3D modeling & mousetrap racing

In school, we've been assigned the task of building a car (for distance and speed) powered by a small mousetrap! Here I'll be showing my 3D models of the car I ended up making and the challenges I've faced along the way

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We were given the following statement for our instructions:

"Your team should design a vehicle that can provide its own power. You will utilize a potential energy source other than a battery. Your goal is also for the vehicle to travel in a straight path and to travel far and fast. The vehicle should also be able to accurately mark the path it takes."

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To begin, I had to do some research on how to build the perfect car for both speed AND distance, working by myself, I had to find good research, and be time-effective while doing it.

Before I show you my research, here's the final 3D model I had:

Working Drawing:

Research:

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Then, I had to do a quick sketch of the car, here's what I had in mind at the time:

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After building the car, I began to make a 3D model of the car, and try my best to be realistic as possible with my model. Here's documentation of what I ended up making!

While making the body, my biggest challenge I faced was finding the right bearings, and making everything fit, while keeping the “realism aspect”

The rear wheel bearings had a diameter of 3/16 of an inch, and the front bearings had a 8mm diameter.

In the end, everything turned out accurate.

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While making the wheels for the car, I had to think outside of the box to make the disc look like an actual disk:

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At the end, here were the final 3D models:

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Finally, here are some suggestions I have (after working on this project) for anyone who's a beginner to 3D modeling:

Thank you :D