Mousetrap Vehicle C

[mrsteven]

States is coming up, so I may go through two pairs of mousetraps, but I think I might switch to Tomcat traps. Thanks.

np. Oh!! Oh!! make sure to get the ones with the cheeze on it! it really does nothing for the mousetrap but its rather amusing ^.^

[illusionist]

Hahah, okay I will. Where did you buy them? The places that have Victor mousetraps don't seem to have the Tomcats.

[mrsteven]

Hahah, okay I will. Where did you buy them? The places that have Victor mousetraps don't seem to have the Tomcats.

cant really recommend a store since you live in another state... but if you have a true value hardware thats where I got mine origionally. if not, I'd check a Home Depot. Other than that, i'd call hardware stores in your area and ask them.

[packer-backer91]

Hahah, okay I will. Where did you buy them? The places that have Victor mousetraps don't seem to have the Tomcats.

Lowes is the best place to go and some Home Depots have them too. You have to examine each pack to make sure you get good ones they have a high defect rate. Remember to move around the spring so that you get maximum force, can be 20% difference if aligned correctly. Tomcats seem to be much harder to find but they are cheap buy a bunch, they don’t keep that advantage for that many trials.

[mrsteven]

So are you guys using any sort of grips on your wheels for traction?

[austinfhs]

Rubber bands worked just fine for me. Or you could buy some foam RC airplane wheels that have some lightweight traction.

Edit: Will post some pictures from my first place winner from states in a little bit.

[bwy]

So are you guys using any sort of grips on your wheels for traction?

I thought that was a must-have.

[austinfhs]

So are you guys using any sort of grips on your wheels for traction?

I thought that was a must-have.

Absolutely. I saw bare CDs and watched them skid a good half meter (with recoil as well). Traction solves both problems quite nicely.

[packer-backer91]

So are you guys using any sort of grips on your wheels for traction?

I thought that was a must-have.

Absolutely. I saw bare CDs and watched them skid a good half meter (with recoil as well). Traction solves both problems quite nicely.

Rubber bands and balloons are the most commonly used/best to use for traction, experiment a little which one gives your vehicle the optimum results. Rubber bands give more resistance slowing the vehicle considerably. Balloons are nice but they still may allow your vehicle to slide some. I went with the rubber bands because on takeoff the wheels had a chance to slip a little if balloons were used.

[bmiddleton]

I've done this event for quite a few years, and the best way I've found to create traction is to coat the wheels with a silicon adhesive or caulking silicate like liquid nails. You'll need to first cover the wheels with some type of thin paper and then apply the silicon. Rubberbands and balloons work in a pinch, but dont provide nearly the purchase that you get from silicon, they also degrade easily and are hard to apply and replace without having to realign the wheels/axils.