Pinewood Derby Frequently Asked Questions How Exactly Do We Build Our Car? Check Out Our Easy 20-Step Check-List... Are Car Design Templates Available? Yes! We have free templates for modern and vintage kits to help you sketch your design! You will need Adobe Acrobat to view and print these files. What Are The Official Pack 83 Rules? You can read the Official Pack 83 Pinewood Derby Race Rules here.

Cub Scouts Pack 83 of Belmont, CA
Pinewood Derby Information, Rules, Building Tips, and Planning Templates

Make absolutely sure that your Cub's car meets all the Official Pack 83 Pinewood Derby Race Rules to the letter!  Cars will be disqualified for non-compliance, and that can be really tough on the cub as well as the parent!

Here are some special tips on adhering to the rules:

Use Only OFFICIAL Pinewood Derby Kits from the Scout Store or from Pack 83!
There are some other non-official kits sold at hobby shops and Talbot's that are not official and will be disqualified (may be under the brand name "Pinecar").  The kit that your son received at the Christmas Pack 83 meeting is an official kit.

Do not Use Washers or Bushings on the Wheels!
This is a big show-stopper.  Any car with bushings, bearings, washers or shims on the axles or wheels will be disqualified.

Use Only Official Axles (Nails) and Wheels!
The use of other non-official wheels or axles is prohibited.  You can, however,  modify these items ONLY to reduce friction from flashing and molding imperfections (you cannot shape the wheels or taper the axles, etc.). Extra "official" wheels and axles are available at the Scout Store.

Make Sure Your Car is Within Accepted Dimensions and Weight!
This is important too!  Cars that are too long, too tall, too wide, too high or low to the ground, or too heavy will be disqualified.  5
ounces is the max weight, and the official Pack 83 scale is calibrated with an official 5 ounce weight, and that scale is the authority! Do not trust the scale at the post office. Be prepared to lighten (or add more weight to) your car on race day.

Building Tips
There are tons of web sites that tell how to build winning cars...there is plenty of FREE information on the web, so do NOT fall
for the rip-off information sites that charge you money for the information!  Basically, there are only a few things that you should
do to your car to get the best performance...here they are:

Polish the Axles and Debur the Wheels
Put the axles into a drill and use the finest sandpaper you can find to debur the seam off the nail and then use steel wool, metal polish and whatever you can find to polish the axles to a super-smooth mirror finish.  Also pay attention to the underside of the nail head and get rid of any seams as this surface contacts the wheel.  You should also put the wheel on a mandrel (a tiny machine screw with a lock nut will work) and out the mandrel in a drill and sand and polish the outer surface of the wheel that contacts the ground.  You want this to be perfectly round as any bumps will cause friction and will slow your car.  Remove any seams from the front and back of the wheel where it contacts the axle head and car body.  You will want to use dry graphite lubricant on the axles and in the wheels to get it really spinning!  Do not use oil or grease or any non-dry lube as this will disqualify your car (makes a big mess).

Weighting Your Car
Your car should be right at 5 ounces, which is the maximum weight permitted.  Be prepared to be able to remove a little weight for discrepancies in the scales.  It is best to put the weight in the center of the car or at the very front and back to distribute the
weight evenly on both sets of wheels.  If you put the weight right over only the front or only the rear wheels, this will produce more
friction on that pair of axles.  Metal weights are available at hobby shops (it is OK to use any weights for your car as there is no
"official" weight required).  Be careful using the scales at the Post Office as they are not calibrated.

Carving the Car
A tip from a veteran Scout dad in our pack says be sure to sketch out your car from the front, side and top on paper BEFORE you start cutting the wood!

You can download an Adobe Acrobat file of the Pack 83 Pinewood Derby Car Design Template HERE. We also have a template for the older vintage Pinewood Derby kits of the style used before 1972 in case you are using one of these in the Outlaw Race, or you're just curious about the old-style kits, you can download the planner for the vintage kit here, and you can see a photos and information about the original kit here). You can print the planner out with the free Adobe Acrobat Reader and use it as an acurate template and let your son draw his design on the paper before transferring the design to the wood (be sure to turn OFF the "Fit To Page" option when you print it so that the drawing will be actual life size...you can check it with a ruler and measure the inch markings at the bottom of the page). Sketching your design on paper before drawing on or cutting the wood may sound obvious, but apparently many first-time builders have made the mistake of drawing their designs on the wood and cutting without thinking it through.

After you sketch the top, side and front views, redraw the design onto your block. To do this, draw your design on the front of the paper with a soft pencil, then when you are pleased with the design, scribble heavy pencil lead on the back of the paper where your lines are on the front. Finally, tape the paper onto the block and trace the lines on the front of the paper once again...the lead on the back of the paper will be transferred to the wooden block! Then cut the lines out with a band saw or coping saw.  Sand it down really smooth and finally use a sanding sealer before you paint it.  The smoother the car, the faster it will be.

Making the Axles Stay In
2-part 5-minute epoxy can be used to hold the nail axles into the wood slots.  Just be sure to keep the epoxy well away from the wheel surface for two reasons: 1.) it will interfere with the wheel spin, and 2.) it might be considered a bushing or bearing which would disqualify your car.

Outlaw Class Pinewood Derby Race

So that you will feel more inclined to let your son REALLY build his own car, there will be an Outlaw Class version of the Pinewood Derby on race day.  Parents and siblings can show off their building skills and create their own race vehicles.

Outlaw Class Race Rules

Parents can build their own cars for the special Outlaw Class Pinewood race. There are basically no rules except the following:

• Maximum weight of 5 ounces
• No rockets, jets, or propulsion of any kind (gravity only)
• No starting devices or springs
• Moveable weights are OK
• Your car may not interfere with other cars
• Bushings and non-official wheels and axles are OK
• Official Pinewood car dimensions must be observed (W, L, H, etc.)
• Electronics are OK (LEDs, phototransistors, microprocessors, batteries, etc.) as long as they do not provide propulsion or forward thrust
• Otherwise anything goes!

Have fun with your son, and see you on race day!