Beacon Positioning

[Yellow_shuttle]

Hi,

I have just bought a stack St8600 display system and what to know where is the best place for positioning the beacon. Range according to the instruction manual is 2 to 30 meters. At some race venues the car will be parked further than 30 meters from the track. Any advice would be helpful as to where you mount yours when racing?

Thanks in advance

Regards

[tristancliffe]

Don't you just leave it on the pitwall for the day? Nothing to do with where you park.

[Yellow_shuttle]

Originally Posted by tristancliffe

Don't you just leave it on the pitwall for the day? Nothing to do with where you park.

What about security i.e. someone coming along and pinching it?

Regards

Ross

[Adam43]

Can it run off the circuits beacon? Although this is not always turned on.

[Yellow_shuttle]

Originally Posted by AdamAshmore

Can it run off the circuits beacon? Although this is not always turned on.

I don't think so but i am unsure. I think it is pi that can run of the circuit beacons?

[Adam43]

Possibly. I was looking at a simple (cheap) timer a few years back and I know some can. In the end I settled for a GPS one so that I could use it on holidays to collect the roads too.

Are you track daying or race daying. I think it is less likey to be on for a track day anyway.

I remember seeing someone have one in a big locked box once. It may even have been padlocked to a railing!

[tristancliffe]

Originally Posted by Yellow_shuttle

What about security i.e. someone coming along and pinching it?

Regards

Ross

Options.

1. Leave it on the pitwall all day and hope people are honest and don't steal it.
2. Get a friend/spouse/sibling to be on guard
3. Only leave it there for the races, and bring it back when you're not (with or without a guard)
4. Try using the circuit beacon, and most work with it.
5. Don't use a beacon at all because you're too worried about theft.

[NiG_21]

Or just hope soneone else has beacon and use theirs...

[Armchair Enthusiast]

Unfortunately the STACK system cannot run off the circuit loops, and therefore must be placed on the pitwall.

Tristancliffe is spot on with his recommendations.

There is the chance that someone else with place a STACK beacon on the pitwall but it is always important to use your own because they may take it away halfway through your race, and then your screwed.

I would be surprised if it got stolen, but im sure it happens. I guess you can be clever about where you place it so that it is not immediately obvious to those walking past.

Always make sure you do not leave it out all day because you can affect other peoples lap timing when it aint your race.

[Alex Laidlaw]

I think only PI make lap timers that use standard circuit beacons. Don't place your beacon next to another one because some beacons won't work in proximity of others. Most people tend to leave them on the pit wall all day, only taking them off if there is a shortage of suitable spots for people to use. I have never heard of a beacon getting nicked, some are tied to a car, and presumably the only people interested in taking one would be people who have had their beacons taken or managed to loose them.

Just remember to turn it off between sessions and charge it occasionally!

[AU N EGL]

AMB

[R59]

There seems to be some confusion here.

The beacon is the infra-red beam - not an in-the-ground inductive loop.
At most circuits, when they turn the power on for the pitlane, the beacon comes on.

The ST8600M comes with an infrared lap timing system.

One thing you will find - there will be plenty of people who put their beacons out on the pitwall. You won't be the only one running that kind of timing system.

I have a Rollcentre laptimer, and the beacon, but I've only ever put the beacon out once in all the time I've had it. A quick trip to the pits before I go out usually shows half a dozen beacons cabletied to the pitwall railings!!