When first designing your rocket car you should keep a few ideas in mind.

1. How will I be able to produce that? Will I be able to cut the wood on an angle like that with the tools that I have?

2. Strength. Is that part strong enough to hold when the car hits that air bag at upwards of fifty miles per hour? Are the tires going to be so thin that they will be flimsy? Will the body around the cartridge stay intact when it thrusts forward?

3. Is that to regulation?

4. Where will I put in the screw eyelets?

Also, when you are drafting your car begin to think about what the 3D version will look like. So if you don't like it, you won't be wasting your time.

1. Lay out how you will cut the block of wood before you begin!!!!!!

2. Print out a life size copy of your drawing and stencil it on to the block.

3. Smaller Car = Less Weight, Less Weight + Straight Wheels = Fast Time

4. Drill the axle holes before you cut anything else. Get them perfectly strait!!!!!

5. Cut the axles as short as possible.

6. Thin out the wheels. Beware; if you are using a PITSCO rocket car kit, the front wheels are hollow at the point when the spokes become flush with the tire. Also, leave the circular molding injection cylinders on the rear wheels. This will make for better balance.

7. Make yourself a wheel turner and stick it in the drill press. This will allow you to sand the tires evenly so they are more balanced. Don't use an axle as a wheel turner!!!!!! It will warp it!!!!!!

8. Oh, yeah, this should be at the top but, let the wood sit in a dry cool environment for at least a week before you begin any work an it. This will keep the wood from shrinking later on and end up disqualifying you.

9. You can never sand too much.

10. Sand the body smaller than your design. Then fill it back up with high gloss paint.

11. Put on sealer of some sort before you paint. Duh.

12. Use high gloss paint. It works better. Put on at least six coats with a perfect smooth sand inbetween each coat.

13. Love your car.

14. Use too much graphite. Because I said so.

15. Hide your CO2 cartridge in your pocket before you run your car. It will cause the cartridge to be under greater pressure from the heat.

Well, those are some of my secrets. The Merk Masta can't give them all away. Figure some of them out for your self. Geze, I just told you step by step how to make a winning car, what else do you want?

1. Ramp Test. Tape a strait line on the floor, put your car on an inclined plain, center your car with the tape, let go. Make adjustments to your wheels as necessary.

2. Wind Tunnel. If you don't have one, get one!

3. Spin Test. Check to see how freely the axels will spin in their holes.

4. Weight. Put your car on a slimfast diet immediatly. If it's not the smallest limit, it's too fat.

5. Balance. Spin the wheels and see how much they wobble. Sorry no recommendations to fix this.

6. Roll Test. see how far the car will roll under it's own power using the same setup as the Ramp Test.

7. Drool Test. Count how many people gaze endlessly at your car then need to be slapped back to reality.

Here is a rare picture of the fastest rocket car in Lincoln High School's history. (Check out the mouse-over!!!)

This web site has been in existence since September of 2000 independently created, owned, and updated by The Merk Masta. Thank you for your time and I hope that I could help you. If you have any questions, comments, or just need to tell me how great I am for telling you almost all of my secrets, then feel free to e-mail me at.....

The Merk Masta