Technical So school me on Nitromethane

Does any one know who ""Nitro Kitty"" is with out looking her up??
She was on cover of "I believe HRM " in late 80's early 90's with street Legal Quick Rod
Red Pro T NHRA race car

 

if anyone wants to learn more about nitro and follow the action nitro madness magazine is the way to go. best of all its free. go to nitro madness and register on their site. it only takes a minute. the magazine comes out two times per year. they have great tech articles and stories on new and historic cars. log in now and sign up. it beats watching lady gaga perform at half time.

 

Great Mag ,!!! I have been receiving for about 10 yrs
Not to many Nitro Races on east , seems all Ohio & west,

 

Mendy Fry, she started driving her dad's BBC powered roadster and progressed to fuel cars. Both Nostalgia T/F and FC.
When I crewed on a AA/FA she was driving Rootbeer Frank Hedge's dragster at Union Grove. Kinda short shutdown but Mendy was fearless.

 

If I recall correctly,The cover was Her driving the Roadster down Hyw

 

I think it was Rod Action, maybe mid-80's.

 

Falcon, yes, you need to load it, keep it loaded, and hope you don't run out of HP before the 5 mile marker. Drag racers will never get this thrill....ever. My son ran our roadster pushing a 32 grill shell 202+ in 2002 using just 3 miles and loosing oil pressure because of an oil pan design. He had 75% in the tank, 2.56 gear, using 4 gears, and a 30" tire.
The following year I averaged 210+ with a return run of 215+ with 78% in the tank, 2.56 gear, a redesiged oil pan, a 32" tire, using high gear only. Yes, a push off, leaving the truck at about 40 mph and only having high gear because of a busted cluster that we took out. I ran out of pull between the 4 and 5 mile markers and the 32 grill pushed me all over that last 1/2 mile. Like I said I needed more gear. That engine never had the power at low rpm to break loose the tire and when started to really pull it set you right into the seat and damn hard. Best ride I ever had, better than no parachute at El Mirage. Oh yeah, this was a 1952 321" GMC 6 with a Skinner 12 port cylinder head and 4 mains. Nitro...I love it and there's nothing better than being at the 5 mile and hearing it coming to you.

 

1987 , title. "" Beauty & the Beast"

Notice 1987 8 second Street driven with Mechanical fuel injection
Seening Mendy in Mag & the car is when I whent to work learing MFI to run on street

 

I had/have nitro cars and I don't miss keeping them tuned up and running. That's pretty cool that electric is preferred. I know 10 years ago I wouldn't touch an electric (battery powered) tool even to throw it... now, I love my electric tools.


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More recently she had been driving Aleman's Dark Side Arias powered NF/C but it was recently announced that she will be wheeling the High Speed Motorsports nostalgia T/F this year.

Roo

 

Forget all the bullshit stories about nitro being dangerous (unless it is being squeezed in the combustion chamber).

Nitro is actually one of the most benign fuels around until you compress it. We ran it in an injected big block Chevy altered in the early 70's and people would worry about us shaking the jugs to mix it. (Thinking nitro glycerine maybe?).
At one race we poured some of into a shallow bowl and took turns at throwing lighted matches into the bowl---nothing happened, apart from the match getting extinguished. It is an oxygen bearing fuel (look at the chemical formula---https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nitromethane) but until you squeeze it it is very benign. In the first quote above, the briquets are what provided the heat to get the nitro burning and I am not sure how wet grass had an effect in the second.

Roo

 

According to http://www.hotrod.com/articles/hrdp-1304-what-is-nitromethane-anyway/ “Gas is for washin’ parts. Alcohol is for drinkin'. Nitro is for racin’!”

Jack E/NJ

 

Hey Roo, remember that video with the guys farting around in the shop with the coke cup full of nitro and the butane torch? Lippy

 

I think maybe it comes from the stories around hydrazine.

 

That was an outstanding read. Thanks for posting that.


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I used to lust over that article. Wow, a hot rod girl........swhing!

 

Rooman you are right about nitro being one of the safer fuels to handle. However if it is mixed with any caustic or basic substance that ends suddenly.There was a govt booklet years ago concerning the use of sensitized nitromethane as an explosive and it was pretty impressive.I think I may still have my copy somewhere.In the early 50s before a lot was known about its use as a fuel "california" bill Fisher tried mixing a small percentage of nitro with aniline!!! He wrote that it caused detonation problems-I reckon that was something of an understatement!

 

That looks more like a tuners/engine builders problem than a block manufactures problem. Just saying....

 

Any ride you get in an altered is an experience to be cherished. Many years ago this knotheaded kid that didn't know any better got thrown into a homemade thing that the AHRA said was a altered cinched down with a USAF surplus safety belt tied under a helment and was told when the starter flips up that green flag be gone. Didn't win that run or many more after that death wobble from hell gears that wouldn't shift you name it but with that first run I was an addict it's been over a half a century went from a buncha carbs to blown to blown and injected to adding the nitro then I found a real thrill when that monster with 92 inch wheelbase launched, any which way but straight some times all 4 in the air nose looking at guard rail then at other lane sawing the wheel and trying to hang on. whoever said nitro is dangerous was right it is very very addictive there in nothing in the world like a throttle to the firewall pass 80% in the can 60 on the mag 20% od on the 871 and the monster screaming on the hair edge of destruction for those few seconds nothing in the world is in your mind but the run all the bs was gone for the time and that made it all worth it. I have had the hell scared out of me but that was after the pass. Nitro makes ginormous horsepower right now no hesitating. I am to dumb to know how to mix it build or tune for it, but being a little dumb helped when I drove it

 

Yes nitromethane (along with other components that I won't name) has been used as an explosive. It was used by Timothy McVeigh to destroy the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma in 1995.

 

She is still SWHING

 

Use only as directed, does that mean only under adult supervision?

 

These shots are getting a little old now (but she does not appear to be) but here are a couple of Mendy from the 09 March Meet. And sorry guys, but last year she and my mate Cole Coonce got married.

Roo

 

Read the Nitro Notes page on Spud Millers website at Fuelinjectionenterprises.com
best basic info on the web

 

A fellow HAMBer. looking like a mad scientist ....

 

We messed with it for a short time, you need LOTS of spare parts.

 

I think there is an old saying (maybe not as true today with inflation and all.....)

"You can't play with nitro until you can burn $100 bills with out flinching"

 

What Bobby said, mostly...don't even think about running nitro without talking to someone who has run it, and who understands how it burns, how to set up an engine for it, etc....in the old days we had experienced racers who could teach us, but sometimes they also spilled bullshit....it is complicated...even after learning from experience, I blew up eight Desoto engines in 6 months.....but ran almost 100% in my Ardun without breaking it..

 

OK
Maybe I will blow up everything I have but let me tell you what we have seen
Last race of year for us at Gassers Finals Greer so guy next to me is experienced with the stuff and has a tough built SBC--he usually runs between 5.60 straight up and when he needs a little to beat me or anyone else he can pull a 5.20 out easy with who knows how much--last run he dosed it up and went a crazy 4.90 in the 1/8th! He was crazy happy with it so I am guessing he just went for it and all turned out well--
OK my pal said I have to try that--he put in what was later measured to be about 8% He went from 5.60 to 5.31
I was chicken so we went from straight alky to M5 alky which is said to be about a 5% equal--maybe it is maybe it ain't but...
I went from steady 5.60 to a 5.45 just changing
we all run alky and have too much compression to run much but have figured we can maybe do up to 20%

I might ruin some good iron but I can promise you next pass I make will have a 10% load!!!
Picking up a tenth and half in the 1/8th from just swapping fuel was FUN!!
While making a study of this deal we have learned that Spud Miller at Fuel Injection Enterprises is da man and professor when it comes to using nitro--his site has the BEST info on the web to get you started

Dang near two tenths you can really FEEL--It was awesome from just fuel swap! Engine sounded different in the water ---what it all told me was that I am fat on tune up--sticky inside the pipes still so......
My plugs never look run but after that pass they sure did!

Doing same old thing is boring--so here we go 2017 and Nitro!!!! ( little bit of Nitro)
Wish me luck!!!!!!

 

Does this look like a group of "responsible adults" to you??