Pinewood Derby Anyone?

[RPOLS3]

Can't get a .pdf. or Word document to load so I am copying and pasting the rules we used back then. I'm pretty sure these are the standard BSA (Boy Scout/Cub Scout) rules:

Pinewood Derby Car Regulations

1. The car must be constructed using the materials supplied with regulation Grand Prix Kit #17006.
2. The car run in the Council Pinewood Derby shall be the identical car run by the entrant in his own pack derby, and it must have been constructed after April 17, 2010.
3. Length: Overall length shall not exceed 7 inches.
4. Width: Overall width shall not exceed 23/4 inches.
5. Weight: Maximum total weight of car, including driver, trims, weights, etc., shall be 5 ounces.
6. Height: Cars shall not be higher than 3”. This is measured from the bottom of the wheels to the top of anything on the car. This is so all Pinewood Derby Cars will clear all timing devices.
7. Wheels: Wheels must be constructed from those supplied in regulation kit #17006 or Replacement Wheel Kit #17007. No modifications of wheels will be allowed, except that burrs or excess plastic from the factory molding process (if any) may be removed or sanded. Wheels must be original width, thickness, and height and the whole tire surface must meet the track surface. All four wheels must touch the track surface. This will be checked during weigh in and inspection. If the flat surface of the tire is to be sanded, be careful not to round the corners (crown) of the wheel. Any rounding of the crowns will cause disqualification. An edge should still be present. See illustration to right. The axle bore of the wheel may not be bushed, sleeved, lined, or otherwise modified to change the basic wheel-to-metal axle interface other than the application of a non-permanent spray-on, brushed-on, or dusted lubrication compound. Bushings, sleeves, permanent coatings, thrust washers, and enclosed axles (hub cabs) are prohibited. Wheels may not be shaved.
8. Axles: Axles must be constructed from those supplied in regulation kit #17006 or replacement kit #17007. Burrs on the underside of the nail head may be removed with a file or emery cloth, and the nail shafts may be polished with fine emery cloth or jeweler’s rouge. The mating surface of the nail may not be grooved, bushed, sleeved, lined, or otherwise modified to change the basic wheel hub to nail shaft interface other than the application of a non-permanent spray-on, brushed-on, or dusted lubrication compound. Bushings, sleeves, permanent coatings, thrust washers, and enclosed axles (hub cabs) are prohibited.
9. Track Clearance: The car must have an under-body and in-between-wheel clearance which will allow it to travel freely over a track lane strip which is 3/8 inches maximum in height and 13/4 inches maximum in width.
10. Suspension: The car shall have a solid suspension consisting of the wheels and axles rigidly mounted to the car body. No springs, linkages, shock absorbing materials or other constructions which provide a non-rigid or floating-type suspension are permitted.
11. Details: Details such as steering wheel, windshield, driver, exhaust pipes, trim, etc., are permitted as long as they are rigidly mounted to the car body and do not exceed the overall car specifications.
12. Starting Devices: The car may not incorporate any devices which may assist starting. These shall include, but are not limited to, magnets, liquids, spring mechanisms, etc. There shall be no loose components within the body of the car. The car must also be free-wheeling.
13. Front Edge: The front edge of the car must rest against the starting peg on the track so that the entire car is behind the peg.

Car Inspection: Every car entered will be subjected to, and must pass, an inspection to the rules and regulations of Grand Prix Kit #17006 and the foregoing Blackhawk Area Council and Belvidere Pack 141 Pinewood Derby Regulations. If the car does not meet the above specifications, it must be altered by a responsible adult or it will be disqualified.
Please see the Courier for additional details about the race format and car inspection process used at the Council race.

Additional Pack 141 Pinewood Derby Race Regulations
1. Each car will race in three heats. In each heat, the car will run in a different lane. Since every car races one time in each of the three lanes, every car experiences the same lane variations.
2. For each grade level, the winner is determined by the best overall average time. The times from each of the three heats (one for each lane) will be averaged together. Note that winning a heat is not necessarily an indicator of the final outcome, as faster cars may be running in other heats.
3. In the event of a tie, a run-off heat will be used to break the tie.
4. The pack equipment used to measure the height, width, length, clearance, and weight will prevail over any other measuring devices.
5. Trophies will be awarded to the top three finishers for each level (Tiger, Wolf, Bear, Webelos I and Webelos II).
6. All cars must qualify and pass inspection prior to the beginning of the race for the respective grade level. No car can qualify after the race has begun. No car can qualify after the fact.
7. If at any time prior to the Pack Pinewood (January 29, 2011), during the Pack Pinewood, and up to and including the Council Pinewood (April 16-17, 2011) it is determined that any rule was violated, the car and the scout will be disqualified with no recourse.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Cut here-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ENTRANCE FORM – BELVIDERE PACK 141 – JANUARY 29, 2011

Scout’s Rank (circle one): Tiger Wolf Bear Webelos I or Webelos II

Car was built after April 17, 2010 (circle one): Yes or No

Car was built using the regulation kit #17006 (circle one): Yes or No

The wheels used were included in the regulation kit #17006 or the replacement wheel kit #17007 (circle one): Yes or No

The axles used were included in the regulation kit #17006 or the replacement wheel kit #17007 (circle one): Yes or No

I have read and understand the rules listed above (circle one): Yes or No

I understand that any violation of these rules will result in disqualification of the car and the scout (circle one): Yes or No

Parent’s name: ______________________________ ______________________________ ____________
Print name Signature Date
Scout’s name: ______________________________ ______________________________ ____________
Print name Signature Date

[PxTx]

I've thought it is strange that the BSA store sells items which are in contrast to their rules. Here are 3 examples but there are several.

http://www.scoutstuff.org/pro-wheel-...-xt-2-new.html

http://www.scoutstuff.org/lubricant-pwd-krytox.html

http://www.scoutstuff.org/pro-rail-rider.html

So not going political on the Scouts, but just want to caution you to research your own pack rules. I've found rules, enforcement and competition vary.

[RPOLS3]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: pxtx</div><div class="ubbcode-body"> I've found rules, enforcement and competition vary. </div></div>

True enough - everyone does it a little differently and some much more technical than others.

Jake

[77Z28]

This subject brings back a lot good memories od scouting! My Dad being a car guy loved this activity each year when my brother and I were in scouts. Both my pine wood derby car and my brother's, different years, won best design. Our cars were never very fast, but we always went over the top on the design.

I see that BSA sells a wide body kit now, Dad helped me build a wide body car using 2 car kits 20 plus years ago. One of our favorite tricks was to add decals from plastic car models to our cars to decorate them. One year we even added a clear plastic windshield from a model kit to our pine wood derby car to make it more realistic looking.

Have fun Dads with your sons on this memory maker!

Todd

[njsteve]

You know, this would be a great addition to the MCACN show. Have an &quot;Adult&quot; Pinewood Derby contest.

Maybe we could get Linda Vaughn to be the official starter.

[img]<<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/naughty.gif[/img]

[SmallHurst]

Working with my sone on his last derby car. Wheels/ axles, weight, and alignment. Get the plastic ruler that shows square axle placement, proper space between body.

I bought 8 ft of track and elevation to practice the car on. Run the car and make sure that you get the graphite worked in.

[PxTx]

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STREET ROD class is for cars that closely resemble actual cars. Kinda neat!

[PxTx]

I went on a test/tune this afternoon and had a blast! The white car had super light wheels to get out of the gate fast, but one hub broke from the sudden stop. It was probably a good idea that car went away quickly. That one run had the Batman car covered by 2 lenghts!

Batman, other than the stainless axles is within the rules of most packs. If I used 4 stock axles for ballast I would consider it 100% legal. Other than the one loss to the White car, Batman rulled the races today. We started to get comments about having the car checked out. I plan on pulling a Smokey Yunick and running Batman at another track, but it was fun to make these guys nervious.

The Robin car lost only to Batman. This car has a proper wheel alignment with axle cant. I took a file and ground down the axle so that just the area near the nail head was actually touching the wheel bore. Minimizes surface area for friction. After a basic polish of the axles up to only 1500 sand paper and a light wheel bore prep, that was all it took for this car to be competitive.

By the time I got to the Blue car with getting it properly weighted, I only got 1 run it, so not much to say there. The kids enjoyed putting the weight on the cars. My son called it putting and engine on. We used Tungsten cubes on the two cars, but the ones with visual weights had a cool factor like a Tunnel Ram!

How's the car shaping up Marlin?

[YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY]

We just got the car kit an hour ago, along with the rules sheet - will post that tomorrow to see what you guys think [img]<<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/eek.gif[/img] Danny just wants to have fun, that will change if he has a slow car!! So, we need to build this thing to win, I have a full-on car prep kit coming from a fellow member.

Danny's best comment: &quot;Dad, can we make it look like my Camaro?&quot; Love it! [img]<<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/biggthumpup.gif[/img]

[YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY]

Rules to abide by:



Where's my flexibility?