The day’s schedule:
9am – 10am Check In/Registration for all ranks
10am – 10:45 am Judging for show, first Tigers, then rest of pack
10:50 – 11:20am speed race for Tigers
11:25 – 12:00 speed race for Bears
12:05 – 12:25 speed race for Wolves
12:30 – 1:00 speed race for Webelos
1:00 – 1:30 Awards
1:30 – 2:00 Clean up
Everyone should have received a giftwrapped Pinewood Derby car at the December Pack meeting. If you weren’t there, please contact your den leader to obtain your car.
Some basic rules:
- Cars must weigh no more than 5 oz. There will be a weigh-in before judging. If your car is a little over, there will be tools available to make last-minute modifications to get it to the proper weight
- Wheels and axles must be lubricated only with dry lubricant. Graphite is the best choice
- You must use the wood block, axles (nails) and wheels provided with the kit. If you lose or damage an axle or wheel, you can obtain a replacement kit at a hobby store, or in a Pinewood Derby Tuning kit
- You must place the axles (nails) in the slots already cut into the block of wood. You cannot nail them directly into the block or cut new grooves
Cars are judged on creativity and speed. Before the races, the boys will cast ballots for their favorite cars, and the winners will be recognized. For the races, each car gets to race one time in each of the 4 lanes on the track. The top overall and within-rank times will be recognized. The fastest cars will be eligible to compete at the district races.
4 things you should always do to get a faster time:
- Remove the burs from the underside of the nail head. Use a drill press or dremmel tool along with a metal file
- Wet sand the exposed surface of the nail body to polish it smooth. Use a drill press or dremmel tool along with fine grit sandpaper
- Use lead weights to get the total car weight to exactly 5 oz. Make sure the car is balanced correctly from front to back. Fishing weights, coins or the weight plates with a tuning kit (see below) are all permitted
- Shape and paint the car to make it more aerodynamic
Consider buying a Pinewood Derby tuning kit at a hobby store. These contain materials and directions to improve performance of your car.
Need ideas? You can make your block of wood into a car, a boat, an animal, a box of crayons, or anything you can imagine. Search for “pinewood derby ideas” or “pinewood derby plans” to see what others have built before.
Click here to see a PowerPoint presentation on the Pinewood Derby.
Some useful links:
pinewoodderby.org/build
www.three-peaks.net/pinecar.htm
www.dremelderby.com/
