I'm trying to run a pinewood derby for some kids at my church. We have a 4-lane track, and it records the finish order, but I don't have access to the actual timing capabilities of the track.

I want to design a bracket or other heat/running process that works for 15-20 cars with the track we have, based only on relative finish order for each run. I would like it to be as fair as possible, but doesn't need to be complete fair (running every car against every other car would probably be the only to do that, right?). I would also like the kids to see their car run several times, at least once in each lane.

What are some options? Any good apps or spreadsheets for this?

I asked a question, not a rude or ignorant one. Just a question. This sub Reddit already isn't incredibly active. Why would you down vote someone who isn't doing anything wrong?

Things like this are why I leave so many groups. A 0 score means it won't be seen and it won't have any engagement and that's bad for everyone here...

I just don't get it.

I really enjoyed tinkering with my car, but without a track to test on I think I'm just stuck until our next event quite a few months away.

My shop has a wall that should be long enough for a test track and I was thinking about 3D printing one to mount there and test the car. Without some sort of optical or mechanical timer, it feels like guessing.

So does anyone here have any experience with a simple DIY timer I could put together for this purpose? Like, I see article after article about making them, but I'd like to talk to someone who has actually made one.

Thanks for any input you guys have.

Not sure if this is the correct place to post this but our Pack 648 in San Diego is looking to sell an extra Pinewood Derby Track that we have. This information is from the OfferUp listing that I just posted but just trying to get some more eyes on it with people in the area that have similar interests. If anyone has any other suggestions of how we can find a new home for this nice track please let me know. YIS - David

https://offerup.com/item/detail/1720920188

• 3-Lane Aluminum Pinewood Derby Track.
• Excellent Condition including storage crate.
• Includes aluminum track, start gate, computer system, stop gate with computerized timer. Aluminum track alone retails for $1300 without a crate, computer system, or race timer.
• Our Pack inherited another track from a Pack that dissolved and merged into our Pack. Must be able to pick up in the San Diego area.

This will be our third year. First year we took 3rd, and would've been first, but the weight on the bottom, bottomed the car out.

Last year, a complete bust... Got last place - believe a rear axle was messed up due to drilling into the hole where the weight was.

This year, I want to kinda figure it out.

What are some recommendations to tune and align the car? Esp with the rear wheels... If I camber, how to i know they aren't toed in or out, but straight?

Bought a 4' piece of wood and was going to prop it up 12". Now the car needs to drift 4-6" away from the wheel that I've toed in, and I'm good?

Wood track. No real rules.

our track is an older aluminum track that has a wooden base built under it. the starting mechanism is starting to get worn out and the setup is causing issues with the track- the screw that holds the board that holds the spring has worn out its hole and some time in the past a bigger screw was installed. the longer screw pushes into the bottom of the track causing a bump in one lane. i plan to get our track out and work on over the summer/fall. i was hoping to find some pictures and diagrams of different starting mechanisms to rework ours to not have to make as many adjustments and repairs. i am adding the pictures i took of the starter on our track.

https://preview.redd.it/k2kw794kmhdd1.jpg?width=3000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=46c41f10bdb090fd5caf6acab3c80465f6ebbcc6

https://preview.redd.it/yc0ed1zlmhdd1.jpg?width=3000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e706a1cdf79cc36d50031df7cd0acdda5df78c71

I’m curious if I can build a rail rider using only the pinewood pro axle hole driller (link below) and no axle bender? It has the 2.5 degree camber (I believe both positive and negative) and the elevated straight hole for the front non steering wheel, but I’m not sure if I can get the toe-in angle on the front steering wheel with it. Does anyone have experience with this jig?

https://www.pinewoodpro.com/mm5/5.00/merchant.mvc?Screen=CONTENT&store_code=PinewoodDerbyCar&scotsblogger_slug=PRO-Axle-Hole-Driller

I've been tasked with setting up the timing for our district meeting. we're in New Zealand, so shipping the pre-made timers can be expensive and may not work with our wood track.

I'm looking into using derbynet, but not sure if a homebuilt timer will interface with it. Has anyone built their own? What did you use?

Hello all, recently I was helping clean out our local cub scout shed and we found a pinewood derby track. It was apparently donated a few years ago and never used. I am hoping to find someone interested in it rather than having to throw it away. All pieces are in good shape but it looks like all the attachment hardware would need to be refreshed as well having a timing system installed.

I am in south Florida on the east coast near Miami. I can hold onto it for about two weeks before I need to do something with it. If you have any questions please let me know.

https://preview.redd.it/2fku9e3af0wc1.jpg?width=1280&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=76d1ead374c57d3b35148190c535f1a34445588f

Hello everyone!

So my son and I are participating in our first pinewood derby. I have just starting reading about tips for a faster car, and I am wanting to get our wheels prepped. However, I don't have a dremel, drill press, or polish. I don't have any of the neat aftermarket tools, nor will I be able to get any of them in time--derby is this Saturday. I have a handheld drill, and I have 200 grit sandpaper, but I CAN get higher grit. So without access to any of the tools that the pros have, what kind of prep can I actually do?

Zoomed in pic of my daughter’s first heat. You can see the front left tire is on the median. Each car ran 4 races. One on each track. Her car immediately jumped sideways and she was given the default 9 seconds. Winners are based on lowest cumulative of all 4 runs. She couldn’t recover with a 9 second run. The top three times were her other 3 runs. She took 12th out of 32. She’s pretty upset, but I couldn’t be that dad showing cell phone pics so my daughter can take first place. Valuable lesson about how life isn’t fair haha.

Our rules note the following two rules which I’ve heard dads within the pack interpret differently.

• The first rule simply states, “Beveling or tapering of the wheels is not allowed.”

Does this mean we cannot use bent axles, but or what does this mean?

• The second rule notes “…all 4 wheels must be touching the track at check in.”

Does this mean that after check in you can alter the car such that one front wheel does not touch?

Thank you in advance! First time making one of these!

Going through since old things the creativity bug hit and i an looking to restore this a bit. We made this way back but could never get the windows just right. Now that I have access to a cricut I can either just print out the windows and glue it on (not sure how sticky the vinyl is) and then try to seal it with some clear coat or print out the negative and spray paint the windows that way. I had use krylon back then do you think I could use angelus and an airbrush with out the paint bubbling? Any advice is welcome