BlueCat Illegal Pinewood Derby Race - '49 Merc...

Here's my modified entry...'49 Mercury. The car is being sculpted out of a purchased, standard pine block that was built up with additional wood. Car is approximately 1/25 scale.

Lil' Hutch's oil tank

After "hard-tailing" Lil' Hutch's Sporty frame, he thought it'd be a good idea to send his aluminum oil tank down to me via UPS. With a well thought-out letter of instruction, some taped lines and notes written on the vessel, I set out to fulfill his desire to achieve "chopper stardom." Zzzzzzzzzzz.....

...anyways

I started with the cut-out notch for chain clearance. Unfortunately, all I could get my hands on today was 3" x 3" x 1/4" 6061 alloy angle. The alloy was fine, but the thickness proved to be just a little too much girth for what I needed to do. I'll make it work, but I'm making things harder for myself than I need to.

In addtion to the chain alteration, a 2" pipe is going to be cut in half and welded in to create a tunnel for some frame clearance. Only then will I drill out two bungs, plug with aluminum slugs and relocate the oil bungs to the other side of the bag.

BlueCat Illegal Pinewood Derby Race - cont.

So, I picked up a 1/25 scale '32 Deuce Coupe yesterday at Hobby Haven in Des Moines. I was looking for a flathead V-8 for my Model A pinewood derby car, but had to settle for a standard mill. So, the block was glued up so I could mock up the "motor mount" and "tunnel" for the transmission. Just as I was getting ready to leave the shop, I started looking at the body. "That top has to go," I thought. Two hours later, I had a roof, windows and door posts. Tomorrow, I'll work on putting in a dash and a driver's seat.




Oh, what's this? This is what we in the industry call a "glue-up."

"What is this glue-up for, Boonie?"

You're gonna have to wait and see. This is going to be my modified class entry.

BlueCat Illegal Pinewood Derby Race

All work and no play makes Boonie a duller boy. So, after finishing up the lighted sign for Mump and Hugo today, I started work on my pinewood derby car. No, I didn't miss out on my youth by not building one. I actually did quite well winning first place in 1988 for Cub Scout Den 150 in Madrid, Iowa.

"Then what derby are you speaking of, Boonie?"

Why, the one put on by BlueCat Motors in St. Paul, MN of course! All the pertinent information is at their website. However, I was disappointed to learn the open modified class did not allow for propulsion systems. I had something "green" in mind...

Here's what I've come up with for my stock entry. I'm basing it on a fictitious "1929 Ford Model A 'Wagon'"...Bonneville-inspired. I'm gonna pick up a model kit so I can drop a flathead V-8 mill in it.

Interested in racing? Grab a kit and get to fab'n, fella...Races are January, 30 at BlueCat Motors.

Lil' Hutch's sporty

Well, I tried to talk him out of it (three times!), but he didn't listen. After riding a rigid frame for a few years myself, I don't know why anybody would willingly want to trade down from a swingarm, to...well...nothing. It makes my spine and kidneys hurt thinking about it. But, to each his own...

The frame is a stock '81 Sportster. The rigid section is from Led Sled Customs in Dayton, Ohio. The fabrication of their products is stout; looks like 11 ga. tube and nice tig-welded joints. After taking some time to measure, re-measure and eye down both pieces, it was time to take the cut-off wheel to the frame. I'll be damned if everything came pretty damn close right off the bat. So good, that I should have ground the bevels on the frame cuts and drilled the holes for the plug-welds before fitting the thing.

Tig torch comes out next. Zap....Zap...Zap...

Two Wheels and a Motor

I implore everyone to visit Two Wheels And A Motor. It's a podcast produced by some buddies up in Minneapolis about the best form of transportation known to man...or woman.