Projects rebuilding after the crash

Agree with Mike... There's no good reason that didn't blow the back of the motor off... other than sheer luck!!!

 

this is the scary part....

 

there's only ONE?

 

Glad you caught it Brian.

 

Time to buy a lottery ticket Brian!

 

Does the torque converter show signs of fatigue , also?

 

Count all ten toes and be happy !

 

Hey Brian ,
Did you say you went 85% recently,,,or was that just for an exhibition ?
I remember you recently went through the converter,,,,,,and I’m certain you examined the flywheel while you had it out .
That means it happened quickly or was hidden from site at the time .
Could the new converter contribute to this ?

Man,,,you got lucky with this find,,,,,,,and yes,,,,,that’s a very expensive part to replace !

Tommy

 

That part is a lot cheaper than it could have been, being so diligent is a blessing.

 

What is the material, ie, 6061, 7075, etc?

 

That's why I check things carefully. I changed the stator again in the converter. I saw the damage as I was wiping off the flywheel prior to putting it all back together. Over the off season last year I upgraded to a Browel 360 degree bellhousing. It will contain a explosion but I don't care to test it. The other big issues would be at speed and the fluid comes out of the converter. It's a huge fire risk hitting the red hot headers. The other big issue is fluid getting under the tires.
The converter looks fine. I don't think the extra nitro is the cause. My thought are the heat treat. It will go back to Boehr Racing to be examined. A few teeth were also missing from the starter ring. Like they just snapped off. im just glad I caught it in time. My regular servicing regiment will now include a careful inspection of the flywheel going forward. I will be on the phone first thing tomorrow

 

I forgot the material it's made out of. I know it's special. I will find out.
When I take out the converter I leave the flywheel on the crank.
Increasing the nitro percentage makes for a slower burn. This reduces the chance of harmful detonation. I don't think the nitro was the cause.
The clearance from the converter to flywheel is set at a minimum of .150
The converter under load balloons that much according to Coan. I will be calling them also. Maybe there is pressure pushing against the flywheel. After all it's a flex plate. It might be flexing too much.

 

So glad to see you found that before disaster struck. You have chosen sport/hobby that can be very dangerous. After watching your thread for the last couple of years I can see that your attention to detail and caution are keeping you as safe as you can be. I am happy you caught it . Thanks for sharing.

 

Updates. The material is 4140. It's cut into discs to get the heat treat all the way to the center. Some companies don't do this and have a soft center. They are gas nitrided. They are heat treated to 28hrc. They told me the treating process is no longer used in their products. They are now black oxided. They have also changed the shape of the windows along with some other details. I was told they see these surface crack. Most times the crack doesn't go all the way through. Just like high dollar cranks. I think some of my cracks go all the way through.
The good news is they have the latest design on the shelf. It will be red labeled today. They will cover shipping and gave me a screaming deal on the replacement. That's great customer service. They wanted my pics to look at. It helps them improve their product. It's refreshing to have a company not hide issues or deny they have ever seen a problem. Honest answers is all I'm looking for and I found them. It will go back together after work Friday.

 

Good to hear they are interested in learning and improving their product.

 

They make serious race car parts. They are part of Bonnafontti racing. Good companies do that. Replacing a part intended for nitro racing and covering red label shipping is unheard of.

 

Gotta wonder how many cars did actually experience something worse than a "close call" before they re-engineered their flywheel.

 

Reading between the lines, I wonder if the treatment process they were using was hardening the material too much and making it somewhat brittle, hence not allowing it to flex enough? Way above my pay grade, just thinking out loud.

 

That is very good news Brian. A upgraded part.

 

Yeah,,,,,4140 sounds right .
I knew it wasn’t any aluminum,,,,,especially with the starter gear teeth made on it .
Sounds like they already knew they needed an engineering change .

But,,,,,racing is what helps make the everyday components we enjoy today.
Make it ,,,and break it,,,,,,,find the point of failure .

Great job Brian,,,,,,this thread ,,,and hot rodding in general,,, is why we enjoy so many vehicles that last many thousands of miles .

Tommy

 

After cringing at the pictures of that flex plate last night I went to the website and the first thing noticed was the change in the window shape and how they added considerable material to the failed area. You have to wonder how many earlier designs failed. It's a serious eye brow raiser thinking about the converter ballooning .150" and wonder how long before converter fatigue sets in.

 

I know several racers that use the earlier design without failure. I was told there were some inconsistencies with the heat treat process.
All converters balloon some. To combat that race converters have anti ballon plates on one or both sides of the converter. This is nothing new. Setting up the clearance so as the converter balloons it's not bottoming out against the pump.
The new flex plate is showing up Friday. I will put them side by side to see the upgrades. The pics will be posted.

 

There’s always room to improve things, shows they are passionate about their products. As they should be.

 

Yea, nothing new there. Nice to see a company offering that level of customer service as well as component upgrades. That is one high maintenance street/strip machine!

 

What about a pedal clutch system. Lippy

 

A clutch would be the answer on a strip only car. It just won't work on the street.

 

Could you elaborate a little? Lippy

 

A clutch needs constant adjustment. As the clutch wears it allows more rpm at the hit. Clutches are adjusted after each pass or two. Now put hundreds of miles per day on a clutch. The converter is the same all the time. Every time I want to go get a ice cream or drive to work I don't want to pull the floor and reset the clutch. It's labor intensive and time consuming.

 

WOWWW

 

Hemi Joel would you like to share your experiences with a clutch on drag week?