Pinewood Derby Car Designs: Tips and More

Pinewood Derby car designs come in all shapes and sizes. From sleek, aerodynamic Pinewood Derby car designs to anything you and your son can imagine, the design of your Pinewood Derby car is really only limited by your imagination.

Pinewood Derby Car Design Tips
To get your Pinewood Derby car looking its best, be sure to follow a few simple rules:

1. Take Your Time
Don't wait until the last minute to build your car. It takes time for paint to dry, especially in the cold winter months. Give yourself the time to build and do it right - you'll appreciate it come race day.

2. This is Your Son's Car
Resist the temptation to do all the work yourself. Believe me, I know this can be tough. The compromise my sons and I have worked out is that I work on the construction end of the car (filing nail heads, truing and aligning the wheels, etc...) and my sons design the car. Occasionally I will make suggestions, but the look of the car belongs to my son. The great part about this system is that while I do the precision work that will make the car speed down the track, the car itself is designed and built by my son. I've seen boys win the Pinewood Derby, and when they received their trophies, they seemed to care less. You could tell the dad did all the work, and winning the Pinewood Derby seemed to be a hollow victory for the boy.

3. Painting and Finish
Use several light coats as opposed to one heavy coat of paint. This will actually save you time. I prefer spray paint because my son can get a nice even coat with a little practice. Use a glossy clear coat to provide the luster of a real car.

Remember to give your self time to allow the paint to dry before handling the car. Also remember that the paint does add a tiny amount of weight as well.

4. Consider Your Car From All Angles
Don't just design the car in two dimensions. Look at the car from every angle. Pretend you're designing a real car. Think how it should look from the top, side, front and rear.

5. Carving a Car is Difficult
It's easier to apply shaped pieces of wood than carve the design out of the original block of wood.

6. Make Sure Your Pinewood Derby Car Conforms to the Rules
Nothing would be worse than to have your car disqualified because it didn't pass check in. Be sure your car conforms to your pack or district rules.

Pinewood Derby Car Design Pictures
Most of my sons' Pinewood Derby car designs begin with his box of Hot Wheels. When it comes time to think about this year's Pinewood Derby car design, my son and I start by going through his extensive Hot Wheels collection looking for design ideas. Sometimes it's a color or just an overall shape that we can work with. But that's usually where the design begins to take shape.

Another way to come up with Pinewood Derby car designs is to look at other Pinewood Derby cars and use those as templates for your own design. With that in mind, here are some Pinewood Derby Car Pictures for you to study.

Batmobile Pinewood Derby Car
Check out this all wood Batmobile by clicking HERE.

Wedge Designs
Elegant and simple, wedge designs are a perennial favorite. The key to making the wedge unique is to put your own little twist on the standard design.

Click HERE to view a rounded wedge.

HERE is a nice wedge design with a vertical fin in back.

HERE are some more modified wedge designs.

Pinewood Derby Cars Designed After Other Vehicles
Many Pinewood Derby cars are designed after other vehicles.

Click HERE to view a space shuttle.

Click HERE to see a car shaped like a tank.

Classic Pinewood Derby Car Designs
Click HERE to view a nice collection of original Pinewood Derby car designs.

Click HERE for even more Pinewood Car pictures

Unusual Pinewood Derby Car Designs
Click HERE to see a huge collection of unusual Pinewood Derby car designs. Although many of these cars would not be permissible in a Cub Scout Pinewood Derby race, the artistry that went into these cars is tremendous.

To read more about how to design your Pinewood Derby car for maximum speed, click HERE.