Ask All of Your PWD Questions Here

[B_Regal Racing]

For the next 6hours, I will be in an absolutely boring software problem ranking meeting for all those reported by the ATC community in the last three months. Just so you know, I am the software engineer participant in this meeting, and I am struggling to pay attention; hence, I will be able to respond to all of your questions in an attempt to look busy, in this thread, and any other. Its just one of those days.

That is all.

 

[CivilWarTalk]

Please give all the best reasons you would give a District Committee that allowing 3 wheel touching cars in PWD is better than forcing all cars to run on 4 touching wheels.

More questions as you need them! /images/boards/smilies/smile.gif

 

[CTDerbyDad]

What steps would you recommend for oil prep for a Cub Scout?

 

[microbrush]

Why do you like to pay $50 shipping?

 

[B_Regal Racing]

Why do you like to pay $50 shipping?

This is a very good question. It appears to me that while the Mrs tolerates my silly little hobby with the playing with toy cars, I really want to be sure she is thouroghly annoyed. To do this, I intentionally prep my cars late to ensure that the money that would be used for her hair or to feed the family is spent wisely ensuring that my little cars make it to Utah on time. By doing that, I ensure that any of my other needs are not satisfied by the Mrs. I leave you to your own devices to determine what those are.

 

[B_Regal Racing]

What steps would you recommend for oil prep for a Cub Scout?

polish axles with micromesh
polish using some fine metalolish
clean with dawn
buff
inspect and repeat any steps necessary
clean off any film or residue

clean wheels with dawn
polish with novus for 15 -20 seconds
clean bore wish Dawn
blow dry
apply your favorite paint sealent (red rocket)
wait 15 min
blow out bore with compressed air
wait 15 min
buff wax to a shine
inspect
let cure for several days

inspect the axles and bores
clean as necessary
shake dd4h oil
place 1drop of oil on the journal closest to the point
spin axle so oil gets all over
tilt axle so oil gets to journel near the nail head
spin axle
shake off excess oil
insert axle in wheel
insert wheel axle assembly in the car
leave as little wheel gap as possible

check in car and win the race

 

[CTDerbyDad]

Awesome. Thank you. We used Derby Worx Pro Bore Wax. The Red Rocket would replace this? We haven't tried the Red Rocket, but will now. Previously we used plastic polish and then the Pro Bore Wax.

 

[B_Regal Racing]

Please give all the best reasons you would give a District Committee that allowing 3 wheel touching cars in PWD is better than forcing all cars to run on 4 touching wheels.

More questions as you need them! /images/boards/smilies/smile.gif

Wow this is a serious quetion.

I would say that it allows kids to scientifically explore variois ways to make a fast car. It involves some reasearch and planning with an adult, which is part of the goal of the build. It also involves some basic craftsmanship, which can be easily done by anyone with no special tools. You are not asking for turned wheels or to allowed stainless steel axles, both which would add an additional cost. In all seriousness, there should be no scout race that does not, at minimum, accept the league rules for box stock. Allow creativity for those who want to be creative.

 

[CivilWarTalk]

Wow this is a serious quetion.

I would say that it allows kids to scientifically explore variois ways to make a fast car. It involves some reasearch and planning with an adult, which is part of the goal of the build. It also involves some basic craftsmanship, which can be easily done by anyone with no special tools. You are not asking for turned wheels or to allowed stainless steel axles, both which would add an additional cost. In all seriousness, there should be no scout race that does not, at minimum, accept the league rules for box stock. Allow creativity for those who want to be creative.

I like the way you phrased these answers, I'm putting together a proposal for my district for next year, I may steal some of your wording to include in my proposal!

 

[Cubscout Dad]

When racing on odd days of the month with the moon in its 2nd phase why does my car drift to the left at 2 degrees more then 3 degrees to the right but still fast down the track. And also what does the effect of the high tide have when racing in the western states?

 

[jrbryant68]

So why is it that an EA agreement with microsft always seems to be dispaportionate cost to buying the license with software assurance...How come java is always jacking with things so you continually get updates and legacy programs spit and sputter . Who decided that VMware in a DT enviroment was better than citrix? Which Russian mafia member is Kaspersky paying off so they get malware code before it hits the market..... oh crap wrong forum..... what steps should I consider to clean and prep outside wheel prior to racing?

 

[LightninBoy]

Wow this is a serious quetion.

I would say that it allows kids to scientifically explore variois ways to make a fast car. It involves some reasearch and planning with an adult, which is part of the goal of the build. It also involves some basic craftsmanship, which can be easily done by anyone with no special tools. You are not asking for turned wheels or to allowed stainless steel axles, both which would add an additional cost. In all seriousness, there should be no scout race that does not, at minimum, accept the league rules for box stock. Allow creativity for those who want to be creative.

This is one of my biggest pet peeve rules. Good answer. I would add that it actually takes more skill and special tooling to ensure that all 4 wheels touch.

 

[B_Regal Racing]

When racing on odd days of the month with the moon in its 2nd phase why does my car drift to the left at 2 degrees more then 3 degrees to the right but still fast down the track. And also what does the effect of the high tide have when racing in the western states?

Colorless green ideas sleep furiously.

I do not write this out of concern about my appearance or non-appearance at a given race, but I wish there had been more interaction before such unilateral lunar activities have taken place while racing during the different tidal phases. It is possible I could have allayed the concerns, or, if not, or if not, my response is cold as is with the monkey's ears and toes. If our community is about anything, it is that reasoned discussion is the best way to work through these concerns, yielding only bend degree needed for both eastern and western population. I wish the builder every success at their specific interpretation of my recommendation as well as the ability to apply it. The science and skepticism community is too small and too important to let disagreements divide us and divert us from our mission of promoting a more critical and scientifically literate world.

 

[B_Regal Racing]

So why is it that an EA agreement with microsft always seems to be dispaportionate cost to buying the license with software assurance...How come java is always jacking with things so you continually get updates and legacy programs spit and sputter . Who decided that VMware in a DT enviroment was better than citrix? Which Russian mafia member is Kaspersky paying off so they get malware code before it hits the market..... oh crap wrong forum.....

Glad you realized that on your own. I see you must be in the software industry as well given your questions, and while I do have some opinions to those same topics/questions, I am trying to restrict the questions submitted to being PWD related.

what steps should I consider to clean and prep outside wheel prior to racing?

I only work with oil have do not have much experience with graphite. I say this because when working with oil, care should be taken to avoid contamination, as it will adversely affect the overall speed of your car. Understanding that, my wheels are never truly dirty. The outside of the wheel itself is interesting and the more aggressive I make my cars, the more of a concern it is for me to prep the outside of my wheels correctly. For the part that rides on the track, I do not graphite or wax them; nor do I buff them ridiculously to a point they have a mirror finish. I have found if you do this with a very aggressive car, the car can wiggle like it is on ice. That assumes that your axles are not over-polished thereby decreasing the diameter, you have enough steer, you're weighted correctly, and your wheel gaps are correct. That being said, you can not leave them un-prepared. I personally use black micromesh (2400grit) to prepare the outer edge. I also may use tan. It seems to give the right amount of traction along with the right amount of "smoothness", for me anyway. As for the inner edge of the FDW that runs the rail, I polish the cr*p out of that until it is like glass, mostly using micromesh and novus 2.

 

[B_Regal Racing]

And so concludes the question and answer session for today. Fortunately, none of the pros asked any questions......but, I'm sure I could have pointed them in the right direction.

 

[BulldogRacing]

This was awesome!

 

[Pacfanweb]

This is one of my biggest pet peeve rules. Good answer. I would add that it actually takes more skill and special tooling to ensure that all 4 wheels touch.

Further...why even bother with this rule at all? It doesn't help anyone who doesn't know what they're doing.

If you go Googling PWD speed tips, then 3 wheeler is one of the first ones you'll find.

If everyone can do it, it's not an advantage, and the ones who don't know about it are never going to win and race and don't care in the first place.

Bottom line: The people who build the fastest cars are going to have the fastest cars, no matter if they are 4 wheelers or 3 wheelers. The rule helps NOBODY. The only thing it does is hurt people who build accidental 3 wheelers and have to modify the cars at the check-in.