Lots of changes for the 2014 season

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Re: Lots of changes for the 2014 season

Postby spencerforhire » Wed Jun 18, 2014 11:58 am

Actually, the launch is where the new motor is most deficient; 60ft times this season are generally worse than last season's with the old motor. I've got to do a bunch of chassis tuning to get it to hook; it has about 100 ft/lb less torque at 4000-4500 rpm, even though the HP and torque are up somewhere in the vicinity of 100 each at higher rpm. I wrongly assumed that the new, looser torque converter would match the new motor perfectly. Last year it launched perfectly, carrying the front wheels 30 or 40 ft and then setting down gently. Now it hooks for about 10ft, unloads the suspension and the spins almost all the way to the 60ft timers.
The "fleet"-
72 Vega HB Drag Car -383/'Glide/9"(9.35@146.19)(5.94@117.28 1/8th)
77 Vega Estate wagon- project(someday)will have TPI305/T-5, S-10 spindles/axles
76 Vega GT- 400/4spd/9" retired from active duty(rusty)
06 Silverado 2WD ex.cab daily
03 Silverado 2WD ex.cab (retired)
06 Haulin' 20ft enclosed car transporter
06 GMC Canyon Shop truck
07 Colorado project( 5.3 4L60e swap)
99 Saturn SL1- wife's car
01 Saturn SC2- son's project
07 Saturn Ion Redline project
and 4 more Saturn "parts cars"
Note- the very act of listing all of these has made me realize I have some kind of problem.....

Visit http://www.spencerforhire.ca
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Re: Lots of changes for the 2014 season

Postby zeke » Wed Jun 18, 2014 1:12 pm

OK, I meant to say that it seems to launch nice and straight! lol I'm sure you'll figure it out and get er hooking to your satisfaction in no time.

Got any dashcam pass vids?
Chris

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Re: Lots of changes for the 2014 season

Postby spencerforhire » Thu Jun 19, 2014 7:17 am

Don't own a GoPro, but I've been offered the use of one by the guy who does all the video for the local track. The car does go straight(most of the time!) and doesn't get a lot of "air" so I'm not sure how exciting the in-car view will be. Not much going on in there; it's just aim & fire with both hands on the wheel. The tach recall shows 7400 in both low and high gear, but I wouldn't mind seeing what all the other gauges do during a pass.
The "fleet"-
72 Vega HB Drag Car -383/'Glide/9"(9.35@146.19)(5.94@117.28 1/8th)
77 Vega Estate wagon- project(someday)will have TPI305/T-5, S-10 spindles/axles
76 Vega GT- 400/4spd/9" retired from active duty(rusty)
06 Silverado 2WD ex.cab daily
03 Silverado 2WD ex.cab (retired)
06 Haulin' 20ft enclosed car transporter
06 GMC Canyon Shop truck
07 Colorado project( 5.3 4L60e swap)
99 Saturn SL1- wife's car
01 Saturn SC2- son's project
07 Saturn Ion Redline project
and 4 more Saturn "parts cars"
Note- the very act of listing all of these has made me realize I have some kind of problem.....

Visit http://www.spencerforhire.ca
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Re: Lots of changes for the 2014 season

Postby zeke » Mon Oct 20, 2014 8:37 am

How's the season going?
Chris

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Re: Lots of changes for the 2014 season

Postby spencerforhire » Mon Oct 20, 2014 4:45 pm

Many apologies for posting NOTHING all summer; raced 12 weekends out of 17. Not much time for "blogging". lol.
The 2014 season was a reasonably good one for me; no big wins, but no breakage either. 110 passes spread amongst the 4 tracks here in Atlantic Canada meant a lot of travelling; only one facility is even remotely close by; a little less than 2 hours away, with the other three between 3.5 and 4.5 hours. Won enough rounds to finish 4th in our local Pro Tree Super Rod 9.90 championship which is down from last year's 1st place showing. Also 4th in Super Pro bracket points at my home track which is substantially better than the 10th I finished last season. I had 1 runner-up finish and 1 race where I went to the semi-final, got rained out a couple of times with a few rounds in; at least I've proven to myself I can "run with the big dogs" with my low budget Vega.
All this with a new 383 motor that's about 100 more HP than me or the car had to deal with before. Picked up an average of 4 tenths and 6 MPH from last year; best numbers of the season were a 9.457@146.19(from the first weekend back in May; never got to see that "mineshaft" air again) and some 1/8 passes in the 6.0's. Took almost all season to get the suspension and tuneup adjustments to a point where the car was consistent. By the last few races, I had the 60ft times down to the 1.35's and the car was posting identical MPH numbers pass after pass. On one day, it went 140.63 4 passes in a row with ET in the 9.60 range only varying by less than 5 hundredths of a second. Still need to work on my starting line performance; had both a .500 and a .501 light this season, but a lot of them were real bad; I really need to hit the practice tree a whole bunch this winter.
As to my boast of no breakage this season, the sum total of parts changed on the car was under $100; a fuel filter and a set of front brake pads. One oil change in both the motor and trans was probably another $150. And I did burn a drum and a half of 100 octane AvGas.....Pretty cheap season for sure; we won't talk about the thousands spent on fuel for the truck.......I did have the pan off the 'Glide a couple of times chasing a pesky leak and a bent park pawl and also had the carb apart to remedy some corrrosion due to water in the fuel, but other than that it ran like clockwork.
I will post some pics and vids as I have time.
The "fleet"-
72 Vega HB Drag Car -383/'Glide/9"(9.35@146.19)(5.94@117.28 1/8th)
77 Vega Estate wagon- project(someday)will have TPI305/T-5, S-10 spindles/axles
76 Vega GT- 400/4spd/9" retired from active duty(rusty)
06 Silverado 2WD ex.cab daily
03 Silverado 2WD ex.cab (retired)
06 Haulin' 20ft enclosed car transporter
06 GMC Canyon Shop truck
07 Colorado project( 5.3 4L60e swap)
99 Saturn SL1- wife's car
01 Saturn SC2- son's project
07 Saturn Ion Redline project
and 4 more Saturn "parts cars"
Note- the very act of listing all of these has made me realize I have some kind of problem.....

Visit http://www.spencerforhire.ca
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Re: Lots of changes for the 2014 season

Postby zeke » Mon Oct 20, 2014 6:49 pm

No need to apologize, sounds like a good season was had. It must take a lot then to get into the eights. I'm guessing ET is inversely proportional to the $ input squared. :cry: Av gaz down to 100 octane now, wow. :? I'm not a fan of the computer controlled racing class but each to their own. Pics would be cool. :th:
Chris

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zeke's 78 Sport Coupe

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Re: Lots of changes for the 2014 season

Postby spencerforhire » Mon Oct 20, 2014 9:03 pm

You are right in your assumption that it takes big $$$ to go into the 8's; I could get there a lot cheaper than most due to the fact that my Vega is so light. A 100 shot of N2O would do it 8) . The motor would take it no problem(rotating assembly is meant for 750hp), but it will probably never happen. I know they say "never say never...."
It was a good year for pics; both amateur and pro photographers at every track provided lots of "keepers".
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The "fleet"-
72 Vega HB Drag Car -383/'Glide/9"(9.35@146.19)(5.94@117.28 1/8th)
77 Vega Estate wagon- project(someday)will have TPI305/T-5, S-10 spindles/axles
76 Vega GT- 400/4spd/9" retired from active duty(rusty)
06 Silverado 2WD ex.cab daily
03 Silverado 2WD ex.cab (retired)
06 Haulin' 20ft enclosed car transporter
06 GMC Canyon Shop truck
07 Colorado project( 5.3 4L60e swap)
99 Saturn SL1- wife's car
01 Saturn SC2- son's project
07 Saturn Ion Redline project
and 4 more Saturn "parts cars"
Note- the very act of listing all of these has made me realize I have some kind of problem.....

Visit http://www.spencerforhire.ca
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Re: Lots of changes for the 2014 season

Postby zeke » Mon Oct 20, 2014 9:20 pm

Lets see some pics of that stroker!
Chris

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Re: Lots of changes for the 2014 season

Postby spencerforhire » Tue Oct 21, 2014 7:36 am

There are a couple of pics of the motor from back in April/May on page 1 of this thread, but why not one more....
Also, Zeke mentioned he wasn't a fan of "computer controlled racing classes"; when I originally built this car, I was going to do it "old school" with no help from electronics. The harsh reality is that in order to compete at this level of competition, I had no choice but to join the party. Before the delay box, my logbook shows about a third of my lights were red; after, I think I've had 6 or 7 in 2 1/2 seasons. Sure, there are a few guys out there that can cut a light in an 8 or 9 sec. car without a delay box or any other electronic assistance, but I soon discovered I wasn't one of them. lol. First came the delay box which is not a very complicated piece of equipment; all it does is let me react to the first yellow instead of the last. Mine is an ancient, first generation Dedenbear RTD-7; no fancy digital readout, just a row of little analog click wheels to adjust seconds, tenths, hundredths and thousandths. It presently reads 1.057 which is how long it waits from the time I release the trans-brake button on the steering wheel until it disengages the solenoid holding the Powerglide in both low and reverse. The other piece of low-tech electronics I use is a home-built "three-step" which lets me select 3 different RPM limits for burnout(6000), launch(4600) and redline(8100). It aids in consistency(the most important thing in bracket racing) and lets me do a burnout with my right foot planted instead of trying to modulate the RPM, keeps the motor just below the converter's stall speed while it's waiting to launch and of course keeps the rods inside the motor when the wire breaks on the shift solenoid and I hit 8100 in low gear. Only ever happened once; scared the crap out of me as I had to take my right hand off the wheel to shift manually. No real magic to the electric shift either; it's hooked to the "shift" light on the tach.
When I run the 9.90 heads up start Super Rod class(it's a .500 tree here, but in other places it's .400), the delay box is only set for a .045 or so; I could probably switch to a taller front tire and run without the box. Theoretically, if I stepped up to the 8.90 Quick Rod class, then I could pitch the delay box. I might not be able to hit the .400 tree, but at least I wouldn't be able to red light.
The one type of electronics I've resisted adopting so far is the throttle stop; it lets a car launch hard, then partially close the throttle for a very exact amount of time through the middle of the race and then return to full throttle for the end. To a non-racer this sounds kind of silly, but it lets a high horsepower car slow down to run a specific number, be it 10.90, 9.90, 8.90 or 7.90. The advantage of doing this is not very apparent until one of these guys blows by you a foot before the finish line 20, 40, or more MPH than you are going. Makes it very hard to judge; you think you have the race won, you might even lift so you don't break out, and whoosh! I run a mechanically adjustable restrictor plate under my carb to slow my car for the 9.90 bracket; there's no way to change it from inside the car. Again, it sounds silly to go slower, but I do like the heads-up, Pro Tree start; all 6 yellows light at once with no stagger to the tree. If you've ever been distracted by the lights in the other lane while bracket racing against a slower car, you will know why I like it.
Rant over.
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The "fleet"-
72 Vega HB Drag Car -383/'Glide/9"(9.35@146.19)(5.94@117.28 1/8th)
77 Vega Estate wagon- project(someday)will have TPI305/T-5, S-10 spindles/axles
76 Vega GT- 400/4spd/9" retired from active duty(rusty)
06 Silverado 2WD ex.cab daily
03 Silverado 2WD ex.cab (retired)
06 Haulin' 20ft enclosed car transporter
06 GMC Canyon Shop truck
07 Colorado project( 5.3 4L60e swap)
99 Saturn SL1- wife's car
01 Saturn SC2- son's project
07 Saturn Ion Redline project
and 4 more Saturn "parts cars"
Note- the very act of listing all of these has made me realize I have some kind of problem.....

Visit http://www.spencerforhire.ca
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Re: Lots of changes for the 2014 season

Postby chevyart » Tue Oct 21, 2014 8:39 am

spence didnt know you could get by with 100 octane race fuel. what is the compression on engine. also what size are your header tubes. looks nice and clean under that hood . art
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Re: Lots of changes for the 2014 season

Postby spencerforhire » Tue Oct 21, 2014 6:38 pm

My motor is 12.4:1 and I have no detonation at 38 degrees timing. The 100 octane (blue) leaded aviation fuel is pretty popular here in Atlantic Canada; at $450 CAN for a 55 US gallon drum it's about half the price of VP110($850) and only 1/3 the cost of Q16($1300). Adding to it's popularity is the fact that the very best pump premium we can buy is only 91 octane; anyone with any more than 9:1 compression is using AvGas.
The header tubes are sliced'n'diced from a 1 7/8" cheapo Summit Sprint style kit-
http://www.summitracing.com/int/parts/s ... /overview/
Because they go over the frame rail and exit out behind the front wheels, the primaries are quite short; I only used up 6 of the 8 tubes from the kit to build them.
The "fleet"-
72 Vega HB Drag Car -383/'Glide/9"(9.35@146.19)(5.94@117.28 1/8th)
77 Vega Estate wagon- project(someday)will have TPI305/T-5, S-10 spindles/axles
76 Vega GT- 400/4spd/9" retired from active duty(rusty)
06 Silverado 2WD ex.cab daily
03 Silverado 2WD ex.cab (retired)
06 Haulin' 20ft enclosed car transporter
06 GMC Canyon Shop truck
07 Colorado project( 5.3 4L60e swap)
99 Saturn SL1- wife's car
01 Saturn SC2- son's project
07 Saturn Ion Redline project
and 4 more Saturn "parts cars"
Note- the very act of listing all of these has made me realize I have some kind of problem.....

Visit http://www.spencerforhire.ca
User avatar
spencerforhire
 
Posts: 2442
Joined: Mon Jul 03, 2006 9:02 pm
Location: Halifax, Nova Scotia

1972 Chevrolet Vega Hatchback

Re: Lots of changes for the 2014 season

Postby Monza Harry » Tue Oct 21, 2014 7:54 pm

Well Spencer any time slip that stats with a "9.XXX" is hauling @$$ for sure and the fact that you are seeing improvements in your runs Is a WIN for sure! 65 gallons (Imp.) of fun costs what it costs! You could use less if you would just slow down. Yeah I didn't think so, just thought I would play "Captain Obvious" for a second. :lol: :haha: Please keep us informed as this is the only 9.anything run I will get to experience with out the winning lottery numbers! Thanx for sharing. Harry
I'm not a hoarder I'm a preservationist 78 Monza Spyder (~Soon(ish +/- I guess) To Be 2+2 with Spoilers)
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Re: Lots of changes for the 2014 season

Postby spencerforhire » Wed Oct 22, 2014 6:36 am

Harry; funny you should mention "slowing down to save fuel"; when the restrictor plate is closed down to run the 9.90 index, the car does use a whole bunch less fuel. By choking the airflow down to 525-550CFM(from the 950 Holley), it really does use only about 2/3 as much fuel. Running wide open, it consumes somewhere around 1 gallon/pass, depending upon which track it's at.
The "fleet"-
72 Vega HB Drag Car -383/'Glide/9"(9.35@146.19)(5.94@117.28 1/8th)
77 Vega Estate wagon- project(someday)will have TPI305/T-5, S-10 spindles/axles
76 Vega GT- 400/4spd/9" retired from active duty(rusty)
06 Silverado 2WD ex.cab daily
03 Silverado 2WD ex.cab (retired)
06 Haulin' 20ft enclosed car transporter
06 GMC Canyon Shop truck
07 Colorado project( 5.3 4L60e swap)
99 Saturn SL1- wife's car
01 Saturn SC2- son's project
07 Saturn Ion Redline project
and 4 more Saturn "parts cars"
Note- the very act of listing all of these has made me realize I have some kind of problem.....

Visit http://www.spencerforhire.ca
User avatar
spencerforhire
 
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Joined: Mon Jul 03, 2006 9:02 pm
Location: Halifax, Nova Scotia

1972 Chevrolet Vega Hatchback

Re: Lots of changes for the 2014 season

Postby chevyart » Wed Oct 22, 2014 10:04 pm

spence is that 3rd line running out of the fuel pressure regulator a return line to the tank.what type of fuel pump are you using that requires the return line. im in school. educate me. good show this pAst RACE SEASON. I WOULDNT CHANGE TOO MUCH ON YOUR CAR. IT seems too consistent. its your turn to win next season art
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Re: Lots of changes for the 2014 season

Postby zeke » Wed Oct 22, 2014 10:14 pm

I should clarify that statement I guess. I'm not a fan of the computer controlled throttle that makes the car run an exact time. I think ihra calls it Quick Rod or something like that. Just seems to be a let down as a spectator, when the cars launch off the line then let off for a period of time before resuming racing. If it could be done in a linear fashion so the car looks like it's working the whole 1000 feet, I'd be good with it.
Chris

zeke's 79 Monza Project

zeke's 78 Sport Coupe

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