The motive force for a car is the engine. Every engine produces an amount of work-energy measured in mechanical horsepower. One horsepower is foot-pounds per second. More power in generation from the engine means more power available to turn the wheels faster on the car.
Weight should be placed towards the rear of the car. You can drill the weight holes in the bottom, side or rear of the car as shown in these examples. Paint only adds a few grams hundredths of a ounce. We generally weight up to 4. Should I bake the pinewood derby block? The short answer is no, do not bake the block. The idea behind baking the block is to remove moisture which will make the block lighter.
L is a part-time weekend drag racer too. Eric also had the help of his two shop interns on the mechanical side while Amber and Matt, a designer at LeithCars. The track also hosts a Spring demo derby so you may see the old Civic back in action in There were 12 cars entered into the compact car class that Ms.
Another interesting feature of this particular demolition derby is that since the cars would be running on asphalt and not dirt or mud, as is the case with some demo derbies, the local fire department put down a slippery layer of soapy water so the cars would do more sliding than full-on hard charging. This helps prevent a car and its driver from absorbing the full brunt of a hit.
Written by Mark Arsen for LeithCars. Learn More. Unsupported Browser Please use one of these supported browsers to improve your experience. Posted in: Pinewood Derby , Cub Scouts.
By Kate Matthews. No comments. Bake your block. This helps to remove the moisture so that you have more wiggle room to add extra weight at the end. Remember, every little bit of weight in the right place makes a difference! Max out your weight at the regulation 5 ounces. Yes, it may take more time and effort, but those extra couple of ounces have proven time and time again that they make a difference. Place all of the weight you can about an inch in front of the rear axle. For a more aerodynamic build, have a drill and a spade drill bit on-hand to put your weight up and into the bottom of your car.
There are a variety of weight-types available, and I have also seen pennies used! Use all of the graphite dry lubricant is usually allowed. Coat it everywhere — all over the axles, where the wheels touch the axles, on the car itself where the wheel can touch the car… everywhere. Sand and polish your wheels and axles. You can use a mini file to remove any major ridges on the axles, because we all know that the less friction, the faster the car! For best results, mount your wheels onto an electric drill so that you can polish at a higher speed and reduce the likelihood of adding accidental imperfections.
You can also grab this sanding kit , which includes three types of sandpaper designed for use on your Pinewood Derby wheels and axles. Check alignment. Another way to pick up speed is to ensure that your car has true straight alignment. Level two, use an Axle Press Tool to ensure straight axles.
You can also glue your axles into place to ensure there is no wiggling out of place — just make sure not to get glue anywhere near where your wheels will be! Spend time on sanding. The smoother your car is, the more friction is reduced and the faster your car can slice through the air.
Start with a coarse grit, move to a medium grit, and finish with a fine grit. It might not touch the floor of the track but it still is needed to follow the center guide rail. Other than putting the weights in the back, does it matter if they sit on top of the car or should they be under the car?
Does changing the center of mass affect the performance? The idea is that the car will ride lower overall and will help to reduce drag. Seems to work well. Just entered a car in our work pine derby tournament that had 50 entries.
I used the advice in this article to build my car and we won first place beating out all of the other 50 cars! Our first year in Cub Scouts my grandson was a Tiger and he designed and did a little of the work in each section sanding, painting, etc and his car won 3 trophies.
Others at the meet were experienced PWD parents, and we still beat them…. I do like the science of the video. All rights reserved. Recent Comments. Wolfiefox wrote: " Aw man, no more first class seats! ThatOneDude wrote: " I better get a refund!
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