Rail Riding - Can you use 1.5 degrees on all tires

[jdoggit]

Hi -

Is it possible to use Rail Riding with 1.5 degrees on all tires?

Thanks

J. Doggit

[the woodbutcher]

Yes, you could. I think most here prefer 2.5 on the rear and some yet want 2.5 on the front. Build 2 cars and try them both!
Personally, (this is my 2nd year and 4th car I've built) I still do it the caveman way - screwdriver, hammer, axle in the vise so I couldn't tell you what the amount of degree is. You just want to be sure the wheels are doing what you want them to do. That's probably the key to the whole thing. Understand what/why the need and executing it.

[jdoggit]

To be honest, the main reason I ask is our pack has a rule that all axles must be on the same plane. Every year a guy has done the bent axle thing and every year there is a .. discussion as to whether or not the angled axles are legit.

I, like you, have accidentally and on purpose put axles in at an angle before. When I've done it on purpose it was an attempt to control the "steering" of the car so it went straight.

The appeal of rail riding, other than it's speed benefits, is it is a way to positively control what the car is doing.

I figure if the angle is slight, it won't be as noticeable, and, hopefully, not as objectionable. 2.5 degrees is pretty obvious and while I don't want to "cheat" I've actually been doing the equivlent in the past to simply try to straighten out a car that turns too much by attempting to change the angle I stuck the nail in the slot.

If 1.5 degrees works nearly as well, and allows me to control the car I'm good with that.

[the woodbutcher]

Wow. It's funny how organizers expect such a high degree of acuracy from kids building a kit car, isn't it?
By nature of the parts issued, each kit has an "unfair advantage" from another kit. Put that kit in the right hands and it becomes even more "unfair". Facts are, these kits are not equal, and neather are the builders. Not everyone is going to put in the effort to make the fastest car at the race.

How about this :
What if ... the slots that were cut in the block you received were not perfectly aligned and the front slot was just a degree or two off. One might say the car would drift that way no matter how perfectly the axles are installed. See where this is going?