Just because, here are the entries from the G. men:
TheBoy's Car
TheBoy went for an unorthodox, old-school style racer. It's got an early '70s muscle car shape to it and a bright red paint job complete with flames. One almost expects to see a tiny Burt Reynolds climbing into the cockpit at the start of the race. And here's mine:
Jay G.'s car
I opted for a no-frills speed demon - I shaved off as much wood as possible while still leaving room for weights inside the body. The car was sanded to a stainable sheen, then painted in Cub Scout Blue and Gold Yellow. The standard BSA wheels have been polished along with the custom-but-legal axles and had enough graphite applied to them to form several pencils.
In case anyone's curious (or if we have new Scout parents who find this post Googling for Pinewood Derby hints), I detailed the work that goes into a Pinewood Derby racer last year:
It's a lot of work, a lot of fun, and along the way you get to spend some time using power tools with your son - how can you possibly lose?
That is all.
6 comments:
Graphite, axels and wheels are the key. Eldest won it all one year with the uglest car in the field. But, he worked on the wheels axels and used graphite, so much his mother about came unglued with all she cleaned up in his room! Little brother followed big brothers lead and the Dad's errr kids/scouts with the slick awesome looking cars the got hosed, never figured it out....
Good luck and enjoy!!
Those are some nice lookin' wheels! Both of you! Gotta try that whole graphite thing next year when the boy goes for something that ... er ... doesn't have fur and horns.
Best of luck!
Back in the day, my brother won one with a car he called "The Brick." Basically he put wheels on the block. I can't remember if he did anything else, but it did seem to defy the lays of physics.
O/T
On my way out in a few to go on a Disney cruise, Jay. Bahamas, here come the West clan!
I'll filly you in on the Disney goodies when I return (went on one in '99, too).
Apparently BlueSun's brother stole my plans ;).
My pinewood car was scant more than the block with rounded leading edges, wheels, and a little bit of weight. Off it went. Placed, but not high enough to go anywhere...
Now, my regatta, that one made it to states... probably because I was the only cub to not crisco the hull. And probably because I darn near passed out at the end...
I knew this old timer when I was little who had, for giggles, done nothing but shave the wheels down to extremely thin discs. That car (just a rectangle) would win against anything put against it. That danged physics stuff works! Too bad that shaving the wheels is against the rules... :)
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