Derby Talk

Here is a one page handout we gave out this year to try to help out people who couldn't make it to the Derby workshop. Actually it got a few people to come who wouldn't otherwise have cared. They read the information and realized there was more they could do than just leave things to chance. Its not...

It seems like we always rent from a different place each year, so I can probably get a better idea of what rentals go for in this area OK. It took me awhile to get the information, but our Pack has paid $125 each of the last two years for track rental. In both cases, the track owner (different each...

One idea might be to perhaps have a preliminary Derby a week earlier but only for those in the Council that don't have a Pack derby. Some group of winners from this race could move onto the Council race then. Our Council race is open to anyone who wants to participate. The numbers never seem to get ...

How are you weighing the front? You need to make sure that the rear of the car is supported by something that keeps it at the same height as the front of the car. Otherwise you will not get an accurate reading.

Randy

What about trying a couple of those axle guards that they sell at the Scout stores?

Randy

If the rules require using the stock axle slots without moving them and if the car bodies are already built, I would be tempted to slice off the bottom 1/8 of an inch of the car and cut new slots. (Or sand it off with a belt sander.) You might inquire if the slots can simply be moved as long as the ...

4.1 oz of weight added with stock wheels and axles doesn't leave a lot of wood. I'd like to see how you did it. That should leave about 10 grams for wood which is certainly possible. (4.1 ounces = 116 grams) Our hollowed wooden shell was 12 grams this year and we could have trimmed a little more. W...

Now we just need some "guinea pigs" to test this on! :) I'm game. We have one car sitting around here already with canted rears that I know has to have toe issues. Won't be able to test it till Wednesday though. Kids have things going on at school Tuesday night we need to attend. Randy

Stan, My two cents. With regard to the "stop condition", maybe the only thing I would add would be to repeat the tests on each side until both are observed to be in alignment without further modification to either side. I like the idea of using extra weight to bias one side of the car. The...

Since canted axles make it so difficult to accurately determine if there are issues with toe during alignment, I was wondering if it would be possible to elevate one side of the car so that the opposite axle is now parallel to the plane of the track. If a test track could be created that maintains t...

I am against disqualifying a car after they have passed check-in ..... If the check-in judge missed something, that is on the judge. IMO, the car should still be allowed to race. I completely agree with that sentiment. At our 2008 PWD a car that passed inspection was later observed to have non-BSA ...

Jason, From your screen name, can I assume you are from this area? (Nebraska) Our Pack rents one every year. I'll ask our Cubmaster what we have been paying the last few years for track rental. It seems like we always rent from a different place each year, so I can probably get a better idea of what...

We use a shoe box too. But we went commando :shock: the first year and learned that was a mistake. The derby car was sitting in the front passenger seat of my car as we prepared to leave for check-in. I forgot about some things left in the back seat and my son decided to move them to ... you guessed...

ah8tk wrote:I have been working on an idea I had to give out a stand like these to all participants and make trophies that also resemble the stands for next years derby.

Wow! Very impressive plans. Please post a picture when you have something put together.

Randy

Curious...How many did you have to make? Made 35 of them. It didn't take too long to build them though. You just have to get into production line mode. Routed the beveled edge and then painted the wood before cutting it up. Then after cutting, stacked all the cut edges from one side together to pai...