RULES: 3 Wheels on Floor at Pack / 4 Wheels on Floor at District

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derbypain
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RULES: 3 Wheels on Floor at Pack / 4 Wheels on Floor at District

Post by derbypain »

New to the Forum and Looking for some opinions here: We won our pack last year but this year the rules have been modified to allow a raised wheel (3 on the floor)....but the district race is still planning to be 4 wheels touching. We plan to be part of district again but my son doesn't really want to re-work the car over it...etc...We have always drilled the axles (no slots) and he has already drilled for "4 on the floor". Is there any issue with adding another hole for a raised wheel on one side that is maybe behind by 1/8" the already drilled four on the floor wheel axle hole? In other words create a car that has a raised wheel option for the pack that if we were to make district this year he can pull the raised wheel and move to the already pre-drilled "4 on the floor" axle hole?

I just did not want to advise him to do it if you guys thought it would cause a balance or other issues I am not considering. It seems that if the raised wheel is just barely behind (it won't quite line up with the other front wheel) and is not touching the floor that it would not be an issue. Thanks for reading all this and helping my son with his choices based on your experiences.

Thanks,
Michael
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Vitamin K
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Re: RULES: 3 Wheels on Floor at Pack / 4 Wheels on Floor at District

Post by Vitamin K »

Another option might be just to put enough bend into one of the axles to raise it off of the ground when properly rotated. Obviously, you'd want to use a different axle for the "4 wheels touching" car.
derbypain
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Re: RULES: 3 Wheels on Floor at Pack / 4 Wheels on Floor at District

Post by derbypain »

Ok Great Idea! He and I haven't ever bent an axle...Any recommendations on how to bend one and where to bend it on the nail. Thanks

Any other ideas please let us know. My son is a Webelos II this year so it is his last set of races. He has really put a lot of thought and sweat on the car this year. Thank you in advance.
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Vitamin K
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Re: RULES: 3 Wheels on Floor at Pack / 4 Wheels on Floor at District

Post by Vitamin K »

derbypain wrote:Ok Great Idea! He and I haven't ever bent an axle...Any recommendations on how to bend one and where to bend it on the nail. Thanks

Any other ideas please let us know. My son is a Webelos II this year so it is his last set of races. He has really put a lot of thought and sweat on the car this year. Thank you in advance.
Well, if you're bending the axle with the intent of raising the wheel...it really isn't critical how you bend it, since the wheel on that axle doesn't need to spin true.

What I typically do for any bent axle is to insert the axle into a wheel and mark about 1/16" past the end of the inner hub on the axle, and then remove it from the wheel and grip it in a pair of pliers, with the pointed end of the nail inside of the jaws. Then I place the exposed shaft of the nail up against a piece of wood and press down on the shaft while lifting up with the pliers. Should give you a nice bend. Practice on a few spare axles to figure out how much force you need to use.
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Re: RULES: 3 Wheels on Floor at Pack / 4 Wheels on Floor at District

Post by whodathunkit »

:welcome: derbypain

Vitamin K's way will work for bending the axle.

However guy's.. are you using the bent axle for the DFW to lift the opposite wheel up ..for your set up.
( Or are you just using the bent axle to lift one wheel on the car ? )

Most of the time ..
( For the location of the bend point on the axle.) it's on the axle shaft 3/8" down from the axle head.

There are some handy axle bend degree gauge charts here an DT..Stan Pope has one.. & then there is one from a8htk Andy & Noah H.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7m0uX ... 9IN3c/view
The charts.. will help you out if your looking to see how much of a degree bend you have made on your axle.

For bending the axle there are several ways to do it also!
Using 2 extra axles to make a bridge .. lay the axle your bending on top of them.
Use a flat blade screw driver placing the blade on your 3/8" mark on the axle shaft & then tapping on the handle end of the screw driver with a hammer
to bend the axle.. The axle should be inserted into the block up to the 3/8' mark or bend point as well when inserting the wheel and axle on the car.

Best of luck with your 3 wheel & 4 wheel set up car team derbypain.
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Re: RULES: 3 Wheels on Floor at Pack / 4 Wheels on Floor at District

Post by derbypain »

Thanks for the response. Mainly trying to raise wheel so it will not touch for the Pack race. My son and I had not considered angling the wheel for the 4 wheel race at district if that occurs.
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