rebuilding after the crash

it was a full day for sure. I will do some more tuning this week. I feel it's ready for road kill nights in Detroit along with the dream cruise on Woodward ave.

 

Glad to see it on gas and running good. I take it this was a trial run for Drag Week. In the next couple of weeks I will start on my 38, and will start a thread on here. Every time I see your car it makes me want your old motor done and in my truck, soon it will be. Good luck.
Tony

 

Please let us know when you do there are some that follow brian that know you and will follow along or at least I will lol. Tony will you be at the H.A.M.B. Drags again this year


Brian it sounds like you have got it figured out

 

Just got back from a Sunday morning ride. I thought about the tune up all night. I started to think that I might not have changed the parameters related to the engine size. This morning I connected to the ecu and sure enough it said 392. I upped it to 498 and like magic it was a completely different car. The 2100 rpm little stumble is gone and it's much more responsive. I don't know how I forgot to change that. Maybe I have been a little busy and distracted with other things lately.

 

the stupid computer always does what you tell it to do, not what you want it to do...

 

Tony it was a pre drag week run. Not only was I tuning the car but in a way tuning the trailer. We are trying some different ways we load it. These changes could have a effect on the handling going down the road. We put alot of weight in the trailer so shifting a few hundred pounds around can make a difference. I also screw the shocks tighter by 1.5 inches. If I don't the added weight of the passenger and trailer causes the body to rub the tires. It's a balancing act. I want it soft for a good ride yet it has to remain functional pulling the trailer. Drag week is not as easy as it looks. There is alot that goes into it.

 

Brian every time I talk to ya I learn something, and this time to. I never even thought of the shock deal. When you get to the track do you change your shocks again for the track. Do you have to carry all of your own Nitro for drag week, or can you get it at the track? How much extra Nitro compared to last year? I have been following Drag week a little more for the last few years and it is has my interest up. I think it is a hell of a test on man and machine.

 

The shocks are readjusted for the track. We use a pair of spanner wrenches to do the job. It only takes a few minutes. A few cars use a third air shock that gets added and removed.
We have to carry our own nitro. The tracks don't sell it. This puts us at a disadvantage because the jugs take up alot of valuable trailer space. We do use more nitro with the new engine. We figure on six gallons per pass.
That space could be used to haul more spare parts or tools.

 

Dumb question and I hope you never find out. But what happens if you get in an accident on the highway hauling all that nitro? It seems you have taken all the safety precautions on the track. I am sure you have thought about it. I was just curious


Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.

 

I don't want to find out either. the nitro has a much lower flash point than gas. to set it off there would need to be a primary explosion. im more worried about the 15 gallons of gas positioned in the trunk of my car compared to the nitro on the trailer. the nitro is carried in plastic dot approved jugs. there was a serious accident some years back. the team of al fontannini and nannini were towing their nitro funny car on the toll road heading to union grove. while stopped at a toll booth the rig was rear ended. the explosion was so big it blew up the toll booth. the teams driver was killed. I don't know of any other nitro related bad accidents.

 

Having my gas tank in the very back of my sedan scares me too. I watch the rear view pretty close when cars are behind me. I have to say after reading your thread and seeing the few nitro cars I have. Nitro definitely strikes my curiosity. Someday I will have to try it in something. The bucket list keeps growing [emoji3]


Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.

 

Really enjoyed catching up on this Brian, I lost touch of the thread around 2016 so spent a few days hauling through since then!

Love seeing the latest progression with the big late model Hemi in there loaded up, sounds great.

Also the technical insights and what goes on behind the scenes make for a great read. I'm just coming to the end of my altered rebuild from blown alky BBC to blown nitro billet 417 Hemi so I appreciate the work, time and dedication you've put into this. Like you I'm lucky to have some very knowledgeable and helpful guys guiding me along the way, been my dream since I was 7 years old to run a nitro altered, 23 years later it's finally happening! I won't take over your thread any more, apologies!

Tuned in for the future, bring on drag week

 

I think every time I read this I learn something new. Thanks! saw the car at the meltdowns again. still one of my favorites!

 

That's cool. Thanks for following along. It must be hard to run a nitro car in England. Getting parts like a Donovan can't be easy or cheap. I sold a 64 Plymouth sport fury to a guy in England years ago. He ran it at Santa pod. Good luck with the nitro hemi.

 

It sure isn't!!! ImTakes a lot of planning and patience, 6 week shipping time roughly, depending when the next shipment leaves, then we get stung with import duty (on sale value AND shipping cost) plus tax. If it was easy everyone would do it?

Fortunately we're good friends with the guys who run the Havoc AA/FA (2017 CHRR winners ) and have a very similar setup to them.

Guy called Keith Herbert? Can't be many Sport Fury's over here, lovely car.

Thanks, it's gonna be a learning experience but I can't wait.

 

Sounds like your getting her figured out Brian. I sold my 65 Belvedere to a guy in England too. Lippy

 

I'm working on it. The efi has been the focus lately. I forwarded my tune up to fellow drag week racer Andy Starr at hilborn efi last night. This morning we went over it. A few changes were made to the tune. Some of the items I'm not familiar with and how they effect the tune. Like the voltage adjustments at the injector. Andy isn't tuning the car. He is explaining the various settings and how they work so I have a better understanding so I can tune it. He is providing opinions on how some things should be set. Like I said before I feel I'm close to the perfect tune up it just needs a little more work. This will be done driving down the road with the lap top connected to the ecu. Now that it's not so frustrating it's fun to play with.

 

Think what it would be like on gas and mech injected going from weather change to weather change and different altitudes traveling. It would be a nitemare I bet.

 

Saw this little item Monday when hauling a friends new chassis. That thing took a hit! I put one of these under my '32 after seeing yours.

SPark

 

Cool. That's why they wanted it back so bad. To use as a testimonial. Pete and jakes are good people.

 

Way above my head...but it really highlights to me that things are truly at the Rocket and Science stage of the evolution...the probes reach through every crevice of fuel delivery and exit to offer settings for efficiency for you to adjust to but catch 22 is you have to know what your reading. Being competitive today is really an incredible challenge as your competition operates from similar sciences of operations. This is not only about the racers edge it is no doubt wrapped up in safety in operation as a perfect tune is a safer tune...pretty wild stuff...and the Hotrod of yours is literally a 4 wheeled Rocketship. Thank You & always look forward to your continued Race for successes...@racer-x

 

I should have explained the fuel and timing tables better. the scale on the bottom is rpm. the scale on the left is manifold pressure. a separate table is used for the throttle position sensor. that's part of the way the computer can tell whats going on. its all about managing the air; fuel and spark. as sophisticated as these computers are the seat of the pants gauge over rides everything. in the medical world I work in we have a saying. we treat the patient not the monitor. some times a abnormal condition might be the patients normal condition with no intervention needed. just like patients every engine is a little different. being able to make the right call on the tune up based on the data is what makes a great tuner.

 

steve and tony I saved the tune for the 392 in the ecu. when you get to the point of needing it I can send you the file. some minor tuning might be required for your particular combination but you should be very close. it will save you a lot of time and money.

 

Your at the top of your game and you definitely have earned and worked hard for it and no doubt the competition is right there with you. But its any mans game...its a winnable sport And you can challenge the readings and come out on top.

 

This you in the old car? Ready for a rosin burnout.

 

yes it is. shot at George rays hot rod wildcat dragstrip in Paragould Arkansas. the log is part of the guard rail. it also doubles as the best seat in the house to watch the action. once I started the car and did the first of several burnouts the crowd was no longer on the fence. I have a pic of them running for their lives in a cloud of gold dust and nitro fumes. this track is my favorite of all time. Take a look at the christmas tree attached to the bottom of a bar stool. The time slips are all hand written. The cars crew bring their own water for a burn out. You just need to see the place in person. we want to take the coupe there for a sunday afternoon of fun. its on the short list of things I want to do.

 

That is sooooo coooooll

 

im surprised no one has tried to hold a nostalgia event at George rays. the setting would be perfect. the sterile conditions of todays tracks ruin the nostalgia feel. the close confines on the starting line along with the general lack of amenities really bring back the good old days in all of their dangerous glory. this track should be on every ones must attend list. its a place you have to see in person. just the idea of a place like this still in existence located in georges back yard is hard to imagine. its a place time has forgotten.

 

Being from Southeast Mo. I've been to GeorgeRay's, like you said it's an experience everyone should experience at least once.
Lucky's in Erie, Pennsylvania is a close second, they used to drop your time slips from the tower down a gutter to ya. Not much tech there either, run watcha brung style, track prep is jokingly referred to as spraying roundup on the weeds growing out of the track.
http://www.luckydragcity.com/

 

Maybe next year we can get a group to head down there. The place would go crazy with a bunch of nostalgia cars tearing up the track. Who knows it could become the next big thing for nostalgia racers.