History 64/65 Comets old drag cars lets see pictures

I AGREE with Chris!! I have no knowledge on Dutchman but I had a Moser axle break out side the bearing,caused by very poor machine work,tore up my Comet when the wheel came off! Their response,Too Bad,can't help you!! I now run a complete 35 spline Mark Williams center section and axles,there customer service was Top Notch!!!! ROY.

 

Dale;
Don't go with those Dana 60s there great on truck! Unless you want that weight back there. Use a Ford 9" that has small end bearings and have it narrowed to fit, use a Ford "N" Case dependeding on hard you come out. Use Mark Williams Axles out of Colorado. Get 35 spline axles with 11/16 studs,with Mark Williams Spool, with bearings that fit that 9" housing. Now don't forget to use a MW Pinion Retainer with a MW Yoke & 1350 U Joints. And use Cal Tracks With Cal Track shocks. Now this will hold up to that 800 hp engine I heard you are putting in the Rocket!!! AFX DAVE

 

800HP in his dreams[maybe with a 300 shot]!!!!The rest of the list sounds good!! ROY.

 

Thanks for setting me straight on the axles...I haven't heard good things about Strange axles either...Mark Williams is the way to go! And I knew Dave knew how to do it...that guy is a walking encyclopedia on anything B/FX and A/FX Comets!! When Dave talks,people listen!!!

 

Here you go Roy. The "famous" Moser axle and what it did to your car. For me back in the day when I started this hobby I tried to get by with 28 spline axles. Did not go to well. I bought one set of stock 31 spline axles. Not much better. I went right to Mark Williams 35 spline axles and spool. One of the few things I did right. Some day I would like a MW case but the stock N case has been just fine. Brian

 

I recognise the tower to be that of Mission Raceway in Mission , B.C .

 

No Dana 60, at least for the Rocket. Summers Brothers is close by the shop, and they are trying to re-establish themselves after a hiatus from drag racing. They spent alot of time in offroad stuff, and are coming back into the drag race scene.
As for the center section?? hehehe... Its all about weight...

 

Brian;that just shows the exterior damage,luckily I had a friend that is a PRO at body repair and paint match!!! The inside took me longer to repair than he took to fix the quarter panel,plus I had to send the bumper out to be straightened and rechromed!!! I have a MW center section,don't know if it is any stronger than a "N" case,looks the same,just has MW instead of N cast in it!! It still hurts to see that picture,the ONLY major body damage,EVER,to my Comet!!!It is all kind of a moot point now,that poor old car does not have much "ORIGINAL"[roof,quarters,trunk lid and part of the firewall] sheet metal on it!! ROY.

 

The Mark Williams center section is stronger then Ford "N" Case, it has 3.25" Bearings with heavy duty bearing retainer on the rear. The side adjusters are made of machined steel not sheet metal like the Ford side adjusters. MW makes a standard spool of which is Heavy Duty but you have MW machine & drill the spool to lighten it up. Now the Pinion Retainer is Alum. W/a larger bearing with a MW Yoke which is machined with a 1350 U joint even put a MW Transmistion Yoke with a 1350 U joint. Get MW Drive Shaft Yokes and make your drive shaft to the correct length. Remember the Splines on a MW Axles are outward by the bearing not like Ford inside by the differantal gears. If using Mags on Rear have the Axles drill with 5/8 NF holes for using 11/16 studs, those don't bend and get lighting holes on the flang. If you are running a manual trans. use a 9" Richman " Pro Gear" because it is softer than the Standard Ford Gear. When you Launch that Car at 7500 RPM's that rear end just wants to exploit! The Ring & Pinion just don't want to stay together that's why it's has to be built strong. This Setup isn't Cheep but it will hold together especially on those Sticky Tracks. AFX DAVE

 

All my Mopar buddies swear by Dutchman....in my case,I don't have any money to speak of,so when I scored the 65 B/FX third member for my 9 inch,I had to use the 31 spline high performance tapered axles and the B/FX 4.71 gear.The Detroit Locker was added later....it works for my application...

 

This is for for the Comet Guys that are low on money and still want a strong rear housing.
Go to the Junk Yard and look for a 57/59 Ford or Merc only. No other year! Purchase the compleat assembly housing, center section, brakes and axles. Chances are its a 4.56 gear, now if it's a station wagon it's a 4.11. After you take it home, take it apart and clean it up!
Take the compleat rear end housing out of your Comet. It should be a 8" housong, do not disconnect the brake lines. Put the 9" ford housing on top of the Comet Springs it fits right right in. The spring spacing is the same for Both. Remove the rubber padding around the spring purchase, use the old U bolts from the Junk Yard. There is about 1/2" difference between the 8" & 9" Axle Housing. Your 8" Brakes & Axles will fit right in. Now have a 9" rear end in your Comet with a 3.56 gear & a 2.78 gear in your 4-speed Trans. A Good Street Gear for Playing around. You going to have to change the U Joint. I think I covered it all. Again this the Cheep way out. If you have any Queations just send me a message on this site. ---AFX DAVE---

 

Hi; I used Dutchman axles in my Frankland Quickchange when I built my Model A pickup 12 years ago, they were big 33 spline, it has street tires on it and it's about 2000 pounds, it has a BBC, about 450 HP and a 4 speed, one axle shattered into about 25 pieces, the other twisted about a quarter way around, I called Dutchman and they said send the shattered axle to them so they could look at it, they called back and said there was nothing wrong with their axle and if I wanted to buy another one they would be HAPPY to sell me another one! I told them,"you just told me that was the best axle you can make, so what kind of a idiot would I be to buy another one from you? send my axle back and put in writing what you just told me! " when I got the axle back, they had machined the broken part off so you can't tell it was ever broken ( I took lots of pics) the letter said " either put a smaller motor in your truck or plan on less high performance driving" so you can see why I do a lot of ADVERTISING for my good buddys at Dutchman!!! I put 35 spline Mark Williams axles in it and have ran the SHIT ouy of it for 11 years! THANKS Chris

 

Chris;that sounds close to what Moser told me!! My Comet back then had 10.5 to 1,289 with a 4 speed and 5.14 gears and a 10" slick!!!!My Mark Williams 35 spline axles and spool have about 300 passes,many in the low 10s,I check them once a year for twisting or obvious cracking,NEVER had an issue!!Axles are NOT something to cheap-out on!!!! ROY.

 

So- Whats wrong with good 'ol Henry's 31- splined units??? I have been told many times over the years, that the early axles had some great steel mixes and are plenty strong if left alone, not cut, re-splined, etc.. so as not to lose their surface hardening?? Not trying to cut any products down (I DO certainly appreciate the topic, as it has our safety in mind.

I also DO look at my intended application ,how I use the parts, and so on. With a footbraked-car, no clutch dumping 7K hits. I feel a good set of axles should do the trick, and if I can source a pair of uncut Ford axles, I'd love to use them.. It may be hard though.

 

Awesome shot here!

 

Dale; I broke OEM 31 spline axles running low 12's with 9" slicks and at that time a T10. The one I had re-splined I used recently to set up the posi unit in my Boss 302. I almost forgot I had it. It was the untouched R/H side that would break. I am lucky I never had damge like Roy. They usually broke in the spline area. Brian

 

Dale;
I also broke a original set OEM 31 Spline axles that came in my BFX Comet, it was the left rear. I didn't know when I broke it! I found out when I was at the burnout box at Norwalk Dragway. The guy running the burnout box and noticed the tire wasn't turning! Took the car back to the pits. Stuck around and watched Dennis K. to run his Blue Thunderbolt. The axle broke next to the spline. At first I thought it was the Detroit Locker. Dale Good Luck With those 31 spliner's
---AFX DAVE---

 

Muttley you got me thinking so I visited my friend with a water jet and here is my bumper brackets finished and on a test install, my center brackets are Crites fiberglass but wanted these also for vibration help.......Al

 

Cool deal, did you weigh the slugs? Every little bit helps.

 

That material is some kind of spring steel(hard&heavy), didn't check weight, but very close to half+/- of what they were. Happy Easter to All........Al

 

Did this Petrie later race Hemi Super/Stockers?

 

Yes, same guy.

 

I have a flywheel question for the racers on here. what would be better behind a small block in a comet aluminum or steel it will see some street use as well race. thanks...mike

 

Mike;A LOT depends on the cars weight,size of the engine,transmission gearing and rear end gear ratio!! A high reving small block Ford with a 2.78 or better first geared stick and 4.86s or better can use a lightweight aluminum flywheel.I ran a 44lb steel wheel behind my 289 when I ran in Stock Eliminator as I need the inertia to help get the Comet moving.With my 352"/289 or my 418"W,I run an aluminum flywheel as I have an engine/engines with more torque and a lot more horsepower,and the Comet is lighter!! ROY.

 

Mike; As Roy said a lot depends on your combination. Can you give us more information on your engine, trans, rear gear and type of clutch? Like Roy I have use both steel and aluminum flywheels. Old school rule of thumb was car weight x 1% for flywheel weight. That does not apply to modern soft loc type clutches. Brian

 

The motor is a 302 with a 560 lift 224 duration hyd roller cam aluminum heads and a factory 1966 ford 2x4 intake with 450 carbs about 375 horse at some point I will stroke it. 278 first gear top loader 456 gear in the back. This motor in my mustang ran 12's with a auto and a 389 gear. Nothing to wild...mike

 

Mike;I would go with a steel flywheel[30lbs or so] for now,an aluminum wheel may not give you enough inertia to get off the line quickly.An automatic has a little help with the torque converter adding torque multiplication on the hit,also softens the load to the engine. ROY.

 

Thanks for the help everyone, nothing beats experience. Hope to come out and play at the Bowling Green hot rod reunion someday. MIKE

 

Anyone know anything about this car? I don't remember seeing it here.Maybe it was redone at some point?
Myron_