Table of Contents
What do I need to make a mousetrap car?
What You Need: Wooden snap-back mousetrap. Duct tape. 4 eye hooks. Wooden dowel that fits inside the eye hooks. Heavy cardboard. Large and small rubber bands. Foam board (usually found at a craft store) String.
How do you make a fast mousetrap car?
Making The Vehicle Faster Thicken the axle: Wrapping some tape radially around the axle or adding a spool. It may be surprising as to how much faster this makes the vehicle. Use smaller wheels. They will require less force to complete a rotation. Make the vehicle lighter.
What common materials are used to create a mousetrap car?
A mousetrap car is a model car made from simple materials that is powered by a mousetrap. A mousetrap car can be made from cardboard or balsa wood with CD’s for wheels and axles of wood or brass tubing. Power to drive the wheels is provided by a mousetrap to which a wand and string is attached to the snap arm.
What is the fastest mousetrap car?
The Speed-Trap Racer is the fastest mousetrap powered racer anywhere and was designed after Doc Fizzix’s own record-setting mousetrap racer that traveled 5 meters in 1.2 seconds.
What can be used as wheels for a mousetrap car?
As you might guess, the materials used to build mousetrap-powered cars are light out of necessity. Foamcore board or balsa wood are often used for the body. The wheels can be off-the-shelf radio-controlled car wheels, but many builders use blank CDs or DVDs because their thin edges reduce friction.
How do you make a cardboard mousetrap car?
Take the 2 pieces of cardboard (about 4”x10”) and cut a rectangular notch (about 1”x2“) in the center of the short side of each piece of cardboard. Be sure that the notches overlap. Then place the two pieces of cardboard on top of each other and tape the edges together to make one double thick piece of cardboard.
What is gravity vehicle?
Gravity Vehicle is an event that returned for the 2020 and 2021 competition seasons after being held in 2012 and 2013. In this event, competitors design and build a ramp and a vehicle that is powered solely by the vehicle’s gravitational potential energy.
How do you make a rubber band car move?
Procedure Loop a rubber band through itself around the middle, exposed part of the wooden skewer (where you cut out a notch in the cardboard and straw). Tape the rubber band to the skewer to prevent it from slipping—when the skewer rotates, the rubber band should rotate with it.
How long should a mousetrap car be?
The ideal size for an ultra big wheel on a long distance mousetrap racer seams to be somewhere between 10 and 15 inches. And the ideal size for a drive wheel on a speed-trap racer seams to be between 2 and 3 inches but no more than 4 inches.
How do you make a rat trap car go far?
Mousetrap cars will go farther if the spring has more distance from the back wheels. Create traction on the wheels. Add rubber bands, or tape around the wheels to give them better traction. The better the wheels can grip the floor, the farther the mousetrap car will go.
Is it better to have a lighter or heavier mousetrap car?
A heavy mousetrap vehicle will required more pulling force than a lighter mousetrap vehicle in order to achieve an equal acceleration. Lighter mousetrap vehicles will require less energy at the start and can use longer lever arms for more pulling distance.
Why is it better to have large wheels for the drive axle on a mousetrap car?
Larger drive wheels will have a greater travel distance per each turn compared to smaller drive wheel. The smaller the diameter of the drive axle in comparison to the diameter of the drive wheel the more force that will be required to accelerate the vehicle but the greater the distance of travel per rotation.
Why is my mousetrap car not going straight?
If your mousetrap car does not travel straight energy is also being wasted to over come the force of friction turning the vehicle’s wheels. If a mousetrap vehicle is not traveling straight then there is one reason and one reason only: the front and rear axles are not parallel to one another!Jan 21, 2012.
When was the first mousetrap car made?
Shortly after Keeps innovation, in 1894, Illinois native, William C. Hooker first patented the more familiar spring-loaded device, recognized today as the classic mousetrap.
What is an axle hook?
An important part of a mousetrap vehicles propulsion system is the axle hook. If the string does not properly release from the drive axle the string will rewind around the drive axle and cause the mousetrap car to come to an instant stop.
Are CD wheels good for mousetrap car?
Mouse Trap Cars: CD/DVD Wheels. Learn more about using DVDs/CDs as wheels on your mousetrap racer. DVDs/CDs make great wheels because they can slice through the air with very little resistance. Because CDs and DVDs are some of the best wheels you will ever find for building a long distance mousetrap powered vehicle.
Do larger wheels affect ride?
As a general rule, bigger wheels result in a rougher ride. Switching to a smaller wheel and a thicker tire can give you a smoother ride without any major modifications to your car. When changing the car’s original wheels and tires, the general rule of thumb is that you can go up or down by one inch.
