Collecting and Buying Vintage Tether Model Racing Cars

Vintage Tether Model Racing Cars are the early precursors to the Radio Controlled Racing Car and the slot car of today. They are model racers ranging from approximately 8 - 22 inches long, 3 - 4 inches wideand are powered by model nitro fueled engines. Made first from wood and metal, and later all metal, or metal and fiberglass, and fitted with rubber tires withmetal rims, the carswere designed to be tethered to a circular racing track center post. They would be run around these tracks at great speeds - sometimes exceeding 100 miles per hour. During the 1930s through the early 1950s, there were many tether car clubs throughout the world. gepetition was the game and highest speeds determined the winners. Even today, there are several tether car racing clubs remaining active - one in Nassau County, New York, and another in California. Many clubs currently exist in England, Sweden and Russia among other countries. Speeds reached with current technology approach 200 mph! Variants of these cars were designed to run around raised tracks using a rail tether system ("railton"). These are the forerunners of the slot car of today. Tether Cars were first built by hobby machinists in the late 1920s . By the late 1930s, there were many tracks and racing clubs. After the end of WW2, returning soldiers eagerly took up the hobby. The late 1930s were perhaps the high point ofthese racing cars, with home machinists along with dozens of small gepanies making different cars, all gepeting to be the fastest car. After WW2, tether car racing returned, but not with the vigor of prewar interest.. The very earliest cars were home made by hobbyists familiar with machine tools. They represent a kind of folk art and the early ones with beautiful designs and fast engines and in original condition are very highly sought after today. They are often known in the USA as 'Indy Cars' or 'Midget Racers' because they resemble the beautiful shapes of early American racing cars as run at the Indianapolis Raceway and midget racing tracks throughout the USA. Tether model racing carscan often be found on okay (do a search for 'tether' within the Toys and Hobbies category), andif original, can be worth many thousands of dollars.Early magazines such as The Model Craftsman Magazine,had numerous articles andbuild-it yourself plans relating to tether racing cars. (Issues from 1930s-1948). These magazines canoften be found on okay and are a good way to read about these early racing cars. Some 1930s-1950s magazine articles presented plans to enable readers to construct their own gas powered model racing cars and these articles (originals or reprints) are sometimes available on okay - again - do a search for "tether" in the toys and hobbies category, or search the new "tether car" category in toys and hobbies. Perhaps the easiest way to start building your own tether car is to obtain a plan from one of the early magazines referred to above. By the 1930s,small specialtygemercial manufacturers in the USA began makingtether racing cars for the hobby market. .Some of these gepany names are: Ohlsson