Hot Rods Dare to be different - 63 Scout

I can't tell you how much this disappoints me. I've been looking forward to match racing you and your bad Stude again for a year. I've said it a bunch, the photos of our passes are some of the best of the event. I trust the reasons you are not attending can be resolved and are not life threatening (or of a similar seriousness). I guess I'll just have to have a beer for you.

Cheers to ya Tom... you will be missed at the event

 

Yes...still a T-400.
I don't feel it fall off, more like after it launches hard, it never really gets marching. I know by 400 ft that it's not on the number. I expect it to pull harder and it's no different than the previous combination. The fact that between the 2 engine combinations the 1/8th and 1/4 mile number are virtually identical tells me it's a common denominator which would be the trans and converter. Even after a rear gear change the numbers don't change much.

No video. This all just adds to the frustration
The first day of racing, my niece was to get vid but she preferred to text and hang with the boyfriend than shoot video... the second day my buddy gave me a lot of shaky video of ground/sky/ground/ shoes... let's run... ooohh chick with big boobs... then any of the actual runs

The last guy can't upload the video to his computer. He's coming over Tuesday to load it on mine.

Normally I love the chase and I have a ton of patience to systematically figure out the problems... but I REALLY wanted to be at Meltdown with a good running low 10 second race truck and it appears I've simply run out of time to have that.

 

Found a video... jump to the 41 second mark

 

Do you think it could be something like the front brakes dragging? (strong 60' with the front in the air then slower the rest of the run?) I have a buddy of mine that fixed a similar issue with a master cylinder. Honestly, from the video it does not seem like the converter is that far off. You said your self that there has to be a common denominator and maybe it is something other than the converter. Dragging brakes can kill a lot of ET and MPH.

I am bringing a GoPro camera to the Meltdown. We can maybe learn more with that if you want. It is always steady and ignores the boobies...

 

Agreed, doesn't sound bad but 22% slippage is definitely not good.

 

So, im reading your thread and actually i had a simular problem,,,,kind of. We are making passes and things look pretty good, running high 10.20 to low 10.30s seems to be making good power my 60' times are great for a heavy car and a crap 10" 3500 stall converter 1.39 to 1.41. The only thing that seems off with mine is my rpm through the traps. im spinning about 7000 with a 4.10 gear and 29.5 tire. The guy who helps me with the car is convinced i have a 4.56 gear in it. Well im at home thinking about all this, and then it hits me converter slippage. so i put mine in the calculator and i have 16% which explains my rpms. If you really do have 22% , that isnt bad, thats horrible. (from what i am learning , i am no expert) An old racer buddy used to say that 8% is about where you will be with a good converter. Needless to say i have a new converter coming and it should be here in time to install for the meltdown. I look forward to meeting you at the meltdown, and cant wait to see this Scout!!!

 

Thanks all for the advice and analysis. Always appreciated.

I fully agree that the math is telling me my converter slippage is horrible. I'll be looking into a new converter AFTER Meltdown. I have a friends TCS 4400 stall blower converter that he was running in his blown dragster but to be honest using it would just be throwing darts... again. No need to kill myself trying to swap it in before we leave and absolutely no need to risk screwing it up and not having a running vehicle for the event. It's coming down as-is...

Once the event is done I'll have a long talk with TCS and order what I need... if I need it. There's a 9 second pass in this thing...somewhere.

I swapped in a new digital 6AL2 and a hotter coil today. Throwing darts ???... maybe, but it sure couldn't hurt. It also eliminates the 2 step box and the need for RPM chips all of which have history of failures.

I'll be fixing the wheelie bar mounts tomorrow and mounting the bars. After that... its just maintenance on the trailer and tow vehicle, throw in the bags, buy the beer, 2 pound box of Costco Twizzlers, a couple dozen 5 hour energy and we're ready to go...

There will be 4 of us are coming down this year. The plan is to pull into Rockford late Thursday, check in and get a decent nights sleep. I want to be in line for the Noon opening on Friday

 

saxxon, I just read through the last few pages about the trans and converter. I have (unknowingly) been fighting a similar problem one of my other cars for the last 2 seasons on the track.<O I had made several changes ( more H.P. ) and car kept slowing down 2 different converters, car ran same. But it just didn’t pull as hard as it used to.<O Then I started to notice it was running a little warmer all the time. got to the point I just couldn't cool it down.<O Then the T400 trans started to slip badly. Changed it out, used same converter. It cooled down and the E.T. went down M.P.H came back up.<O But I couldn’t ever really feel it slipping.<OHave you noticed any engine temps. change ?<O

See ya at the Melt Down.<O

 

Just was looking through Bangshift and they have a bunch of photos of the Scout at The meltdown drags.

http://bangshift.com/gallery/meltdown-drags-at-byron-gallery-2-racing.html?pid=154643

 

Well... unless you're new to the HAMB or you've been under a rock for the last few weeks, you will know that the 2013 Meltdown Drags have come and gone. Once again I was part of it and the Scout, even though it was not running well, was (again) a hit.

The trip down with 4 sweaty guys in a crew cab was uneventful with the exception of an altercation with a tractor trailer who thought a merge onto an Interstate gave him right of way. After a few white knuckle moments and putting the 2 cars beside me in the ditch the end result was a the tractor trailer putting his front tire/hubcap into our trailer wheels. It tore a section of the fender flare off but otherwise we got away lucky.

The event itself was awesome. 400+ race cars and dozens more in the car show. The heat was oppressive and caused more than a few delays as the ambulance attended the faint and overwhelmed. There was also a crash on Saturday and I'm glad to report the driver was ok. And, unlike last year we had a more than a few delays due to breakage but the Byron crew were quick and efficient with the clean up effort.

As expected the Scout did not perform well as the suspected converter issues kept the times in the high 10's. We also couldn't get it to hook consistently and the result were a number of lower wheel stands but not the bumper scrapers folks are now expecting. We also had overheating problems which forced us to find tow vehicles to get to the line and picked up at the end of the run. Big thanks to the MDA crew for lending us the carts and a big thanks to Paul Z for lending us his Model A truck for our final run. That was very cool.

We did manage to cruise the Scout to Sam's. That was an awesome evening, especially when Mike Belina, Quain and Donovan Stott and the Rotten Orange rolled in with the race cars. By 9pm the lot was full of every cool car imaginable. I am so glad I completed that little trek.

Saturday evening I was approached by a freelance photo guy representing Canadian Hot Rod Magazine for a professional shoot. We spent well over an hour on the starting line and at the shut down getting the shots. With some luck the magazine will accept the shoot.

Saturday was also highlighted by spending the evening in the Belina camp where for the paltry cost of 15 cans of Canadian beer we got fed Tacos and the best home made Guacamole and Salsa Sauce. More than a few stories were swapped and good time was had by all.

After 2 runs on Sunday we loaded up and headed home. And to quote Eric Koopmiener... "Prep for next year, starts (started) Monday".

I have a ton of pictures of the Scout gleaned from the net and since this thread is about the Scout, I'm going to post a bunch of them here.

View attachment 1988122 View attachment 1988122

 

The Scout at Sam's
Definitely a check mark on my automotive bucket list...

 

The Scout is a Class Act........Great looking and Great Runner SBC. Well done ...

 

Here are the "Teaser" pics Chadly (the photog) sent me from the photo shoot:

 

That's being very generous considering I was hoping for low 10's. But very much appreciated. Especially coming from a guy who has to be a registered gymnast to drive his race...err... street car.

Love the Thames Doug !!
See you next year

 

Thanks for the heads up... Chad Reynolds (Bangshift) sent me a message as well. They posted a bunch of pics of the Scout for the Meltdown coverage including a cover shot.

Now I REALLY wish I could have scraped the bumper this year... even if it was just once...

 

I enjoyed our brief visit in the pits. Your Scout was looking good, even if it was giving you trouble! Glad you were there.

 

Glad to meet you as well. Love the car. You made the first 9 second pass on Saturday and ran hard all weekend. Loved it.

 

Vid from Saturday.

Spun on the launch and got really squirrely at the top end. I was out of it just past the 1000 ft mark

 

It was really great meeting you, look forward to next year! Maybe we can get that match race.

 

Dave... Glad we got together. Great meeting all of you guys and watching the Scout! Plan to be back again next year and hopefully we both will have a better showing. The Meltdown is not for the faint of heart... LOL.

We'll see what we can do next year to prevent you from returning home with so much unconsumed Canadian beverages...

Note attached pic of just how tough it is there... Look at what just the fumes from the Meltdown can do can do to a young guy...LMAO

 

Thanks Dave! Hopefully we shall see ya next year,all is welll here and hope so on yer end also! We SHALL meet again! Keep "Danglin the Skinnies" and keep it offa the wall! Later! R~R

 

Getting some good ink this year...

Cover photo for the Bangshift coverage of the Meltdown event (Very honored !!):

http://bangshift.com/blog/wheels-up...called-wheelstand-o-rama-weve-got-it-all.html

And the cover photo for the Canadian Drag Racer Magazine's latest article covering Brett Wagner at Interlake Dragway for the July long weekend event

http://canadiandragracer.ca/index.php/canadian-drag-news/3916.html

I must thank all the folks who think the Scout is cool. I've always said that I don't give a rats ass about running Brackets or for chasing points, I (re)built the Scout to entertain the troops and to put a big stupid grin on my big stupid face. Getting coverage and recognition is an added bonus that I really appreciate.

 

Couldn't happen to a better guy!

Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!

 

Kinda makes all the problems worthwhile huh? Congrats on the ink.

 

Yes... yes it does.

Thanks

 

Converter ordered... but it'll likely have to wait until next year to see if that was the issue.

Spent a lot of time on the phone with TCS converters out of Langley BC. Sent them my dyno sheets and even sent them a link to a couple of passes. In the end they are sending me a 9" spragless unit with 4800 stall and custom vane angles. There is after install service where they will "tweak" the converter based on the performance of the Scout. All free, all I do is the R&R and pay shipping.

But... as I said it will likely have to wait until next season. There are only 3 more race dates locally including this weekend (not ready) and the weekend where I'm booked to go on my annual - Big lake Trout and even bigger Pike - fishing trip up in northern Manitoba and I have a wedding to attend... (Stupid friends...) I also wanted to go through the tranny when I swap out the converter and the timing to do that...and make the only open race date... just doesn't work out.

So having said all that, my racing season with the Scout is done. Time to focus on the Prefect build and getting it ready for the 5th annual Meltdown event next summer.

Off season looks pretty quiet for the Scout. Pull the drivetrain, freshen up the trans, install the converter. The rest of the little beast will get basic maintenance and a clean up as it's getting a little ratty. Time to stop making major changes on the Scout and pay some bills.

Then again... there is that offer to re-do the body work and paint. And that plan to upgrade to a new stage 2 blower, hilborn injection, maybe a little alcohol.... Hmmm

 

Great coverage of the Meltdown event in this month's Gasser Wars magazine.

Of course I have to draw attention to the fact that I got a bit of coverage... very cool

 

Congrats on the coverage, I haven't got my issue yet.

 

2014 !!
Time to start the updates and the countdown to Meltdown Drags 2014

The motor is out and I am doing the usual clean up of the mid season hack jobs and giving the the little beast it's annual clean up and maintenance.

In scope for the this off season:

The supercharger is out getting a sealed bearing replacement for the rear plate. I was running a wet system with balance tubes front to back. I found this was leaking and pumping 90wt oil into the engine. (Lots of it)... not good. We'll have that problem solved. I'm also replacing the existing pressure relief valve with a modern version. That way I can eliminate the ugly tube and catch can.

My new Torque Convertor is in. 24% slippage is a bad thing. I'm hoping the new unit from TCS will do the trick. It's a spragless 9" unit w 4600 stall set up for a boost application. Low 10's anyone...?? maybe a 9 if the track is downhill and the wind at my back... If this thing works I'll flip the pulleys and back off on the timing. I was running 34 deg with 6 lbs boost and showing a slight bit of spackle on the plugs. I want 28-30 degress with 10 lbs. I can run that all day.

Transmission has been freshened. We found a snap ring had popped out but it didn't appear to have caused any concerns. We also found the pump was creating it's own clearance so that has been replaced. We'll be very careful setting it all up with the new convertor.

New Intake. The old competition style intake did not have a port for the thermostate housing. I had a remote unit and some fancy hose work to compensate. There was a fitting clearance issue that in my opinion was blocking a water passage excessively. I'm hoping the street style intake will reduce some of my overheating problems with better water flow. I also want to address the lower rad hose which is ugly and leaking.

That's it kids... Pictures when something cool happens. That might be a while as it still -38 here.

 

You Canadians are full of drama..LOL. That is only -36.4 F

I am sure the Meltdown will be much warmer..