Reader Submitted Pinewood Derby Tips

Here are a few speed tips submitted by our readers:

Alex Ezell – Use a tool called a caliper to find thick pinewood derby axles. Then polish them super smooth. But don’t remove more material than necessary.

Bob Dahlberg – Build two cars. The second one will be faster.

Jerry Lencoski – To make the bottom of the pinewood derby car totally smooth after the axles are inserted and aligned, I cut a sliver of popsicle stick, glue it into the slot, and sand it smooth. This cuts down on the drag under the car.

Matt Bierek – At many pinewood derby races, officials offer to lube the cars for the participants at check in. If yours is one, politely decline since, once lubed, you will not get the proper break in before the races begin. This occurs at our race, and it is clear from the heat times that all participants who requested lubes did better in race four than in race one.

From Pinewood Derby Times Volume 4, Issue 5