Summary

Full 3D View

The Eagle Mk1 (or Eagle Mark 1, or Eagle T1G) was one of the few iconic American Formula One racing cars of the '50s and '60s, introduced for the start of the 1966 Formula One season. While considered to be one of the most beautiful racing cars ever built and extremely fast, it failed to finish most of its races. It did earn podium positions at both races that it finished in 1967 (1st at the Belgian Grand Prix and 3rd at the Canadian Grand Prix).

The wheelbase of this model is 0.5" shorter than the standard and may not be eligible for some races.

As with all of my builds, I'm not good enough at Fusion 360 to create a faithful replica, but I tried to capture most of the key elements.

What is a "pinewood derby car shell"?

A pinewood derby is an event created by the Boy Scouts many years ago. Each scout is given a pinewood derby kit typically consisting of a block of wood with slots for axles, 4 wheels, and 4 nails to be used as axles. The scout (and his dad, usually) will then carve the block of wood into the shape of a car, paint it and apply stickers, install the wheels on the axles, and then race it at the "derby", which involves a sloped track with a timekeeping apparatus.

An official scout derby will usually require that the parts in the kit be used for cars entered in the derby. Other organizations (including workplaces) often hold derbies, too, and some of them require the use of the parts in the box, including the block of wood.

These "pinewood derby car shells" are intended to be used with an official derby wood block, cut down to size, along with the axles and wheels included in the kit. A printable model of the shaped wood block is provided. You can either use the printed model or use it to accurately cut an official wood block down to size.

Notes:

This car is kind of a pain to build, because it's very narrow and has a lot of small details. With patience, though, it can come out looking pretty nice.

Car body: Supports are required. You can choose to print "Body.stl" and add your own raft, or you can print "Body with Minirafts" for a minimal raft-like surface that will aid in keeping the supports adhered to the build surface.

Exhaust: This is also easiest to print using the miniraft-enhanced version. "Exhaust original" is the first exhaust I created, but my first attempt had errors in the mesh, so I created "Exhaust". I then fixed "Exhaust original", so you can choose whichever one you like best.

Windshield: I printed this using clear PETG in vase mode.

Body block: I provide two printable blocks, one standard and one with holes for axles higher, to make the body sit lower. I probably won't ever race this, so I like to show it with the axles too high for a track.

Everything else is pretty simple and straightforward to print, with minimal or no supports/rafts/brims.

Post-Printing

Smoothing

This car was smoothed with 3d printing resin and baby powder. You can find videos and guides online that describe the process, but here it is in a nutshell:

• Mix 1 part resin and 2-3 parts baby powder in an opaque container (so that it can be stored without hardening due to UV exposure).
• Using a paintbrush or cotton swab, spread a thin layer of the resin/baby powder mix over the body, wherever you want to smooth print lines and gaps.
• Use a UV flashlight (a cheap one--like the kind used to harden resin finger nail polish, which you can order from Amazon or buy in the pharmacy department of Walmart) to harden the resin.
• Sand the body smooth until there are no thick layers left.
• Repeat over any areas that are still rough.

I usually include holes for tungsten weights in my cars, but this one is too small. I don't see any good way to add enough weights to make it fast.

Also, this car has a shorter wheelbase than a standard pinewood derby car (the wheel slots are closer together). If you want to be "legal" and cut an official wood block to fit this shell, you'll need to cut your own wheel slots.