Event Coverage Welcome to the 2017 Meltdown Drags

Sometime you just got to get into your work.

 

Problems with blown big blocks.......
Man I just spit my sandwich all over the table!!! That's funny right there!!!
All kidding aside it's comforting to know we are not alone with race car problems


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took everything off the solenoid but the battery cable and still has power to the i side... any ideas?


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oh, they're all a pain in the....

I pulled the hood, and the distributor, and was able to get to the bolt, it was only slightly loose. A bit of other work on the linkage...new rod, relocate a pivot point, adjust it all, and it seems to be working like it ought. I'll probably head back up to Tucson tonight, and try again.

 

If you have voltage at the I terminal on the solenoid then the solenoid must be bad.
Is the solenoid grounded good?

 

we have two solenoids because somebody decided to try and force a nut on one and striped the threads and both have the same problem, as for the ground, it's just grounded to the side wall in the engine bay , the paint is ground off behind it.


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Not sure if it would make a difference but could the battery cables be on it backwards?

 

Let's run a ground to the block and see it that fixes it.


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Battery cable is on the S side. Or the hot side. Man James this shit is weird. I did try to put it on the other side.


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Sooooo let me see if I'm gettin' the full jist of this visual aid...it sleeps all winter, is a bear to dtive, shoots projectiles at a high velocity, has the top speed of a great white, gets it's ass handed to it if it comes across a killer whale, and can't get outta the water without dying??? Did I miss anything?

 

sometimes when electric parts don't work like I think they ought to, I take them apart. I usually learn something.

 

Marc, I think you missed the tranquilizer dart stuck in its neck...

 

I would drill the rivets out of it and have a look see what's going on in it.

This one had a small piece of wire in it that would short out when you accelerated.
It took me some time to find this.

 

I thought that was a bear shim.

 

Me too!


Gammz / DubG:

On that solenoid, the "I" terminal is electrically connected to the copper disc inside that connects the two big studs when the solenoid is actuated.. It should have power only when the solenoid is engaged by putting power to the "S" terminal. For the "S" terminal to engage the solenoid, the solenoid must have a good ground (via the attaching screws).

If you have a solenoid with small studs at both the "S" and "I" locations, and it has power at the "I" terminal any time a battery is connected to the large stud on the "S" terminal side, it is a defective part.

The "I" terminal stands for IGNITION, and its purpose is to bypass the resistor wire in order to provide hotter spark during cranking. It will have reduced voltage whenever the key is on, as it is electrically connected to the ignition coil "+" terminal and full battery voltage during cranking.

Beware of some solenoids that only have a single small stud at the "S" terminal and nothing where the small "I" terminal would be. Some are intended for newer ignition systems that don't need to bypass the resistor wire because there is none. Others (like some used for snowplow pump motors) have a single small stud that needs to be grounded in order to actuate the solenoid. They will have battery voltage present at the small terminal, until the terminal is grounded which completes the circuit of the coil. Most use the same solenoid housing piece, so the small terminals will have the same letter marking the terminals.

EDIT: In the pic that Saltflats posted while I was typing you can see the squiggly metal strip that goes from the "I" terminal to the rivet in the center of the solenoid plunger (copper disk I referenced earlier). Thanks James for posting that pic. I know whats inside those things as I have had them apart myself but didn't have any pics.

 

ok is a 13.00 or more a respectable time for a small block small horse power car to run at the meltdown? I don't want to upset anyone cuz I am slow and relatively new to this sport. Mistakes are a distinct possibility! Thanks

 

A flying pinion angle shim ???

 

sure! Get out there and have fun...you'll probably learn a lot, too.

 

There are many 13 sec cars to pair up with and have a blast. Some cars are fast, some barely leave the starting line:

 

That is a sharp picture...

AJ, I have to find the one of people picking up your rods and pieces of oil pan


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Did you try hittin it with a hammer?

 

You can tell we're getting close, the slingin' is pickin' up!

 

I got nothin....my big bullet had a bad primer.

 

He leaves that kinda thing to the old man. He's just to nice a kid to bash the shit outta anything.


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That's good to have that attitude at a young age.

 

Yeah no kidding. He's gotta get it from his mama.


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I used to get mad a throw wrenches....then one day I was watching one of the other mechanics having a fit and I thought to myself I wonder if I look that stupid when I do that. Now me just guessing that I did or even worse....so from then on I would just take a break and think about it and go at it with a clear mind.

 

I don't plan on getting "Shamoo'd" by a whale of a 57 Chevy any time soon Marcus....[emoji6]

Scott


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13.0's is plenty fast enough to have lots of fun.There will be quite a few cars running in that range,I'm fairly certain.You should have no trouble finding lots of good,close races.

Scott


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