Messages

151

Drag Racing / Re: Roll Call Who Is going to NHRA New England Hot Rod Reunion Epping, NH 03042

« on: July 02, 2014, 08:35:18 AM »

I'll be there. Any racers broken or in need, my shop is 40 minutes from the track. Tubing in stock as well as milling, turning, CNC plasma, CNC milling, welding and machined flat chassis table. Tabs, brackets, building supply's in stock.  I'll be at the track from Thursday on, my cell is 603-234-9496.

152

Matt Shaff's Engine Shop / Re: Hemi Engines

« on: June 25, 2014, 06:53:04 AM »

]




So NHRA in banning the Ford from racing in all the classes it's banned in, was to save me from making parts ? So then I would go buy someone elses parts & run a Chevy or Chrysler, OK this makes real sense ?   It wasn't the Chevy & Chrysler guys that told NHRA that if they didn't ban the Ford they would boycott their races.  Now it all makes perfect sense.  I can't run a motor made in 1958 in nostalgia fuel racing.  I went to Bakersfield for the march meet & watched first round of TF, 9 cars came to the line for the 16 car field. It was OK that my Ford car was sitting home in the trailer, as I felt that I had been saved from spending money & making parts.
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    Of all the things they may have considered when making the rules, I'm sure that keeping you from making your own parts wasn't one of them. Whats to stop you from developing Chevy or Chrysler parts that are better than whats currently available? I'm sure their line of thinking came from the experience they had over the years when guys showed up with stuff that was homebuilt, custom, or one off trick (some of these things were brilliant, some not so much) stuff. Some of these guys spent their life savings while others spent beer money. Some showed promise while others showed how well the safety safari did their job, cleaning up oil. That's not saying your stuff wouldn't be top notch, but they won't know until you make a few dozen runs with only the same or less problems than the common combinations that they KNOW have high quality parts in them. Couple that with the fact that there's tons of info and help available for running fuel in the current combinations, and they just might be saving you from yourself. And then there's the opposite problem, what if your stuff turns out to be head and shoulders above the rest? Then they have to police the class to maintain parity (reference PSB, pro mod, and TAD) and that opens up a whole new can of worms. Unfortunately, it's not the 60's any more and if you want to play in the big leagues you've got to play by their rules.

         Something to remember is that the racers themselves gravitated to these common combinations for a variety of reasons, not necessarily because the were the best engine out there. Ease of maintenance, new and used parts availability (and interchangeability) aftermarket support, availability of good used cores and parts all factored into it. I really do respect the fact that you like something different than the norm, and I think there's plenty of room to play in the slower classes and have a great time doing it. If you really want to put your Ford to the test, there's always Land Speed Racing. Radical, different, and unique engine combination are the norm over there and you'll be welcomed with open arms.

       

153

Matt Shaff's Engine Shop / Re: Hemi Engines

« on: June 24, 2014, 11:31:18 AM »

 That said I reaLLY hate the Chevy= Chrysler mentality.  The fact that NHRA has banned the BBF from most every class I want to run confirms that mentality. Keep the Tin Indian  please.
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The Chevy=Chysler mentality thing isn't as much about being in love with one brand or another, it's about parts availability. Not everyone has the time, money, patience or ability to make every little thing on their car or engine. The RED bracket racers have been the driving force in BBC development for years now, and as a result there's plenty of new and used stuff out there for reasonable money to go fast with. Same with the Hemi stuff, except its been the big dogs of the sport spearheading that development either decades ago or right now. I always get a kick out of my nostalgia customers with blown injected combo's towing to the line running 7.50's while my RED guys drive their cars up and back while running 7 flat.

                 That being said, I do love different combinations. But racing is expensive enough without paying extra to go just as fast as the guy next door.

154

Roo Man's Room / Re: How do i know the cage will fit my size?

« on: June 15, 2014, 02:22:40 PM »

I just had a worm car in here, and tend to agree with everything Roo says. I can say however that the steering cross member was slugged with solid rounds and drilled through that for attaching to the chassis. General servicability was terrible however. I could see if these were bargain basement cars, but if you buy all the stuff from him to get to the same level of finish as most builders you're paying about the same. The problem with new buyers is an "thats how they are" mentality, meaning they don't look much past the paint job in judging a car and just assume that that's how all these cars are built. It's not until they've owned a few cars from various builders that they can appreciate the differences and thought that some guys put into the finished product.

155

Spud Miller's Cave / Re: Engine timming

« on: May 28, 2014, 10:01:34 AM »

Hey Larry, I'm sure you already know this, but the answer is "it depends". I might start at 34- 36 and go up and down in 2 degree increments and see what the time slip, the plugs, and your ears tell you. I think you've got the experience to get you where you need to be in short order.

156

Front Engine Dragsters / Re: Rear Diff

« on: May 06, 2014, 02:21:48 PM »

Depends on the width of your shoulder hoop and what you have for wheel back space. Don't forget tire bulge. Be careful of the dimensions you get, some might give you bare housing width while others might give you axle to axle width. Pretty easy to figure out what you need if you own the wheels, tires and chassis.

157

Roo Man's Room / Re: Is this a legal butt weld splice?

« on: April 30, 2014, 10:56:20 AM »

While it's potentially legal, no doubt it will face extra scrutiny from tech inspectors and future buyers. Mostly because if people don't see things a certain way often enough they don't believe it can be done that way. Like Bruce says, 1.375 x .058 on a 6" CLR is no problem for most of the benders we use. Have him bend your tubes and be done with it. Even if I don't go for the 2.4 upgrade, I make all my shoulder hoops out of 1.5 x .058 (unless the cage will be over 18") for a couple of reasons.

158

Front Engine Dragsters / Re: Helmet bars with a 5 point cage ?

« on: April 28, 2014, 10:13:08 AM »

biggest CLR I've seen for a JD2 bender was 5.5".   I reckon for a continuous bend I'd need a 7-8" CLR ?

I did consider less angle but on a 3-4 clr the straight  legs after the bend would join the cage vertical uprights at an angle.  I'd like them to be meet square so the bars flow without any sharp angles.

I agree. Some cages they look good, others not so much. A 6 point cage seems to be able to get away with it a little easier than a 5. If the car I'm building has a single bend shoulder hoop, I roll a 1" tube on the same clr, cut and fit it to the back bar on the 5 point cage and it comes out looking nice. But I also realize that not everybody has a 3 roll bender in their shop.

159

Front Engine Dragsters / Re: Helmet bars with a 5 point cage ?

« on: April 28, 2014, 05:28:18 AM »

Larger CLR dies are available, just a matter of spending the money. You could also use the existing die and bend the bars to something less than 90 degree's, lets just say 60, it gives the back of your car a less "squared off" look