I never did Pinewood Derby as a kid, but as an ecomodder...
 

Has anyone here used Pinewood Derby for the sole purpose of ecomodding?

It's now on my list of things pending the garage we plan to have with our new apartment at the end of the summer.

I think it'd be extremely useful and fun during winter months.

I mainly want to test out different things for future streamlining of my scooter, but with the materials available, I'd probably go ahead and test out different ideas for the 02 Corolla as well. I think it'd also turn out to be kind of fun.

I think with the safety and practicality concerns when it comes to streamlining the scooter, it's particularly more mind-boggling. It wouldn't be your straight-forward teardrop shell or semi-Sears–Haack body (even with those, I'd of course want to test 'em out on a model car before investing all the time, effort and materials into redoing my car body).

I noticed Pinewood derby mentioned here and there on Ecomodder but not a whole lot.

Just how practical is pinewood derby for testing aerodynamics? Check the Aerodynamics section on this page.

You could also go the mini-wind tunnel route, but that doesn't seem half as fun. Might be good for testing out small cars if you don't have the means for using a track though.

Also, isn't pinewood derby kind of naturally in the spirit of a hypermiler's driving style?

Please pardon my rambling. I am getting a little ahead of myself. Wish I could just get to it and post results, but I have to wait about 6 months, minimum.

With my Dad's help; I won my local Pine Wood Derby. We had a nice Bonneville type shape, but it was the embedded weights that increased our speed for success.

6 month delay? Do you mean that's when your event to be held, or you are in jail, and don't have access to sharp tools?

Might be because he has no place to do it at the moment... ? Based on the following:

Pine derby cars are too slow for aerodynamic testing.
What you should look at are tethered model cars,
see tethercar.com,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=555aeQlPprY

Yeah. I have to keep crafty stuff to a minimum, living in an apartment. I could really go out of my way to find some place away from home to do it, but I'd rather not. Plus there's simply no room for it at the apartment. I'd want to be able to use the track anytime I feel like it.

Yes indeed. Weight is definitely a factor.

That's why I plan on keeping the weight same, if I'm trying to find aerodynamic improvement. And/Or, having the track shaped in such a way to favor aerodynamics over heavier weight. Hey, I have time to work out the details.


Clearly, aerodynamics do matter with Pinewood Derby (did you read my first post?). Sure, it's measured in fractions of a second, but with a enough repetition and an accurate test track, aerodynamic improvement will become evident.

And yeah, there's no way I'll have room for my own tether track anytime soon, or convince the lady to use our backyard for it.

Also, as you get faster and faster, the need for downforce arises. At normal speeds, simple streamlining without downforce is the way to go. I figure, if I find aerodynamic improvements in pinewood derby, it'll just help that much more, the faster I go.

But I'm not averse to making a mini-windtunnel. That's something we'd actually have room for right now. So I may just do that.