by "Dash-doorhandle-6 cyl none the richer" (dash-doorhandle-and-bondo)
Published 04/08/2017 at 20:04
by "Dash-doorhandle-6 cyl none the richer" (dash-doorhandle-and-bondo)
Published 04/08/2017 at 20:04
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STARS: 1
My favourites being: “Cat 3000 and” “WWE Dennis”. Lots of fun this year, Sam’s car ran a 2.591 which as I understand, is fast.
"Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing." (granfury)
04/08/2017 at 20:18, STARS: 2
I won my troop’s Pinewood Derby back in ‘77. My dad had passed away a couple of years earlier, so thankfully I got some help from some friend’s fathers. I drew up a design, and someone who worked at Western Airlines cut it out and carved it to my specs, more or less.. The paint and details were nothing fancy, just a coat of gold that it still wears to this day. I think I still have the trophy as well.
The secret to winning was dry graphite lubricant, unheard of at the time but now standard. Mine was the fastest around by a long shot, even beating the previous winners from the previous several years.
"Shour, Aloof and Obnoxious" (shour)
04/08/2017 at 23:21, STARS: 0
My dirty little trick was to set the car on 3 wheels. Pretty much won every time due to lower rolling friction. Cut plenty of wood off, then bring it back up to minimum weight by adding the weight by the front axle (nails). Set one of the rear wheels one millimeter higher than the other three, and watch it fly...wonder if that’s no longer legal these days.
"ShrimpHappens, née WJalopy" (bakeshake)
04/18/2017 at 13:00, STARS: 0
I grew up in a bedroom community for Redstone Arsenal/Marshall Space Flight Center, so the competition was literally rocket scientists. Fortunately, my dad was a rocket scientist, too. The winning combination was usually a low-profile wedge, with weight added in the back via 50-cal lead balls and screws (why the back? U=mgh) and plenty of powdered graphite on the wheels.
My dad was super pissed one time when the off-level scale at the event showed our car was overweight, since the scale we had at home was the exact same as being used at NASA and showed us at 5.00 oz.