rebuilding after the crash

No it became off topic so I quite posting.

 

Maybe you'd consider moving the thread to the OT forum?

 

I bet it would fit perfectly in the off topic section here

 

^^^^^^
I'd ask one of the moderators to have it moved here to the "Off Topic" forum. Then we could all follow along.

 

I will look into it.

 

https://www.myracepass.com/latest-news/article/165834/nitro-blown-door-cars-to-faceoff-at-musco-lighting-night-of-fire

 

Not much to post pics of lately. That doesn't mean I haven't been busy. I have been checking things off of the to do list.
Time engine
Set lash
Mount parachutes
Bleed brakes
Reset anti roll bar
Changed out one bad battery for the starter. It takes four.
Made a new spacer for the idler pulley
Weld egt bungs in the zoomies
Got new ends on the starter cable.
Just a few things in the last week
I'm working on getting a spare converter.
Trying to get all the sensors for the race pack.
There is no off season this year.

 

The true potential of the car couldn't be used do to the small tires. Now that that's changed the engine can be tuned up for big power. To keep a eye on things and to aid in tuning a race pack data acquisition set up was installed today. We will be monitoring the following.
Egts x 8
Drivesha speed
Rpm
Oil pressure
Fuel pressure at the pump
Fuel pressure after the barrel valve
Manifold pressure
I will most likely add a trans temp.
The anticipated fire up date is in ten days. View attachment 6312314

 

Just suggesting,
can you add or expand with your RacePac model to include
Fuel Flow gph @ pump outlet
& oil pan pressure ?

 

For now this is the basic monitoring package. More sensors will be added in the future. The cost of these sensors is crazy. Both of the sensors you mentioned are on the list.

 

^^^^^
Yes , I have close to 7 in data logger & sensors , & I want expand to more data ,

 

So why spend alot of time and money on a race pack? There are many reasons. Here's just a few.
Blower boost. If the boost is dropping it's time to restrip.
Fuel pump pressure. If the pressure drops it's time for a rebuild.
Fuel pressure after the barrel valve helps the launch as the engine goes through a lean spot at the hit.
Driveshaft speed shows how the car is hooking up.
Egts tell you how hot a cylinder is getting. Lean is hot. Lean is fast. Lean can damage pistons. It's the way to get the most hp without causing damage.
So you can see it's about tuning and monitoring the condition of the parts.
The majority of piston damage occurs at the hit. Going from a rich condition to a lean condition has to be controlled. Adjustments can be made with data logged.
This is a very basic overview. More details to follow.

 

Just adding , there been times
Plug or 2 try to foul out , lean pump out
Plugs would relight , cold weather lean pump out to create heat

 

I run a high/ low valve to prevent that.
For those that don't know what that is a valve is opened to return fuel to the tank during the burnout. When the top bulb is lit the valve is closed giving full fuel to the engine. When watching these cars it's a noticeable drop in rpm can be heard.
So why do you do this?
It saves alot of fuel
The engines heads get hot to burn the fuel.
It greatly reduces the chance of putting a cylinder out at the hit.
We also use the valve on warmup so less fuel goes into the oil pan.

 

You know it strikes me today what a great job you’ve done with packaging and serviceability on the car. It’s one thing to start with nothing and put things in place but on a vehicle that is constantly being tweaked, upgraded and re equipt it’s really impressive to see how nice and tight you’ve kept it.

 

The guys at Racepac are great. I was helping someone out with troubleshooting some odd issues... garbled and no data log, turned out the memory card that was being used was just old and had failed.

I ended up talking to one of Racepac's support gurus, there wasnt a single hesitation on helping out... Super cool and very helpful.

Where did you end up mounting the logger?

 

I have never had a data logger. This is very interesting and enjoy learning about this. Thanks .

 

I agree. The packaging Brian has done is great, no easy task to route and position all of this and still have access for easy service to be accomplished. Takes a lot of thought and planning I'm sure.

 

The race pack has to be mounted in a very specific way. It has a accelerometer built into it. It has to be mounted level. I have mine located on the cross bar behind the passengers seat area. The plug goes toward the front. Placing it at the height of the bottom of the windows works good. That was a good question.

 

The converter showed up. The Bruno and lenco are back in. We are on schedule for a fire up next weekend

 

Do to the bad weather coming we are going to wait until next weekend to fire up the car.

 

Well, it is still winter...my sister in Pardeeville just takes it all in stride. Works in Sun Prairie and has no problem doing the snowy/Icey road thing....I'm happy for her as I enjoy my cool wet winter mornings, cooking Thanksgiving in flip flops and shorts and watching all the cayuse when the white stuff does come by every six years or so.....looking forward to your "lighting it up"!

 

The issue isn't really the snow as much as the cold. To start it up we have to open the doors. It will be 19 degrees out. After the car warms up we need to work on it then start it on nitro. We do this several times. It's no fun doing it when it's that cold.

 

Understand, grew up in that stuff on a small farm....some fun but mostly a pain in the butt!

 

how are you transitioning between fuels during startup / warm up?

 

We start it on methanol. We have a can that's pressurized by air. A line runs up to the injector. It plugs in with a push pull fitting. Running it on methanol saves alot of money. The timing can be checked along with checking the rotor phasing. Heat is generated to bring the engine up to operating temperature. This allows us to retorque the heads and reset the lash. We set the Bruno pressure and fluid level. After a rebuild there is always metal shavings. We pull the filter and clean it. The its fired on nitro. It's first started on methanol. Once it's running the valve on top of the pump is opened. The nitro is now going into the engine. The handle on the methanol tank closed. The engine is now on nitro only. Individual exhaust temps are recorded with a heat gun. The idle gets set. The Bruno brake is activated to make sure it's working. When everything is done the nitro valve is shut off. The methanol valve is opened. It runs on the methanol for about 15 seconds to clear out all of the nitro. The heads get torqued again. The lash is set again. The filter is cleaned again. Nozzles adjustments to even the exhaust temps would be made. There is alot going on real fast. Everyone involved has a job to do. Those without a job are told to stand back and not get in the way. Last thing is the oil gets changed. To do all of this costs money so it's not taken lightly. Depending on how things go we might do this as many times as it takes to get everything adjusted the way we wanted. The prices are for one fire up.
Oil 120.00
Plugs 50.00
Methanol 25.00
Nitro 200.00
There's alot of smaller items not figured in.
The shop filled with the funky green haze priceless.

 

Sounds like a cool setup for easy-ish startup.
Why not use race gas for initial startup? Does it have to do with being blown nitro?

The JR Fuel guys I hang out with run Methanol and use race gas on start up, something about being easier to start.

Sometimes I am around the shop when the guys are getting the car ready for the season. Lots of moving parts and LOTS of money.

 

We squirter gas in the injector for the the initial hit on the starter. That's it for the gas.
It would cost alot to run on race gas at 8 plus dollars a gallon. It's so much cheaper on methanol.
Methanol mixes with nitro. Gas doesn't.

 

Watching a fuel team between rounds is incredible, even if nothing has been broken. Then the joy of firing up, ears ringing and eyes watering crazily.

Good luck with the startup man.

Cheers,
Harv

 

Well orchestrated chaos. No one's talking. Everyone knows their job and what to do. It's cool.