Projects rebuilding after the crash

Oh, I didn't know you had two lines going each direction. That should help a lot.

 

A perfect 4th of july car show. Looks like 500 plus cars.

 

its all set for Gusses drive in this saturday. its in East Troy wi. i spoke to the owner yesterday he will be reserving a spot for us. show time looks like 530. we will be pulling in on 85 percent nitro. video to follow. this should be fun.

 

Can't wait to see that!

 

The car was converted to a race car this morning. All it needs is a little cleaning. I have four guys that are going to video it.

 

I had to get after the tune up. I dropped the compression over the winter from 7.5-6.5. This took alot of heat out of the cylinders. It also makes it rich. So the car was fired up in the shop and a temp gun was used to get pipe readings. Number 2 was 150 degrees hotter than the rest. As we figured 5 and seven were cold. A few nozzle changes and it was fired again. This happened several times. We were not seeing the results we wanted on 5 and 7. We did a plug and wire change along with a leak down to verify it was mechanically sound. After two more fire ups all the cylinders are within 20 degrees. It took almost 20 gallons of well spent nitro to get it right. I fire the car on the car lift for safety. When the throttle was hit it sounded like a bomb going off. It almost jumped off the lift. Now that its on all eight at the correct temperature is sounds like never before. This will do wonders for the 60 foot times.

 

Theres nothing like rolling into the cruise in on a big load of nitro. The car can be a little un nerving for those that haven't been around a nitro car. The sights; sounds; smell; vibrations etc become sensory over load. We fired it up later in the evening for everyone. It was a perfect summer night with thick nitro fumes in the air.
There were alot of cool cars there. Even a street driven wheelstander.

 

The tune up works. A bunch of new power is on hand. Up up and away. I see a four bar adjustment in my future.

 

View attachment 5465203 View attachment 5465204 View attachment 5465205 View attachment 5465206 View attachment 5465207 A few more pics from the weekend. View attachment 5465203 View attachment 5465204 View attachment 5465205 View attachment 5465206 View attachment 5465207

 

Did the 60 foot improve?
Another question, with the front end in the air and coming back down, what’s the effect on your ET?
Third- looks awesome!

 

Anything other than a inch wheelie is wasted power. All you need is a inch to get 100 percent weight tranfer. I tripped the 60 foot clocks with the rear tires 1.30 so its hard to tell et wise if it improved. Sure felt good.

 

All I can say is WOW you are getting great power!

 

There ya go! Hell yeah

 

So, what were your times? It sure looks like it was fast in those photos!

 

Not good times at all. I had to back out because it was still going up higher. A 4 bar adjustment needs to be done now that there is more power at the hit. 1.30 with the rear tires.

 

Brian ,
That right rear,,,in the first pic,,, was barely touching the track looks like .
Man alive,,,,,what wonderful sound it was I’ll bet,,,,,the Mighty Hemi speaks !

Tommy

 

OK, looking forward to you getting it adjusted and getting in a good run!

 

a lot of work is going into this car to get it ready for the Fuel Altered Nationals in Eddyville Ia. the race is the third weekend in august.

 

Sunday sunday sunday nitro dragsters; nitro funny cars nitro fuel coupes will be firing up at the show in Lannon Wi. Two sessions will be done. This show has over 750 cars in attendance. Stop out for some great fun and smell some nitro.

 

Back a few weeks ago at the show you were at, I just noticed the little guy behind the wheel. I bet he’s still talking about it!

 

For a local show it was outstanding. Three nitro cars. Pete Farnsworths original rocket car a blown alcohol street 34 coupe. Several ex nitro racers Al mcfadded; Bernie Adams; Doc Holiday; Howard Kaye to name a few. Over 1000 cars. Of course nitro fire ups were part of the show.

 

the last pick shows Pete Farnsworth builder of the Blue Flame and Bernie Adams early ss/fx/fc builder and driver. some cool stories were told. such history there.

 

Can u set up the suspension so it launches how you would like and also be able to do some rolling nitro style burnouts with this car? Like u used to do in the 65?

 

its already done. new front shocks from qa-1 were ordered. this will help me tune the front end. the rear shocks on the compression side got two clicks firmer. i can do a burnout as long as i want just like the 65. with tires and nitro very hard to get i have to be very conservative.

 

It may have been asked before and I missed it, but what’s the shelf life you use on Nitro? I/e does it lose it’s “poop” or evaporate, etc? I know you buy by the drum, but I was just wondering.

 

sitting in the dragster during the fire ups is none other than Al Mcfadden. Al drove fuel altereds; nitro funny cars; nitro dragsters and jets. he is the last guy to qualify a non hemi in NHRA top fuel. he did it with a ford shot gun engine in the mid 80s. he sat in my car during its fire up. with all of the spectators if something should go wrong someone needs to be in the car and be able to shut it off. jerry newman has been tuning nitro cars for 50 plus years he is the guy in the grey cowboy hat another nitro legend. spending the day with these guys is always a treat and i always learn something.

 

How are you going to combat your new found "air-time" off the line at launch now ?

 

As long as nitro and alchohol are stored in sealed containers they can last a very long time. Moisture is the enemy. The specific gravity can be measured to see if the fuels absorbed any water.
To control the launch the pictures and videos are studied. Run at slow speeds it was shown that the rear was moving down two inches at the hit. It should be a half inch. This cant be seen at regular speed. The shocks on the compression side received a three clicks tighter setting.
The front shock were single adjustment. A call to my friends at QA-1 sent me a set of mod shocks. Look these bad boys up. I have a matching pair on the rear. The old qa shocks couldnt control the front of the car. Tightening the front shocks will reduce the rate of travel. These changes will help alot. If the car coninues to dead hook the rear tires will receive 1/4 pound of air until it spins one revolution at the hit. Thats how its done on fast cars.

 

Now yhat im at home installing the new shocks i thought i would share some of the instruction manual with you. These are unlike any shock you have ever seen. When a race shock is out of adjustability it needs to be sent back to be revalved. These QA-1 mod shocks have removable valve pods. There is a light; medium; firm pods. Each has 25 settings for both extension and bump. I also added the valve chart. Its more than turning knobs. You can see exactly how many pounds of resistance you put in. These bad boys are no joke. View attachment 5473629 View attachment 5473638