How to Build a Pinewood Derby
A pinewood derby is nothing more than a race involving pinewood derby cars, also known as pinewood racers and downhill racers. To have a pinewood derby, you first have to build the cars that will be racing in that derby, and doing so is a lot of fun. Pinewood derby car-building can be simplified by purchasing kits that provide you with all the necessary components for the car in one small, inexpensive package. Get your friends together, build your cars and have yourself a pinewood derby.
Instructions
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1
Purchase your pinewood derby car kit from a local hobby shop or online store. The kit should have a pinewood block for the car body, two metal rods for the axles and four plastic wheels. The pinewood block should have two pre-drilled holes for the axle rods to fit into.
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2
With a pencil, draw the car design you want to create directly onto the pinewood block and then cut out the shape of the car using a jigsaw.
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3
Sand down the car until all the edges of the wooden block are smooth and then spray paint the car whatever color you wish. Let the paint dry for about an hour or two.
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4
Insert the metal rods into the pre-drilled holes on the car and then attach a plastic wheel to each end of the rods sticking out of the car.
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5
Repeat this process with your friends until you have at least two or more pinewood racers to compete in your derby. The more cars you make, the more entertaining the derby will be.
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Take the cars to a place where there is a downhill grade. These cars are called downhill racers, after all.
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Place two cars, side-by-side, at the top of the hill and release them. The first car to the bottom of the hill wins the race. Any cars that break apart during the race are should be considered disqualified from the derby.
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