Always looking for a better product, I came across this.  Move over cermaics..... This is far better by all means.  

ReleaSys™ DFX-L Dry Lubricant is Miller-Stephenson’s most advanced and sophisticated PTFE DryFilm coating provide superior lubrication, wear resistance, friction reduction and long-term corrosion protection. Our next-generation PTFE coating system is 100% compatible will all surfaces and will not swell or degrade wood, plastics, rubbers, metallics or glass.  Sliding friction and wear are reduced dramatically allowing for longer component life and long-term smooth operation with “slip-stick” issues. Properly applied, our coating applied a PTFE film which is less than 0.1 micron in thickness and offers coefficient of friction value as low as 0.05 – 0.10.

Benefits of ReleaSys™ DFX-L Dry Lubricant

• Next-Generation PTFE DryFilm Lubricant
• Ultra-low coefficient of friction; Highly Lubricious
• Repels dirt and dust build-up
• Long-term corrosion protection
• 100% non-flammable, zero VOC, and ultra low odor

So why do you interpret a lube and a coating as the same thing?

There are 2 type of friction.  A static “sticky friction” and then mechanical friction.  Axle coatings and bore polishings are done to reduce the friction of your pinewood derby at rest – static sticky.  The forces needed to get the wheel moving.  Higher friction surfaces will cause those forces to hold the car in place just a tad bit longer than the person who took the time to reduce the friction of those surfaces.  Polishing reduces surface area “fingers that hold”….  Coatings then alter the natural friction coefficients of those materials.  So by introducing these nano coatings on the wheels and axles…. we enable the car to require less work to start or get going.  Also lighter wheels improve this process even more.  

NOW that everything is moving.  You need something to keep that work from having friction or slowing down.  All the coatings in the world have zero impact of reducing rotational friction. The just wear off. This is what the added lube does.  Ideally for rolling things…. OIL is the best because of surfactant properties it sticking in place.  But BSA idk… old school thinking.  Rather have this dry lube that gets spun into the air and all over everyone’s beautiful projects and makes a mess and doesn’t last long because its just gone.  It’s a mess for everyone.  But whatever.  This is what your rules state… You are only allowed dry lubes….. graphite is a type of dry lube and truly the best dry lube there is. 

And if you are super worried, just don’t order it.  

Few things to address here. IF you order 3 degree drilled rear axles, you can not place BENT AXLES in them. This will cause a compound bend that will be near impossible to align without some serious time and testing. It all comes down to time when choosing. Just to be clear, when the pro racers say one method is faster, what they are not telling you is that they drill sometimes 20-30 bodies to get the perfect body. If you only have 1 shot, 1 night to complete your build, TIME will be your biggest determination.

Why Drilled Rear?

Car body drilled at negative camber parallel with slots / body. There is no toe in or toe out that will cause steering. The negative camber will force the wheel to ride away from the car body on the axle head. No adjustments needed when properly drilled. The only adjustment needed will be the front steer axle.

PRO’s

• Gives advantage of rear camber or always pushing the wheel against the axle head thus eliminating fishing tailing due to axle alignment. (however you may still fishtail due to weight / cog placement).
• Uses straight axles. No adjustments
• Quickest possible alignment if time is a key factor

CON’s

• It is what it is. no adjustments. May be slightly off, or not the fastest the car can truly be.
• If axles are not straight, you may get unwanted steering that can not be adjusted

Why Bent Axles?

PRO’s

• Can make minute adjustments to each wheel to ensure that the steer wheel is the only wheel touching the center rail for fastest possible outcomes
• Allows corrections if axles are not perfectly straight
• Allows perfect tuning

CON’s

• Requires every single axle to be adjusted
• Takes more time
• Requires a greater understanding of tuning since each wheel is a steering wheel.

Well.....  Investing in the proper equipment which is beyond what most want to invest.  I have changed the process over the years.  I have come to the final production setup.  Wet polishing is the gold stadnard for DIY and the way I did it for 15 years.  I changed Summer of 2024 to the best and final process...

264 Hours of polishing per axle set.  Yep...  11 contnous days of Polishing.  Nothing like it on the marker.  No one will match it.  Silicon Carbide poishing grit ranging from 300-1500 grit.  Industry polishing level for metal is 1200 grit.  From 1200-5000 is considered jewelry polishing-  For LOOKS....  Not function.    Final  2 grits are 2000 and 3000 grit aluminum oxide.  Because customers want the look.  I can't change that.  I have tried for 10 years,  just can't change the mindset.  So I will give you want you want.  

3000 grit is the base axle polishing from here on out.  The axles are then  tumbled with Premium Treated Tumbling Media to make a beatiful mirror surface that will not rust.  Its literall 264 hours.....  akes about 11 days to make a batch of axles.  24 hours for each of the grits and 48 hours for the final burnishing.  About 30 min cleaning process between each grit.  

For the super fanactics, finer polishing is done with diamond pastes which begin at 3K and go up to 100K using our custom made cnc polishing machine.  Each axle spends 7 minutes in the polishing phase.  

Add the DFX-L Dry Lubricant Coating by Miller-Stephenson  for superior surface lubricity.  It can be heat treated to impregnate on the surface of the axle.  However this treatment will cause your axle to temper to a near solid black coating.  Text me if you want heat treated.  If enough people want it, I'll offer it as a service.  Not going to be cheap, and I have no idea if it will even matter for the short time that car races....  Just taking MS word that it is better for lube if it is baked on.  

Yep.... its like that.  Hard to match and probably overkill, but it is the most consistent finished nail on the market, guaranteed.  Smoothest axles in the game.  

Super Tuner is simply the cool name we gave to the axle upgrade that we slot the head of the axle for adjustments with a flat head screwdriver. This saves the axle from damaged caused by multiple adjustments with pliers.

This DOES NOT MEAN RAIL RIDERS. THIS DOES NOT MEAN they are bent.

So science wise….

3000 Grit for Dry Lubes

100,000 Grit for oils

However, may have raced with 100k for graphite with great results as feedback will show. Science says graphite is carbon, diamond is carbon. If you polish higher than 3k and you were to take a scope and look at things, the graphite will knock the shine off your 100k axles down to about 3k on the surface of things.

Treat them with our coating to gain an even better advanatge.  

I have no idea what level of polish should I get?

This is based soley on lube and amount of work you intend to put into breaking in the car.

Graphite Lube – 3K, with proper graphite break-in

Oil Lube – 100k

If you are simply going to dust with graphite and race, not doing a BREAK – IN for graphite – 100K will give you the least amount of friction for multiple races

Add DXF-L coating for the ultimate in Frictionless Surface.

Yes.

Polishing the bores reduces the static friction force – when an object tries to move. Friction is what slows our derby cars down. If we can reduce friction, we will have a faster car.

You will still need a mechanical lube to reduce the kinetic friction forces. Yes you still need to puff the graphite and spin it in as much as you can tolerate. Never too much

Simple answer is NO….. Treating the surface of the metal does not replace the mechanical lube needed between the wheel and the axle to reduce friction. You will always still need lube nt matter what wheel and axle prep is done.

Complicated answer: There are at least two types of friction forces fighting a pinewood derby car. Kinetic (sliding) friction force– when an object moves. And static friction force – when an object tries to move. Friction is what slows our derby cars down. If we can reduce friction, we will have a faster car. How do you reduce friction?  Proper wheel and axle preparation and lubrication will reduce both kinetic and static friction to help us achieve a faster car.

What we want to do is reduce that kinetic and static friction forces. During the race, the wheel hubs will rub on the axles. I talked about how to manually reduce those friction forces through axle and wheel preparation. However, even if after you have properly prepared and polished your axles and wheels, there can still be more done to reduce friction.  Choosing the best lube is the final step. Every millisecond adds up!

Quick answer is NO.  The flake size is too big.  -325 mesh graphite will the the packable graphite.  Do we recommend it?  I have read a few posts where cars were dq because the judges interpreted it is a graphite bearing.  Because of this, we do not suggest.

Wheel wax / Wheel sealer is to be applied after polishing and before graphite burnishing.  

DO NOT try to apply wax/sealer to a surface that has had lube applied already ie graphite / oil .

Applying Weights (if weights are not installed) 

We are going to take adding weights into two parts so that we can properly adjust our COG. To do this, we first only install the rear weight as this time. Adding the remaining weight will be the second part – Adjusting COG

Rear weight is weight behind the rear axle. If using cargo or canopy weights, please skip to next section

• Using an epoxy is the preferred glue of choice. Gel super glue is next in line. Yellow or wood glue will not work.
• If you are melting lead have your child watch from far away (Adult only). Once lead is poured wait for it to cool before proceeding.
• Once rear weights are installed, apply wood putty to cover the weight. Please DON’T putty any underside pockets. For underside pockets use foil HVAC tape instead. It will take too long for wood putty to dry and is not necessary.

If using a cargo or canopy style weight. DO NOT glue in place until the COG is adjusted. Skip to Adjusting COG.

 Adjusting COG (30 mins)

• Assemble your tooling – COG stand, additional weight to bring the car to final weight range, mockup wheels and axles, and a weight scale that measures in grams.
• Mark the desired location on your car body for balancing based on your track conditions. 
• Weigh your car as is with wheels and axles on the scale. It should be underweight at this point. Set aside whatever weight is needed (usually with tungsten putty) to bring the car, axles, and wheels to a working weight of 131 grams (125 grams if using putty to cover weight).
• Push in wheels and axles only for the purpose of finding COG. Do not fully install them. Final wheel and axle installation is done after the car is painted. This is not permanent at this time, do not use glue.
• Once COG is attained, note the location of where the balance takes place. Install the remaining weight ballast in the car. Recheck COG to assure it is properly placed. Glue in place to ensure that it will not come loose during racing. Apply wood putty to cover the weight installed from the side or back of the car. Finish painting your car. Use foil tape for any underside pockets.
• TAKE any remaining tungsten putty with you to final check-in on race day to bring the car to the official 5.000oz on the official scale.

Wood track with center strip: I suggest a COG of no less than 3/4 of an inch. Ideal is probably 1″ or maybe just a hair more. Keep the weight as close to the track as you can for the energy advantage, meaning as low as you can stack it on the wood body. 3 wheel center rail riding with camber wheels. will have the best advantage. Adjust your rail riding steer to 1″ on 4 feet of travel. Because the wood may splinter and no one really checks for this, I suggest a thicker or full factory rim wheel edge to ensure that the car will roll smoothly especially for the steer wheel. I believe that a thinned-out edge will cause excessive friction and not allow the wheel to slide all the way down the track. So, no wheel weights under 1.5gram. Utilize the “stealth cut” design wheel where there is the full rounded factory edge if you are allowed to use a weight reduced wheel.

Wood track WITHOUT center strip. These are just straight chutes for racing. Fastest cars will be straight shooters that never touch the bumpers. I suggest a COG of no less than 3/4 of an inch. Ideal is probably 1″ maybe just a hair more. Keep the weight as close to the track as you can for the energy advantage. Straight shooter…get that tuning board and adjust, adjust, adjust. Advantage here will be wheel weight. The lighter wheel you can use, the faster your champion racer will be which means the 1 gram wheels will give you the fastest runs. Camber all the wheels that are touching the ground. 3 wheel racer is preferred, adjusted so that you have no drift. No restrictions as this type of track you just pray you got a good line out of the gate.

Metal/Plastic Tracks

Most of the info about PWD found on the internet and in books is based on the metal/plastic type of track. Properly set up metal tracks give the most consistent data for PWD. A well-maintained metal track is the best racing track. Most of the metal tracks contain a center guide strip for each lane.

Wheels are a little fickle with a metal track. The lightest wheels are normally faster. If you have too aggressive of a steer, the very thin wall of a 1-gram wheel causes excessive friction as it runs down the lanes. You can hear it as it races down the track. I have seen 1.5g wheels with thicker edges run consistently faster than the 1g wheels that are not “perfectly” tuned. My only conclusion was the excessive friction from the “knife edge” of the 1-gram wheel slowed it down.

Metal track with center strip – I suggest a COG of no less than 1/2 of an inch. Ideal is probably 3/4″ maybe just a hair more. There are a few highly guarded secrets in PWD, this is one of them. So many different suggestions here. Again, know your track. Are the seams even and flush, are there any burrs on the rail? Keep the weight as close to the track as you can for the energy advantage. I recommend a 3-wheel, center rail rider with camber wheels. Steering drift of 3/4-1″ on 4 feet of travel. I like to stack 2oz of weight behind the rear axle for the longest push.

Metal / plastic tracks WITHOUT center strip. I suggest a COG of no less than 1/2 of an inch. Ideal is probably 3/4″ maybe just a hair more. Keep the weight as close to the track as you can for the energy advantage. Straight shooter… get that tuning board and adjust, adjust, adjust. The advantage here will be wheel weight and weight placement, even aerodynamic advantage if you have the time for some fenders. No restrictions as for this type of track, you just pray you got a good line out of the gate.

Normally we do NOT install tungsten weights as we do not know what the final outcome of a car is going to be. Since we can not know how much paint stickers, whatever you are going to put on there, there is no way to gauge how much tungsten to place.

Secondly, because tungsten is so dense and hard, you can not drill it to reduce weight. Most of our car bodies are already have great amounts of wood weight removed. If we are overweight after you paint, then there is no real way to “remove” weight to get race compliant.

Thirdly, we do not know what type of track or build you are building to properly balance the car for your specific track. So many different tracks.

Lead cars will 99% of the time will have weight installed, with the exception of the 5 and 7 slot wedges as those were our first “cross over” weight designs that could use both tungsten and lead. For those we provide 3 lead “bricks” for you to install.

Majority of our car designs were done with lead as the weight. And that lead must be poured into holes that we drill. Trying to fill the holes with fishing weights is not going to work. You need the entire holes filled with molten lead to get it to be race ready.

Lead can be used safely as a pinewood derby weight if it is handled correctly and sealed inside the car, but there are real health risks if it is mishandled — especially around children.

Key points:

• Lead dust and residue are the main danger, not simply touching a solid lead block once or twice.
• Cutting, sanding, melting, grinding, or drilling lead creates exposure risk.
• Children should not machine or melt lead.
• Finished weights should ideally be:
  fully enclosed in the car body, epoxied/glued in place, covered with wood filler, tape, paint, or another barrier.
  

For a workshop or scout setting:

• Wash hands after handling.
• Do not eat/drink while working with lead.
• Keep scraps away from kids and pets.
• Vacuuming lead dust with a normal vacuum is a bad idea because it can spread particles into the air.
• Melting lead indoors without proper ventilation is unsafe.

We do not carry Ready to Race Pinewood derby cars.

We suggest:  Shopvelox.com or Humble21creations.com

We sell at our Amazon Store Ready to Race Cars made by Shopvelox.com

There is no brick and mortar store at this time.  

If you are in a super hurry and don’t need any custom parts, you can search our AMAZON store as there may be items near you store in FBA warehouse so that you may get same day or next day service.

Not an easy answer. The fastest car will be one built to run on your track you race. A car built for metal tracks, sometimes too fragile to race on old wooden tracks. Car built for wood tracks, leaves behind performance if raced on metal tracks. I have written a very in depth racing theory. If you text me, I will probably cut and paste a lot out of the article. Here is the long answer. Ultimate Guide: How to Build a Winning Pinewood

What is the fastest pinewood derby car body?

The fastest pinewood derby body is the one with the least amount of wood weight with biggest possible pockets.  3 degree rear camber axles, with 3 wheels touching.  We offer bodies under 9 grams if you have a good stop track!  Many choices under 20 grams of weight.

Click here to see which car bodies fit this description

It’s the 4 system  — 2x Fine plastic polishes, 1 micron plastic polish = nano wax Bores are polished to super fine finish-14K. Then the plastic is sealed with a thin layer of ultra slick nano-wax. It’s the really good stuff! 24 hours later once that layer of wax is applied, dried, hardened. It is buffed. We add a permanent layer of graphite into the wax. The final results will be a near silent spin of the wheel bores. Silent means less friction! We like.

This is done spinning the wheel vs spinning the applicators.  We have found that this gives the best possible polihing.  Done with a micro lathe and some 3D printed jigs.  

This service is very labor intensive. Not difficult to do, but to be done right, can’t rush it. You have all year to make a car. I need about 24 hours to make a good set of wheels. Can’t rush it. If you are in a pinch for time, please do not order this service.

We will probably add it as a kit in the future.  It will be expensive, but capable of doing many wheel sets. Micro foam swabs will be needed to do wax job on the bores and hubs.  Those are not cheap.  Wish they were.  

This is simple yet complicated.

The best we can answer is using this decision tree:
https://www.derbydust.com/information/pinewood-derby-wheels/

If you do not see an answer, then it is not addressed. Therefore it is allowed is the motto of most.

Usually the most common illegal modification is the use of weight reduced wheels. Also written as lessening the weight of a wheel, removing material to make it considerably lighter are common statements made.

BE very CAREFUL of rules that other modifications are not allowed beyond what is listed. Those are the catch all gray rules that could get you eliminated. HOWEVER, there should be NO reason that a car gets D/Q once it passes inspection. After all that is what inspections are about.