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Drilling angled Axles?

Posted: Wed Feb 08, 2017 1:00 pm
by Gravity101
Ok. Short story...hopefully. Built a car long wheel base, rail rider, bent axles (2.5 degrees in rear and 1.5 front). We won. Well, Regional rules came out. They are OK with extended wheelbase but you may only sand/polish axles. NO other alterations may be made (i.e. Bending)
Only thing I can think of is to drill angled axle holes? This is where I need your help.
Thanks in advance!

Re: Drilling angled Axles?

Posted: Wed Feb 08, 2017 3:04 pm
by Vitamin K
There's a lot of ways you might go about this:

- Jewkes Block + Drill Press
- Angled Drill Jig (e.g. Goatboy Drill Station or Silver Bullet Pro).
- Fence and Spacer Method
- Jig and Spacer Method

No matter what method you go with, make sure you verify the quality of your drill afterwards. Lightninboy's method is accurate and simple. If the drill is off, re-drill (or replace) the block before proceeding further with the build.

Re: Drilling angled Axles?

Posted: Tue Feb 14, 2017 8:35 pm
by Gravity101
I found a drilling block with a 2.5 degree canted slot. Now how do I go about creating a rail rider with a straight dominant front wheel?

Re: Drilling angled Axles?

Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2017 4:15 am
by Speedster
You can buy 100 BSA axles for $4.90 from Derby Evolution. Be patient, put them in a drill press and spin them around. One of them is not going to be straight and probably a lot of them are not going to be straight. This is one time the junk BSA axle is going to work in your favor. The front of your car is light and any toe- in the dfw has is going to take it to the rail. You have an advantage because you can drill an angled hole for both camber and toe. The slight bend in the nail will enable you to have a minor adjustment if you are tuning on a track.

Re: Drilling angled Axles?

Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2017 6:22 am
by Vitamin K
Another option for doing positive camber + toe with a straight axle: http://pinewoodderby.websitetoolbox.com ... bs-7000286

Re: Drilling angled Axles?

Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2017 1:57 pm
by Speedster
The problem I see cutting the car is if your rules require the stock wheelbase of 4 3/8". If your inspector is very strict that distance is not going to be accurate and you might get disqualified.

Re: Drilling angled Axles?

Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2017 2:28 pm
by Vitamin K
Speedster wrote:The problem I see cutting the car is if your rules require the stock wheelbase of 4 3/8". If your inspector is very strict that distance is not going to be accurate and you might get disqualified.
I would think you could probably shim the car to accurate length if need be.

Also, his rules allow extended wheelbase, regardless.

Re: Drilling angled Axles?

Posted: Thu Feb 16, 2017 1:13 am
by bracketracer
If the rules allow for an extended wheelbase, would they allow you to run a 5kids-style front axle holder up front? Short length of 3/16" Delrin rod inserted into the body and drilled at an angle for the axle. Turn the holder/axle assembly to set the drift. Could use a wood dowel if you think they may balk at the plastic rod.

Re: Drilling angled Axles?

Posted: Tue Mar 07, 2017 9:49 am
by Ghettentail
I got to visit the Pinewood Performance shop and John showed me how easy it was to bend the front axle and tune the car with drilled rears. I can't believe how easy it actually was. He helped me speed my car up by almost .2 in 5 minutes.