Crazy Build ?

[Speedster]

My friend, JJ, won the Bear Den race yesterday. He's new to scouting and this was his first Derby race. His was a 3 wheel straight runner with lead rod as weight. My old Friend, Wil, (I can't beat this guy) happens to have a nephew in our Pack. Marcus won the Wolf race and turned the fastest time of the day. I don't have the times because I was busy inspecting cars so I don't know by how much he would have beat us. Here's the craziness. Wil pours melted lead in the top of the car, uses the screw technique to angle the rear wheels and sets it up as a railrider. He puts very little toe-in on the cars he builds and the cars always "fish tail" and that's what he wants. His theory is the DFW drifts on and off the guide rail. When it's off the rail the car picks up speed. A car riding the rail is dragging all the time. I keep telling him to quit using lead, the weight is too high in the car, the car has too much wood in it, and keep the car on the rail. He refuses to listen to me. Oh, Yes, his two wafer wheel bearing cars took 1st and 2nd place in our "OUTLAW" race. The little gal running my Mid America car (8 oz.) came in 3rd.
Nephew Marcus took 1st place at District last year as a Tiger. I'll find out at District this year what time the cars turn because the Elapsed Times are shown on a screen. Wil might make peculiar cars but he surely does win a lot.

[DerbyAddicted]

I'm an amateur (at best) when it comes to PWD, but I would suspect he wins in spite of fishtailing, not because of it. The flat is 2/3-3/4 the length of the track, and once you hit the flat, you're not picking up much speed. And the energy he loses via fishtailing would negate any speed he picks up imo. I'm betting there's something else he does exceptionally well (ie axle prep, wheel prep, or lube) that makes up for the fishtailing and then some. And even if there was some science behind it, I would think he'd need a Best Track in his basement to capitalize on it.

[Speedster]

He does everything exceptionally well. He uses a 40' Freedom track for tuning which happens to be the same track that is used for the final track at the Commodore Perry District races. He claims this is where he learned where this was the fastest method. The car doesn't pick up any speed once it hits the flat. You are correct about his skill. He'd win no matter how he sets up his rail rider. We'll find out this summer when it's warm. We'll run his car down my track and then give it more toe in to take out the fishtailing and see what happens.

[FatSebastian]

His theory is the DFW drifts on and off the guide rail. When it's off the rail the car picks up speed.

The premise behind rail-riding is to allow one wheel to maintain contact with the rail so that the other three never make contact. If he has perfected a way for the DFW to leave the rail without the other three wheels banging the rail, then hats off to him!