View Shopping Cart
All Products
Pine Wood Derby Speed Secrets Book
Experience the thrill of winning the Pine Wood Derby!
Whether this is your first race or you are a seasoned competitor, Pine Wood Derby Speed Secrets has all the advice and tips you need to bring home the trophy.
Featuring fully-illustrated, easy-to-follow instructions covering every step of the process, author David Meade, a research scientist and the father of two undefeated Derby champs, reveals his ultimate speed secrets for crossing the finish line first.
You'll discover:
- How to build three levels of Pine Wood Derby cars: The Winning Car, The Champion Car, and The Ultimate Car.
- The fun of building the car with your child.
- The secrets to preparing the wheels and axles, distributing weight, and shaving seconds off your race time.
- Seven ready-to-cut templates.
By using the tips and techniques in Pine Wood Derby Speed Secrets, you too will be sure to build a winning car while building memories that will last a lifetime.
Table of Contents:
A History of the Pine Wood Derby
Chapter 1: Getting Started in the Pine Wood Derby
Having a solid understanding of the principles of safety, speed, and car design is essential to building your car and will make the process more fun for you and your child.
- Be safe - Basic safety guidelines
- A Scout is Trustworthy - Official rules explained
- Let Your Child Build the Car - Describes how your child can do most of the work.
- General Guidelines for Car Design - What to think about when deciding on a design.
Chapter 2: Building the Car Body
- The Winning Car - Ideal for beginners. An easy car to build
yet fast enough to win.
- Template
- Cut the Design
- Determine weight and weight placement.
- Sand the car
- Add the weights
- Paint the car
- Lubricate the wheel well
- The Champion Car - Go beyond what most people do.
- Extend the wheelbase
- Create glue holes
- Decal tips
- The Ultimate Car - Go the extra mile and take home the
trophy.
- Bake the block
- Quick start design
- Improving standard designs
- Make a three-wheeler
Chapter 3: Axle Preparation
- The Winning Axles
- Remove the burrs
- Polish the axles
- The Champion Axles
- Taper the axle head
- Polish the axle head
- The Ultimate Axles
- Find the best axles
- Reduce contact surface area
Chapter 4: Wheel Preparation
- The Winning Wheels
- Polish the wheels
- Lubricate the wheels
- Liquid vs dry lubricant
- The Champion Wheels
- Wheel selection
- Taper the wheel hub
- Polish the inside rim
- The Ultimate Wheels
- Lathe-turned wheels
- "H" and "V" configurations
- Polish the wheel bore
Chapter 5: Putting It All Together
- Attaching the Wheels - Get the spacing right.
- Wheel Alignment - The best techniques and what to look out for..
- Final Wheel Lubrication - How to apply graphite.
- Breaking Them In - Very important step that most don't do.
- The 20-Second Test - Be sure everything is correct and ready to go.
- The Final Weighing - Last minute weight hints.