vehicles






 

Question by  smf21 (19)

Is there such a thing as rubber band powered cars?

 
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Answer by  Darry (3853)

Yes, they are small and are fairly easy to make. They can generally be made from spare parts found in the average home. There are a variety of plans available on the internet that range from the very basic to the very impressive.

 
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Answer by  calcutta (168)

YES! I saw these once being demonstrated at a competition held by the mechanical engineering department at a local University. They were the size of a shoebox, but they were well-engineered and pretty impressive. They got a lot of speed/distance just out of wound-up rubber bands.

 
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Answer by  Josh41 (113)

Yes, rubber bands powered cars exist, however they are typically miniature and made from children's toy modeling equipment such as K'nex of Erector Sets. The cars are generally 4 inches to a couple feet long, and travel distance of a few yards at a time.

 
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Answer by  Allstar (2071)

On small scale model and toy cars, yes. A car capable of carrying manned passengers powered by bungee tension is possible, but not practical.

 
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Answer by  catman529 (809)

Yes. The rubber band may power either a propeller (like an airplane) or it may be directly connected to the axle to drive the wheels.

 
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Answer by  Justice4299 (25)

While there are no full sized versions of a rubber band car, there are such things in model or toy form. Using the rubber bands, you can propel the car forward, but have no control over it. A quick search online would show many forums and articles focused on the building and crafting of these types of vehicles.

 
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Answer by  Adam1080 (32)

There is a such thing as a rubber band powered car, however it is not a full size car as most of us would expect. They are small, model size cars which only travel a very short distance and definately can not hold the weight of a human. So the answer is yes but we should not rely on them.

Reply by elsewhen (627):
I have never seen a large rubber-band car, but there is no reason to think that one couldn't be made big enough to carry a human. They wont replace gas-cars, but a fun buggy could probably be made workable: there is significant potential energy in wound rubber.  add a comment
 
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