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Pinewood Derby Car Essay

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Pinewood Derby Car Essay
Pinewood Derby Cars
Will a pinewood derby car increase speed and accuracy with aerodynamic? Research says that aerodynamic is they key to winning a pinewood derby race. Aerodynamic uses lots of gravity and gravity has mass. Wherever the most mass is in your car that is where the center of gravity is. I researched three experiments to compare and contrast which will increase the speed and accuracy of a pinewood derby car - oil or aerodynamic? One example experiment that a student did on aerodynamic on a pinewood derby car was testing if having a air dam on his car would make it slower. The student wanted to test if a pinewood derby car uses aerodynamic to win. Then at the end of his testing his results where the following… no air dam speed
…show more content…
The Columbus Dispatch talked about an incline. An incline is something that is slanted. The Columbus Dispatch put a block on an incline. The block was moving because the force of gravity pushed the block toward the bottom so the block would stay down. The friction is what helps the block slide. A pinewood derby car has the same effect.
I tested my pinewood derby car with and without oil. Without oil my speed was 3.28 seconds, with oil my speed was almost 4.0 seconds. When I built my car i shaped it round from the front and the back, with the back side being a bit taller than the front side. This created aerodynamics to my car. I won third place for my Boy Club race for speed. Pinewood derby cars come in many different shapes and sizes. The most simplest car I have ever scene was a flat box car. Others have varied in design from a hotdog, a stop light, a pencil, and a sharpener. The standard pinewood derby block is approximately 7.0 inches long by 1.75 inches wide by 1.25 inches tall. It has a typical density of 0.0138 lbs/in3. The block is supplied unsanded with grooves cut on the bottom side to accept the axles. The blocks weigh approximately 3.4 ounces (wikibooks). Most pinewood derby cars weigh five to six ounce, including two to three ounce of weight that is added to the

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