Derby Talk

Mr. Slick, you are having a race this very weekend on your 64' aluminum track. Why not test the theory? If you can attach some weight to the car with a rear bias and run it down a lane, then move the weight forward and immediately run it down the same lane, wouldn't we have a better answer than just...

In theory, if all wheels are touching equally, none would be non-dominant. The dominant/non-dominant discussion usually centers around a 3-wheel car. For a four wheel car, I agree, ONE of the wheels will probably be slightly higher than the other, so that one would be the "dominant" one an...

I took someone's advice and put a small drop of white glue in the axle hole (with a pin) and inserted the axle. If you want to adjust the axle later, or even pull it out to re-lube, it's easy to do. I also drilled a hole with the wrong bit once, so the hole was one size too big. A sloppy fit for sur...

Joe, what did the "light lube" consist of? If the Puff In the Bore method was slower that the light lube, why not just use the light lube? Perhaps the light lube may not hold up for very many races. So the Puff method is slower, but better, because it consistently lasts for many races. It ...

Good job Bubba! You found a great way to make designs fit the pinewood format, but better than that, you found a way to include lots of people in the pinewood fun. Who else would have put a pair of scissors, spool of thread, and thimble in a row across the front of a pinewood car?
Bob

Was the rail riding the only difference between last years car and this one?

Thanks Mike for starting this thread. I was wondering when Derby Talk would start to get going before the next season. (Unless you race WIRL, then the season never ends) PW Grasshopper you are right on! I will start early with my son and spend 10 or 15 minutes a day polishing axles and working on al...

Wouldn't the question be: Who made the low inertia wheels? If Stephen and his dad made them, then what's the problem? If they are aftermarket wheels, it's a different story. For us, the best way to go is to follow the rules while doing the best craftmanship and knowledge gained from this board. I wa...

Good Luck! You've got two nice cars.
Let us know how you do, and what you observe with other cars.
Bob

I agree Stan. The idea behind Pinewood Derbt is to build something together, not destroy something. If kids want to do that, they will. But as an official activity?
Pinewood is the antidote to stupid video games.

Joe, was this on an alumunum track?
Where was your COG? Where was it on the fastest car?

Yikes, we've got a cheater...er, I mean Quick Start bar on our car. Now I'm worried about it. The track has a mechanical start device and it looks like a steep drop. I've heard (but haven't seen) cars flipping up at the bottom of the curve. Having a wing in front can't help! rdeis, what do you think...

rdeis: Heartbreak indeed, made even more difficult by the fact that his car was so fast in the beginning. I had the same thing happen to us and we started glueing a small wing across the front, like the wing on an Indy racer. I know the longer wheelbase is desirable, but the wing makes me feel bette...

I use the pro-tool on a inch thich piece of wood, then flip it over so the "bottom" becomes the top. Now you can cut the wood to the point where it's as low as you want it. I also made a 3/8ths inch thick "guide" and after I insert a set of extra axles and wheels into the wood, I...

Wow, that would be great if you could do this experiment. As an artist, I appreciate the art and science of pinewood. I don't know what kind of weight you have, possibly lead or tungsten. The tunsten cylinderss weigh .5 oz, the cubes are about a fourth of that, .125. If you raced two cars, keeping e...