Ask Ollie
Rubber Band Racer Car
Here's one to try together!
Wind it up, let it go, and watch your cardboard car zoom! Can you build the farthest traveler?
Reviewed by our team.
Safety first
- bottle caps are a choking risk for little ones
- poking axle holes needs a grown-up
- sharp skewer ends
- scissors are sharp
What you need
- Cardboard box, 1 small box or piece of cardboard
- Painter's tape, a few strips
- Kid scissors, 1 pair
- Skewers, 2 bamboo skewers, or pencils
- Bottle caps, 4, or cardboard circles
- Rubber bands, 1 to 2
- Ruler, 1
How to do it
Grown-up prep: Gather everything and check that the bottle caps are not within reach of any little ones. A grown-up will poke the axle holes, so have a pencil or skewer ready for that.
- A grown-up pokes two axle holes on each side of the body. A grown-up does this
- Slide a skewer through each pair of holes.
- Press a wheel onto each end of the axles.
- Tape one rubber band to the front of the car.
- Stretch the band back and hook it around the back axle.
- Wind the back wheels backwards to wrap the band.
- Set the car down and let it go!
- Measure how far your car traveled.
- Change one thing, then race again and compare!
Play it again
- Distance duel: everyone builds a car and the farthest run of three wins.
- Wheel swap: try bottle caps, then big cardboard circles, and compare.
- Heavy load: add coins or small weights to the body and see what happens.
Kids loved this? There are more where it came from.
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