SCX Aston Martin DBR9

SCX Aston Martin DBR9, reviewed and tuned by Robert Livingston


Nice mouth on this car. A classic. But how does it go, and what's inside?


The car is nearly 2.5" wide over the tires, and slightly less over the widest part of the body. Yes, the tires do hang out beyond the fenders.


A great looking replica. This model captures the spirit of the Aston Martin DBR9. Weight is 90 grams.


On the wood track, at 13.6 volts, the SCX DBR9 rivals the lap times of a stock Carrera DB5, and a parts-built Revell DB5, with vintage RP-77 motor. 6.5 seconds for a 61 foot lap, or 9.4 feet per second. Must be the tires! The car is sliding! I pulled the motor, shown below.


Motor is a new model, an RX-42. A quick test on the tach, and we see 15,400 RPM at 12 volts. Out with it! In goes an RX-62C, which has turned 20,100 on test at 12v. It fits perfectly (almost perfectly; I had to shorten the shaft and press the pinion closer to the motor).


Above is shown the internal layout. Nice SCX rocking motor pod, spherical brass bearings at rear, a true running plastic gear, and a light centering spring on the guide. I reassembled it with only three of the five body mount screws: two under the nose, tight; and one at the rear, backed off a full turn. The chassis has enough flex, and the rocking pod takes care of the rest.
With the faster motor, lap times improve minimally, but the car is not hooking up. It is controllable, and feels well balanced, but the cornering speed is not there. I install some Ortmann for Slot.It replacement slicks, and the car hooks up and takes off. Lap times fall into the range of the highly competitive GT cars raced in RAA '06, on this very track (East New York Raceway). Best lap time is 5.385 for a 61 foot lap, or 11.3 feet per second. Not a bad time for a car on a nonmagnetic wood track. The car can be pushed, rarely deslots, and retains that good balanced feeling. However, it does deslot at times, and I noted the front tires are a little wobbly. 6 grams of lead under the front axle keeps it in the slot, along with this little mod:


The braids are re-arranged so a single pigtail trails back from the front of the guide, and the nose and tail of the flag are trimmed with a reverse rake, which helps the guide stay in the slot when it bangs against the stops.


Nice tampos! The SCX Aston Martin DBR9 is a good one. It handles well, and with the right tires for the track, it handles even better. The original motor is a little slow, but should be sufficient for short tracks with straights seven feet or less. This is a fine car, with great potential for stock-based, magnet-free GT racing.