Pinewood Derby Time.

[1970Moparmann]

Cool part is when I asked my 10 year old what car he wanted to do, he said a Superbird! 

I took a picture, sized it to the block of wood we have to start with, and came up with the below.  The roof and wing will be a tad lower then it should, but other than that, I think it turned out good so far.

Tomorrow he sands it, and then starts the paint.

[70Sbird]

Kudos Moparmann...
Start 'em young!

[JB400]

Looks pretty good   Are you going to leave it the way it is, or are you going to profile the sides as well?  I'm aware of the rules that the wheelbase has to stay the same, but that doesn't mean the sides have to be.  I'm talking about the space between the front and rear wheels.  At the wheels, they have to be untouched, but the rest of it is open game.

[1970Moparmann]

Looks pretty good   Are you going to leave it the way it is, or are you going to profile the sides as well?  I'm aware of the rules that the wheelbase has to stay the same, but that doesn't mean the sides have to be.  I'm talking about the space between the front and rear wheels.  At the wheels, they have to be untouched, but the rest of it is open game.

Actually, no.  I moved the wheel base a little in the front to make it the correct stance.  The back wheel is in the original spot...  I double checked the rules up here and there was nothing about wheel stance except for a minimum space between front and rear wheels. 

We're going to detail it out as much as we can for the race on Saturday.  Might have to finish it up after the race to make it look 100%.  I have two cars to do, but the other one is an Army tank for my 8 year old.   

[JB400]

Mine from 95

[JB400]

 

[JB400]

Hope you understand what I was talking about

If you need to add weight, put it all as far forward as you can.  Where my sticker is, is the front of the car.

[1970Moparmann]

Very cool.  The paint looks great on it.  What steps did you take?  Think through all of the cob webs and try and remember..back from 95-shiss.  I don't remember a week ago on certain things.

[hemi68charger]

Cool stuff Mike... 

[41husk]

Nice good luck at the track!

[hemigeno]

Brings back some great memories...

http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/topic,22592.0.html


I think there are a couple more threads on here of members' Pinewood Derby efforts.  Looks good so far - hope you guys do well on Track Day!

[bobs66440]

It looks great so far!   It's important to have the boys do as much of the work as possible. After all, it is their project, right? A lot of parents forget the spirit of the race and get very competitive. They would buy matched and balanced wheels, special axles, etc. We ALWAYS used what was supplied in the kit. We would also have an adult race to try to divert some of the obsession away from the scout's cars.    I always had my boy do a lot of the designing, cutting, sanding and detail painting on his cars.   Mine on the other hand...was all mine!

A few very important things to help the car be fast if the rules allow it:

-Raise one wheel off the track so it rolls on three wheels. That cuts the rolling friction by 25%.
-Get the car to weigh as close to the max (5 oz. usually) as possible.
-Make sure the car rolls in a STRAIGHT line.
-Remove the burrs and polish the axles.
-Use graphite lubricant.
-Remove any casting imperfections from the tire surface.

We always used a curved track, so we would adjust the car so the center of gravity (balance) was about 1-1/8" ahead of the rear axle centerline. On straight track, it doesn't matter as much.

Here are some of the cars we built over the years. The yellow car held the track record on two separate tracks (and as far as I know still does) and my son was multiple rank winner with a few of these and two-time district grand champion with the yellow and the white "X" cars.





Most important...make sure they have fun!

Good luck! 

[70moparman]

That Superbird pine wood derby car looks awsome already...  Would love to see pics when done...   

[nascarxx29]

http://www.derbytalk.com/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=6684

[r4daytona]

those look and probably faster than my saturn!

[70moparman]

http://www.derbytalk.com/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=6684

Wow, great Daytona pine wood derby car build!  Makes me want to start one with the boys today, but they are only ages 4 and 2...  Cant wait for the scouting years again, looking foward to that!! 

[moparstuart]

http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/topic,52742.0.html

ian's pinewood derby build    

[70moparman]

That is awsome Stewart, bonus points for the fender scoops!  That boy looks proud! 

[41husk]

all very cool!

[wingcar]

Does anyone remember "Woodies" (could be wrong about the name..I'll check later).  Anyway, they were 1/24th scale NASCAR Racers made out of wood.  I have a Richard Petty Superbird....The details on it are really very nice.  I purchased mine from a Die-cast store well over 25 years ago.  I have never seen another..............just wondering.....

[1970Moparmann]

http://www.derbytalk.com/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=6684

That looks awesome! 

[1970Moparmann]

It looks great so far!   It's important to have the boys do as much of the work as possible. After all, it is their project, right?

You bet!  He did some of the cutting, but this was a shared part.  He's sanding tonight, and paint goes on tomorrow.

You won't believe how many parents bought pre-made cars this year - WTF!! 

A few very important things to help the car be fast if the rules allow it:

-Raise one wheel off the track so it rolls on three wheels. That cuts the rolling friction by 25%.
-Get the car to weigh as close to the max (5 oz. usually) as possible.
-Make sure the car rolls in a STRAIGHT line.
-Remove the burrs and polish the axles.
-Use graphite lubricant.
-Remove any casting imperfections from the tire surface.

Did not know all of these - thanks!

Most important...make sure they have fun!

Race day is Saturday!  Always a good time.

[JB400]

Make sure your axles aren't bent.  If your going to raise one wheel, make it on the rear. Spin your wheels on a drill bit (hand spin them)  Get your weight as close to the front.  Mount all your weight on the sides, or on top.  If you put on the bottom, it could drag.  Make it as aerodynamic as possible.

[hitail]

Good luck in the race.

[odcics2]

I agree with the above - Let the young fellows do all the work. (with indirect guidance)
It's a contest between the kids, not the old men!!   

[held1823]

Does anyone remember "Woodies" (could be wrong about the name..I'll check later).  Anyway, they were 1/24th scale NASCAR Racers made out of wood.  I have a Richard Petty Superbird....The details on it are really very nice.  I purchased mine from a Die-cast store well over 25 years ago.  I have never seen another..............just wondering.....

this one?

[1970Moparmann]

Race day...

[JB400]

Good luck today

[bobs66440]

Yes! Good luck! The cars look great! Have fun!!  

[69_500]

We will be building yet another wing car for the pinewood derby this year. If I had to guess it is going to be a T5 bronze Daytona.

[JB400]

Well, how did it go Saturday?

[1970Moparmann]

Well, how did it go Saturday?

Well, we didn't beat any records.   The bird did second in our Den, overall at 20 out of 39.   The tank ironically did better and placed 12 overall.  The biggest issue, I think, with the bird was when we moved the wheels closer together.  Even though it was still of regulation, moving the front wheels back didn't distribute the weight well. 

The boys had fun....

[bobs66440]

Even though it was still of regulation, moving the front wheels back didn't distribute the weight well. 

The boys had fun....

Yes, the longer the wheelbase, the more stable it will be. Glad they had fun! 

[wingcar]

Does anyone remember "Woodies" (could be wrong about the name..I'll check later).  Anyway, they were 1/24th scale NASCAR Racers made out of wood.  I have a Richard Petty Superbird....The details on it are really very nice.  I purchased mine from a Die-cast store well over 25 years ago.  I have never seen another..............just wondering.....

this one?

That's the one...................................