How many rubber bands does it take to power a car?

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Can I make the world's largest pull-back car? Which material will work best for the engine?
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[@AL_O0]

Those toy pullback cars are incredibly clever, they have a mechanism that switches gear ratio when you release them so they can go much farther than you pulled them back

[@CraftNexus]

and I guess some kind of ratcheting mechanism to allow them to free roll instead of springing back when the spring is fully unwound

[@lucusloc]

Yep, they need a way to lock the engine while they change gears on the gearbox, then they can pull back in one gear and release it in another. They also need to get longer rubber tubes, as longer tubes can store way more energy. The round configuration probably could work, but it needs rollers instead of just bars to minimize friction losses. Maybe even multiple levels so the tube can spiral down to the drive bar. That way you can really pack in the rubber density. This could definitely work, maybe even get to 25 mph, but you are going to need *a lot* more rubber to get there.

[@jwalster9412]

I swear, every single pull back car I've had in my life sounded like it had the actual engine from an actual car. I wanna know how they get them to not sound bad lol.

[@DaimyoD0]

Wow, really? Yeah I was wondering if they had some kind of freewheel so they can coast after their stored energy is spent and you don't end up taking up energy winding it in reverse.

[@DaimyoD0]

@@CraftNexus Oh yeah same question.

[@KoroWerks]

Thank you Aaron and David for being enablers to Joel and his Antics 🤣🤣🤣 #FeelTheMagic

[@AARONLT25]

Urr welcome

[@kyleyoung2464]

Thanks indeed

[@zachmoyer1849]

hydraulic accumulator

[@patricklargin5767]

I've seen that other mystery rubberband powered car in person and spoke to the builder when I was a crew tech out at the bonneville salt flats. It was made by one of George Poteet's guys. There were 2 banks with different gearing...one for initial acceleration off the push truck, then a second for top speed. I never got to actually see it run but if I recall, he was shooting for something like 50mph with it. Was a super neat contraption. I have detail pictures somewhere on an old phone in my closet 😂

[@FLPhotoCatcher]

If you make the springs longer, and maybe a smaller one inside a larger one, you should get more speed and travel distance. And thank you, Aaron and David!

[@alphabetsoup4269]

Get those pics!

[@DownloadedPixelz]

I actually have a lot of respect for posting semi-failed projects because it really reminds everyone of how many ideas and projects don't work that make the ones that do work feel all the more impressive.

[@leviallen7210]

The problem of the wheels locking up is a problem at toy scale as well. Thats why we push down as we pull back with those little cars. I think that finding a way to overcome that (potentially a hand crank with some major leverage?) and fixing the spring design to something like a watch spring could help get the speed you want. Sick work so far though. It looks really fun even at current speed. Haha

[@Drakith90]

A possible (OSHA rule violating) solution is to use the forklift to press down on the rear of the car as it is being pulled back.

[@Gothmog3019]

My immediate thought was to use a scaled up watch spring. I would love to see you revisit this with more research. Perhaps start with scale models?

[@traingameiacs]

yeah, pull back cars don't use rubber bands....

[@arghjayem]

Not only that but he needs a properly built car. The one he’s using is great and all, but it needs to be waaaay lighter. Less weight, less power required to move things. One seat, no gearbox, no suspension, thin lighter steel for the chassis etc etc.

[@killingtimeitself]

you can do one really substantial watch spring or even multiple due to how they sit as well.

[@xmysef4920]

@@arghjayem This. He needs to get a lighter chassis and vehicle in general

[@BuilderBasti]

​@@arghjayem Yeah, a gokart chassis for example

[@856Dropout]

Could put PVC pipes over the birdcage bars to act like a roller bushings for the rubberbands

[@TheStuartstardust]

For rubber band solutions, they normally do twisting instead of stretching, perhaps better?🤔 Else constant force springs is better for this type of application i think. 🤓

[@NeonPaladin]

Thank you, Aaron and David, both for all of your help with these crazy ideas.

[@Deja117]

Everyone needs a John in their life. Plenty times I've started a project, got to a point, then just gave up... Sometimes it just takes a random person showing interest to help give you that final push. Aaron and David still deserve a lot of praise, but there's just a certain feeling you get from a random dude being interested in something, that even the most supportive friends can't replicate. Really cool design. I hope it inspires others to take it further, even though this fully worked. ;)

[@marluna_x]

You might wanna check out the spring mechanism of a vacuum cleaners cable reels. It's a metal strip that wants to roll up into one direction, but then you have a bigger roll that bends it in the opposite direction. Simple as that. They are actually quite strong (and sharp!), but they don't increase in strength even when pulled all the way out. I have built a compressed air hose reel with just two of them, and it's just barely enough, but it works! It's also probably pretty cheap too! You might be able to make a very wide version of it. Also, they go FAST!!! If you, while disassembling such a reel, let go at any time, the entire thing goes super speed and then breaks the spring... Just a suggestion!

[@Goodgu3963]

Those springs are called Constant Force springs, and they are a good idea for this application great suggestion!

[@ct92404]

​@@Goodgu3963I think it's a coil spring, like what typewriters used to advance the carriage. They have a lot of power and could work for experiments like this, but can be dangerous.

[@mumblety]

I think the key is using the same method that airplanes use for their rubber engines. They twist the rubber band around itself instead of wrapping around a shaft. This allows you to store much more energy. In fact this is how that dragster worked according to that photo that you showed. Also switching to a lower gear when winding would help you to not have to pull the car back so much. Thank you Aaron and David! Edit: now that I'm thinking about this I remember having a hotwheels car that had a rubber engine. It also used the same method of an airplane!

[@Qsandbank]

Laugh all you want but this mf gonna come for you! (at 5 kilometers per hour for 10 seconds once every 2 minutes)

[@JoelCreates]

Still faster than Yankle...

[@CaptainBara]

@@JoelCreatesg

[@Gwallacec2]

Multiple spiral springs that are in toys are used all the time for bigger applications. I would definitely try spiral springs or nested coil springs.

[@ryanbox30]

Thank you David and Aaron for helping Joel make these awesome videos

[@OgienChomik]

So Joel there's a thing you may want to consider if you want to revisit this. The spring option is a great idea but you need to find "stiff" spring not necessarily a larger spring. There's some equations you can use to find these things and effectively take into account the force the spring is applying to the shaft along with the force that is being applied to the tires. Your goal is to overcome the static friction force first and then continue to push through the sliding friction. F=ma so the greater the force difference the faster the acceleration. If you also create somewhat of a gear system where the spring only engages when you want it to and then disconnects from the axel allowing the car to continue forward under its own momentum that would allow you to use the initial push that the spring has given you without the spring re winding back up and killing your momentum. over all this was a great video and really great refresher for my kinematics from my physics classes since I'm taking the mcat in a few days. Thank you as well aaron and david for letting joel do his thing with your stuff.

[@fojcol]

A for effort. I can't imagine the tedium of gluing those bands each time! I do hope inspiration comes for something that will bring the magic!

[@shibarmyburnz1978]

1/10 for research and actual engineering

[@Flargenyargen]

You all came together to do a really cool thing and that is just awesome. Neat project!

[@rowinfun]

Thank you Aaron and David, Joel is so fortunate to have people like you

[@AzureSkyBeta]

Thank you all for these amazing videos! Every time you put one out I think "he can't get more ridiculous than this" and every time I am proven wrong!

[@TheTrueMorningStar]

Thank you Aaron and David, this video made my kiddo super happy!

[@CodyHovland]

Great work man! This must have taken forever to redo the deign over and over! I had this idea since i was a kid too! I thought I was going to have to cross this off my idea list but now I think we have our collaboration idea. We'll get you to the cut off speed you're looking for, then take you to holy $#!%. Huge respect to Aaron and David, you guys rock!

[@craniumbear]

Thank you Aaron and dave! Maybe look at the inside of the toy car to see how it's done. I remember the ones I had as a kid had a spring that was a flat sheet of metal but it was rolled up like a coil.

[@hm3139]

I love your videos man keep up the good work!

[@PatrickHoodDaniel]

A constant force spring may be a better alternative. You can get these springs in monster sizes. Thank you David and thank you Aaron!

[@danyg4063]

Honestly, David is half the reason I watch these videos, hah hah. His reactions and enthusiasm are always priceless. Thank you David (And Aaron and mysterious new friend).

[@Weisz]

Thank you david and aaron! This vid was dope joel, really put the spring in my step

[@RealAndySkibba]

Woah. This is a crazy build.

[@caseykoons]

Thanks David, keep helping this manac. Aaron, you came in clutch.

[@azischreiber613]

im the glizzy goblin

[@TheRealKimKitsuragi]

so true

[@becomingbatmanfr]

Thank you Aaron and Dave helping with the amazing projects joel does

[@azischreiber613]

i liked my own comment

[@chickenwarriorr]

The children in the comment sections these days just sad

[@josephstalin43]

Nobody cares

[@purpleYamask]

When your parents didn't give you attention, so you beg yt comments for it with spam

[@FtBallJock6]

Car no go laundry car go road

[@jero37]

I hope Aaron & David see really positive business from helping with your projects Joel. Thanks for being good friends to him guys.

[@ashleyparker5998]

Thank you david and Aaron we appreciate all that you do.

[@arjovenzia]

Somewhat different scale, but reminds me of a project I did in school for a science project. Making a mousetrap powered car. I possibly cheated a bit, with my grandpa, uncle and dad all contributing ideas, designs and parts, although I did technically build the whole thing myself. Tiny ball bearings, high quality fishing line around the axle attached to the mousetrap arm and CD ‘coasters’ as wheels (at the time, burning a CD was not a guaranteed success, but far and away was the most economic way to store data. There was invariably a spindle of failed burns, affectionately called coasters). The small axle diameter and the huge wheel diameter made for an excellent ratio. My car couldn't drive across a desk because of lack of traction, it would just spin the wheels. But on carpet or concrete, was an absolute beast. I won that one by orders of magnitude.

[@x9x9x9x9x9]

David is single handedly changing my opinion of people who wear bluetooth ear pieces after like 2011. For the longest time every person I have met who is wearing one of those has just been so douchey but david is so cool. Also Aaron's timing was amazing literally today I asked a garage door guy if they did other doors, as my works back door got kicked in last night. The guy said "We dont do anything else" in a very similar way to aaron. Both of those guys are great.

[@dingdingdingdiiiiing]

I have so much admiration for persistence in frustrating projects that have uh... no... actual useful application, and are simply an idea you want to make.

[@alexbaekeland4954]

Thank you Aaron & David!

[@forrestmoney6384]

You are so underrated, the effort you put into your videos is insane dude. You are awesome

[@Goodgu3963]

Thanks Aaron and David for helping make Joel's projects possible! Joel, you should take a look at constant force springs. I've designed a couple of CF spring mechanisms in the past and those are probably the way you want to go here. Also, you are going to need a LOT more spring force. CF springs really only produce linear motion. The best way I can think to implement this is to wrap a cable around a drum and use a CF spring to pull on that cable. In your birdcage design you could line each crossmember with short throw CF springs. Those spring will rotate around those crossbars. Then have them pointing inwards toward the rotating shaft, which you attach them to with a cable or perhaps a sheet of metal. Then when you wind up the car, it will pull out each of the CF springs towards the center loading all the springs while winding up the cables or sheets. Since you have so many crossmembers and your birdcage is so wide, you will be able to use far more CF springs than you'll probably need. Just find the right amount so that you can use the car's weight to wind it up and you'll be able to wind it through their entire length because of the constant force. Best of luck, can't wait to see your next video!

[@HostileHST]

Thank you Dave and all those who tolerate Joel's crazy antics!

[@kevinsellsit5584]

You didn't make the "jump to light speed" but you did prove you have very cool friends. Oh, and you don't give up easily. :)

[@michaelhill2644]

Thank you Aaron and David for being enablers to Joel

[@IDK77738]

thanks so much david for letting joel use your work shop nad thanks to you too joel for the amazing vid :)

[@secularstormchaser0074]

Thank you all for your teamwork! It creates excellent content thats outrageously fun to conceptualize

[@fuzzylilpeach6591]

Thank you Aaron, David and Joel for making these amazing crazy ideas a reality

[@P8FPV]

Thanks everyone involved 😀 cool project defo one to come bk to v2.0

[@tagbon]

Thanks David, Aaron, Quincy, John, other John and Charles!

[@2s7a2m7]

Hope to see more of this! Some ideas: - Pull the car with rubber bands between its front bumper and an anchored cable as a test - Turn each shaft into a row of U-Groove pulley bearings - Drag racing tires?

[@karmelekanime05]

I would like to sincerely thank David and Aaron for helping Joel create this video

[@nathan584]

On the forum for the drac car there's pictures of how it actually works and it's real straight forward but complex due to the amount of parts

[@nathan584]

Although the type of bands they use I can't find anything anywhere close to it

[@EricFrazierFRAZDOG]

Thank you Aaron and David, this was a fun one. Random thought about the concept. There are “engines” that run from gravity, or even Mouse traps. Non elastic wrap around the drive shaft(string), and the lever does a fair amount of the work. Could you use webbing to do the wrap, and extend up to your bands? The bands could be wound up to the drive shaft, and they’d only be pulling in a linear mode. You could have an inadvertent energy loss as the band aren’t being stretched fully and equally?

[@yutub561]

Xometry is great, but I used them one time at work and now I get a cold call every week to ask if I have projects for them. Thanks David and Aaron!!!!

[@gypsycrow3917]

Got a new favorite channel to binge! Thanks to you, Aaron, and David. Cheers!

[@MaDMaXGroW]

That was cool mate, you shouldn't be so hard on yourself. You are creating joy. Keep on creating Joel.

[@besimplebesample-x7g]

thanks to Aaron and david for putting up with Joel projects

[@Ganerrr]

thank u aaron and david and quincy and john and

[@RightsAreNotTradition]

I had this same idea. I was thinking about a bunch of leaf springs run through a series of pulleys taking the load one or a few at a time before the next series kicks in. You can obviously turn the lever action into a rotary action use that for a governor. Winding it up would be the fun part but you could do it with a small engine and a hydro. Feel free to use any of it I have plenty of projects.

[@mell0wzgmd]

thank you everyone and friends you are seriously amazing without the support, he would have gave up long ago but thanks to you this is all possible❤ you guys are insane thank you david and aaron, and i mean it

[@godlugner5327]

You were so close with your endeavor just a little nudge in the right direction will make this project work! What mechanism also uses a coil spring to provide spinning motion? Watch springs

[@TeamZinjaGaming2]

THANKS DAVID AND AARON YOU GUYS ROCK.

[@londonnelson7359]

Thank you David and Aron

[@K3NnY_G]

I've been searching for a shop I can afford to save the car I love that's actively rotting to the ground; it's been almost a year now, of offering $800+ every month I can't afford just to get somewhere I can work on something and leave it for even a day. Can't begin to explain how important dudes like Aaron David are.. Envious of your friends man.

[@zoltansnarf4862]

this was so fun. thank you all

[@TBoom8669]

love the video. Brings back some memories. Maybe multiple coils setup in a planetary gear configuration?

[@treyp3541]

Thanks David and Aaron! I personally wouldn't get too much bigger of a spring after seeing car suspension videos 😂

[@bendordoy4815]

Thanks Aaron and David for enabling joel antics but you had the correct principle but the wrong type of spring the pull back cars use flat coil torsion springs.

[@ramone79]

Thank you Aaron and David.

[@RainbowFlowerCrow]

Thank you, Aaron and David!

[@trimagos]

Thank you Aaron and David for being enablers to Joel and his Antics 🤣🤣🤣 #FeelTheMagic

[@theworkshopwhisperer.5902]

I really want to see more of this as there are more ways to harness the power of the spring. I think you might have to make an entirely custom chassis as that kit car is still quite heavy. By custom chassis I'm thinking just an empty rectangle with cross support.

[@byeluvby]

Aaron and David, the true GOATs of the channel

[@gh0stm0nst3r6]

I love watching you try. You are my kind of dude

[@ingusbingus8750]

thanks David and Aaron for their work

[@chotizz602]

Thank you Aaron and David for being enablers to Joel and his Antics

[@georgeisaacs7454]

Thank you Aaron and David for being enablers to Joel and his Antics 🤣🤣🤣

[@masengarrard5972]

My friend you NEED a round coil spring!! If you rethink your design a bit for the cage you could make a box around an industrial sized coil spring, and set it up with the shaft going directly through welded to the center flat bit and connect to the drive shaft, you can pull that suckered back and zoom! The round coil springs are what are in the toy car!!

[@masengarrard5972]

Also thank you Aaron and David!! Please look into the coil springs pleaseeee

[@someone5781]

This is so cool!!! I love your videos! I'm binging these, and thank you Aaron and David!

[@feku_pl]

If you want to go anywhere you will need longer rubber, which is also stronger, a "kinetic rope" (used in the field to recover off-road cars) with a few pulleys will do an amazing job.

[@Schradermusic]

David and Aaron are the real MVPs and everybody knows that.

[@Garoninja]

I also work in garage doors. I have wanted to stick a garage door spring on a mouse trap car since I was in high school. This was next level. There has to be a way to make a garage door spring powered car.

[@jayde4872]

Thanks David, thanks Aaron

[@RealZenno]

Thank you Aaron and David for helping enable (and putting up with) Joel's shenanigans. XD

[@RebelCowgirl01]

Omg. Hahaha. Thank you to you AND your crew!! Made a good one. 😂

[@Donavin0]

Take the function of a mechanic wrist watch spring and use similar workings in the scale needed for that project and boom spring powered car.

[@jamesrivas4572]

People say it's impossible to do something but if you try that impossible it can be possible 🙏😉

[@ludvigpersson2311]

Thank's everyone who helped with the projekt

[@biggestcomplainer]

All the work you put into this. Can’t believe you have gotten more traffic

[@Nemozoli]

Thank you Aaron and David for putting up with Joel's shenanigans! I think the rubber bands can be used if you twist the bands instead of just pulling them. I mean, the rubber-band planes also use them in twisting motion, not rolling down from a shaft. That way you can store energy in 3 dimensions instead of just one.

[@CarrotGamingYT]

Thank you, Aaron and David

[@sikandarx8724]

0:48 finally he changed his hat 🥳😂

[@sixeleven637]

Finally😭😭😭

[@chiyo9014]

Thank you David.... Thank you Aaron.

[@aether-vega]

Thank you Aaron and David for being enablers to Joel and his Antics 🤣🤣🤣

[@chillaxter13]

My first thought was something like wire rope on a winch drum with a spring or elastic/rubber being stretched the length of the car... I can see challenges with it, but linear instead of a cage just might make a difference (and allow for pullies, which can get weird)

[@xoulkaizer]

Edit: thank you aaron and david for assisting in this project it was quite interesting and cant have been an easy task. I know it's partially the purpose of the transmission, but maybe a custom gearbox setup could help in some way.

[@thomasseeley8124]

the thing about those little cars is they had the weight of you pushing down in the drive tires while winding up. this kept them from breaking traction while winding up. i think you could build an external ratcheting system that stores energy in a leaf spring or something similar and have it attached to a really hi geared drive shaft. this, i believe, would create some powerful results

[@yaboigaming1675]

thank you david and aaron

[@bobbydavis3777]

Thanks guys!!! This was am awesome project

[@chrdecic]

Thank you Aaron, thank you David, for helping Joel snap back to reality.

[@TheYoutubeUser69]

damn good stuff! I used to have these plastic lanes you could connect up and then you would put these pullback cars into it and let it rip. played those to death with my brothers back then

[@Hazdazos]

Thanks Aaron and David. I wonder if the spring spun a flywheel you'd be able to store more energy and then dump it to the wheels.