody got any ideas to improve things further, or do I just need to keep practising with them?

Many thanks. Tim.

[Andy P.]

Hi Tim,

The big difference of the wireless ARC controllers (both AIR and PRO) is they have a brake button.

It is a very binary thing: when pressed the brakes come on 100% and the car slows down very quickly. I tend to drive two-handed using my left thumb (I am right handed) to "pump" the brakes when heading into a turn. It is a very different style of driving but it works!

You can use the official app or the enthusiast made MAGIC App to adjust the acceleration curve and top speed (not the braking though, that is "hard wired" both physically and electronically aka via software). Maybe a slightly lower top speed will allow smoother running, or have the car accelerate more at the bottom will help?

Being a used unit I am not sure if someone programmed the controller if that programming is persistent or not.

A few thoughts about power and conductivity:

1. Booster cables never hurt
2. Non-Hornby cars may pull more amps and be hard on the powerbase.
3. The powerbase can indeed handle slightly higher amps than the standard power plug/transformer provides. There is a Toshiba power pack for laptops that is a straight fit with slightly more amperage. I can't remember the model right now. I know it was discussed on the SlotForum back when ARC AIR was new.
4. You can easily open the controller and the power base as they are simply screwed together. Double check that there are no loose or poorly soldered wires in there. This can be done without worries of voiding a warranty and if you are careful without breaking anything.
5. https://uk.scalextric.com/community/advice/track-maintenance

Good luck!

[Tim-346617]

Brilliant Andy, thanks so much for taking the time to respond! I’ll give all of that a try. Cheers!

[Andy P.]

Thank you for responding!

Of my near 2500 posts I think I have been thanked a dozen times....