Projects Southeast Gassers 65 Comet Super Stock Wagon

Good Luck, Mike!

 

No it still has the 6.00 gear for now. Yes it has slapper bars. More timing .
Good air, so no reason it won't make good power. If it doesn't the motor is coming out on Monday.

 

Let 'er eat Mike ... SEGA S/S is a very tough class, have a great time testing.

 

Well we went to test yesterday and the weather was great. We found a few things and picked up 6 tenths. Not nearly enough ,but a step in the right direction.
Going to consult with Jimmy Huff and see what changes need to be made.
I think a gear change is needed to really make the motor work with the cam. I still am in 3 rd gear way too long.

 

Are you hitting your red line by the finish line? I asked this because I always set my gearing up so that I would red line just past the finish line. Seemed to work good for me. However I was also bracket racing so I was mainly being repetitive and consistent.

 

No I am staying in 3 rd too long and just getting into 4 th at about 550 feet I am no where near the red line or on the chip which is 8 thousand.
I may need to advance the cam. It is a 108 C/L installed straight up I may need to go to 102 to make it work.
I need to replace a seeping rear main seal anyway so once the pan is off the front cover isn't far behind.

 

Well the cam advance should move the rpm range DOWN soooo more low end torque and a little less top end. Motor should be done around 5500 RPM or so.
Better keep your eyes glued to the tach because "stuff" is gonna be happen'in quick-er!! Insure your head rest is properly adjusted to prevent whip lash from 1-2-3-4 gear change. Might need to get some softer material for the head rest so the torque increase will be absorbed in the material and NOT flatten your eyeballs!!
I gotta feel'in your gonna need to RE-adjust that suspension to work with the increased torque.
6sally6

 

Progress- didn’t say anything broke or didn’t work, that’s good, went faster, that’s good. Now the hunt for ET begins.

 

We didn't break anything. The biggest improvement in off the line was removing the pinion snubber rubber so the slapper bars could hit the spring eyes before the pinion snubber hit the stop.
Found out we were not getting complete opening off the throttle plate. So adjustment of the linkage helped, but will needing to do more than I could do at the track.
Will be using my buddy's leakdown tester today to see if there is an internal problem. Also contacted Howard's cams about their thoughts about advancing the cam or whether another cam is in the future.
Also contacted two other cam companies for a recommendation to compare it what I have in the motor.
I want to get it torn down to fix the rear main seal and check the clutch for wear . Plus the cam issue before I take it to Llyod's shop for paint. I want to winterize the car before that. Unless he wants the car with no motor or trans in the car. Then I would have to be putting it back while being careful to not scratch fresh paint.

 

"Can't BELIEVE you didn't verify full throttle opening on that hot rod"!!!
(Coming from a guy that drove HIS hot rod for over two years before I realized my secondaries were just barely opening!!! grrrrr!)
Just look at it as ........instant power increase!!
Glad nothing tore-up!
6sally6

 

Well Mike, you can always look at it as a "Modified Production" car and gear it like one.

7.00 Ratio Performance Differential Ring and Pinion for 9 (Inch) (Dropout)
7.16 Ratio Performance Differential Ring and Pinion for 9 (Inch) (Dropout)
7.33 Ratio Performance Differential Ring and Pinion for 9 (Inch) (Dropout)

 

Which ever is easier for you Mike! I can deal with just about anything

 

Curious how much difference between the cam manufactures on recommendation.

 

Me too ! I am still waiting for anyone of the cam companies to answer my cam request form that they put on their website to fill out.
Some ask for a lot more information than others. Some ask in different ways. Only one I contacted actually asked for the head flow numbers at the different lifts .
As far as the throttle linkage goes I did check it when I put it together. However the locknuts on the rod loosened up and it allowed the adjustment rod to turn . Vibration I guess was the problem. It got pretty bad with that bent driveshaft.
I am a one man show and I would like to have a few helpers to help me check things between races, but lately it has been go to the track break the car. Fix what's broke and go again. Last weekend was the first time that was just a test session and not a race.
Now I have some time to actually just take stuff apart to check things. Like pull the oil pan and check the bearings and replace the rear main seal. Do a leak check to make sure the rings have seated correctly. Install a vacuum hose from the valve covers to the headers.
Take the car to an alignment shop and see how much time I can gain with an alignment.
The nearest track to go test all of these changes will be south of Atlanta. So there is at least a 3 hour tow just to check my work.
I may just bite the bullet and go put it on a dyno and see what I have and see where I need to go.

 

A good Dyno operator can shoe you where the weak areas are, Cam, header size, carburetor size. Could save some time,

 

I would at least get a wideband sensor kit and test on backroads.

 

We did some dyno tuning with our car. Was a sweet set up. We made the pulls. The dyno guy reads the graph as says do this. We made the changes and ran it again. Saved us some cash with us doing the work. By the time ya add fuel for the tow and the car. Plus track entry. And waiting for TNT. It was more cost effective to dyno. To each their own.


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

 

After a long conversation with Eric from Howards cams and him walking me through the math of figuring spring pressures and stack height. Then calling Jimmy Huff noted Ford guru and talking with him for a long time. Then calling Pro Maxx and talking to Jason I think we all have come to an agreement that there was never a strong enough valve spring in the motor from the start.
Yes, Promaxx uses Pac springs in their heads and yes, they are capable of .700 lift with their Shocker series sbf heads. However as Jason put it most of the people that buy this head rarely see 7,000 rpm's much less 8,000. I need around 265-270 lbs. of seat pressure and 750 lbs of pressure at .700 lift. I presently have 235 lbs of seat pressure and 600 lbs at .700 lift. which will not let the motor recover after the gear change which is why I am spending so much time in 3 rd gear trying to get back to the rpm's needed to get the most out of my combo.
He has agreed to help me out with my springs and install titanium retainers at the same time. Since Pro Maxx headquarters is only about 2 1/2 hours from our house we can take the heads off and drive over to Gadsen , Al. and they are going to swap out my springs and steel retainers for some new Pac 1225 springs and titanium retainers while we wait so we can bring the heads back home with us.
They are discounting the parts and charging me a little bit for labor. You can't ask for better customer service than that. I will be recommending Pro Maxx heads to anybody who asks what head should they buy.

 

Gimme a little info on Pro Maxx heads for SBF's.
Are they China castings and "corrected" there in 'Aler-bammer'?
You find them on line and made your order or..... called/contacted the shop in Gadsden?
All of the heads 'full race' set-ups or do they do street heads too?
Are they cheaper than AFR or......?
FWIW dyno time sounds like the best bang-fer-the-buck.....prolly not as much fun though
Go-git-'em Mike!
6sally6

 

I did bout 2 weeks worth of research on my own before calling them to talk to them about ordering my heads. At that time a lot of the vendors that carry them now did not carry them.
So I ordered directly from them. Got a good price and when they arrived I unboxed them and checked them out they checked perfect.
Yes they are an off shore casting that Pro Maxx has cast. They have their own castings poured and not shared with anybody else. Nothing to do with Pro Comp.
They are shipped to Alabama and then they are inspected and machined in Alabama and assembled with American made parts.
Yes they do street rod stuff. In fact my step son is building a 393 Ford Windsor for his 66 F100 restomod p.u. and will be using a set on that build.
I know of at least one more SEGA member that is building a new motor and using their heads .
They are cheaper than AFR and if you read the head to head dyno comparisons against the top brands they are very competitive at a lot less money. The customer service is really good because when I called I talked directly to the owner who has many years of experience in racing all types of drag cars.
By the time I get everything back together and get the car back from Lloyd some of the middle Ga tracks will be open so I can just go there.

 

Sounds like GOOD news, that should make your Christmas this year. Keep us posted.

 

Got better news today from the shoulder doctor. They told me of I was not on too much pain or discomfort I can put off surgery until next off season. I can just get an injection every 3 months until then. Not going to do anymore damage than I already have.
Gives me a chance to run for a points championship one more time before I hang my driving career up.
Hard to imagine, but have been racing some sort of vehicle whether it be car, truck or motorcycle since 1965.

 

I have a bum shoulder also, at 71 I’m just going to live Live with it. No cutting. Have a good Christmas and Racing New Year. Keep us posted!!

 

Going to get started on pulling the motor out as soon as I do my leak down check tomorrow morning.
That will tell me whether I need to look further than the valve springs or plan on re ringing the motor while it is out. I am going to check the bearings and replace the rear main seal.
I am also going to re degree the cam to make sure I didn't make a mistake the last time I did it.

 

Lemme know if you make it down to Silver Dollar in Reynolds. I'd like to see you run.

I saw you in the pits at Carolina Dragway but I didn't make it over to speak.

 

Here is a video you might like on valve springs at RPM's

 

Very interesting when you get above 8,500. I have an 8 grand chip in my MSD box.
With my new valve springs I should be tickling the chip in the first 3 gears.
Starting on pulling the motor and trans tomorrow morning. Any volunteers want to come to Athens and give me a hand ? I should have it in the air by tomorrow afternoon unless something comes up.

 

Little to far for me

 

Well, the weather delayed me some today, but the motor just needs to be lifted out and put on the engine stand so I can check it over and take the heads to Pro Maxx.

 

Happy to see your reply about the Pro Maxx heads. I spotted these a while ago but there didn't seem to be many in use yet and what comments I could find seemed to be 'they're too cheap to be good' which I have found over the years to not always be true, as well as some confusion with the Pro Comps which don't have a good rep. I'll check back later after you get some runs in...