mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

these are the minis. 1.25" diameter.

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

here are the pictures i promised a couple days ago, lol. had to readjust the pin height today anyway to get the hatch to seal nicely so i grabbed these.

here is the post:


and the receiver. as you can see, i had to make a larger whole in the inner skin to be able to get a socked on the nut.

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

got a few more details hammered out today. front end on and new windshield. also put the label maker to work







additionally, I am pleased to announce that Afco has joined our efforts this year in a joint sponsor for the speedmu11et and MotorManiaTV! If you are in the market for new shocks or struts for your 82-92 Camaro or Firebird, or any other car for that matter, give the guys at Afco a shout to see what they have available for you! The car is shaping up and is in final reassembly stages. We are looking to test the 21st at Mason Dixon and will be ready to race our first Pro Stick race of the season on the 28th at Beaver Springs!

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

normally i sort of take monday's off, to hang out with the girls and watch street outlaws. this week, i did not take off

my weapons of destruction tonight


finished product. unfortunately, i have the round crash bars in my doors, so they're not as heavy as the c-channel type, but i did manage 10+lbs out of the 1 door. i'll take it where i can



made this yesterday too. pretty happy with it. the battery isn't going anywhere.

STREETDEMON

matt, are you going back over the edges of the holes with any kind of a coating?

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

i've been thinking about that, but i have not yet made any decisions. i'd love something i could just sort of brush on. the guy that put my window in put some sort of coating on the bare metal where there was a little surface rust. came in a bottle with an applicator "ball" like what you'd see on rubber cement. i might find out what that is and see if i can use something like that.

HP52TA

iTrader: (4)

POR15 applied with one of their dauber brushes should knock that off the list. The daubers are used for reaching into frame holes, so should work well for your application. Only caveat is the POR15 only comes in black.

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

it'll be behind a door panel so i'm not too concerned about that.

bluegrassz

iTrader: (3)

He probably used windshield primer.

http://3mcollision.com/3m-single-ste...682-30-ml.html

Fireball

iTrader: (2)

were you overall happy with the fit of the S&W cage? Did you modify it any?

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

as far as any additional bends or removing any bends, no i didn't do anything. as far as pre-bent kits go, this is the best one i've used yet. i have used competition engineering, and the Jegster kits. i will be using them again.

Fireball

iTrader: (2)

Great to hear....nice to know. S&W isn't too far up the road, I can save a bunch on shipping if I pick up. You could've save a bunch of weight if you had gone with a moly cage LOL

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

i'm aware, but i don't have a tig machine. would have been about 30lbs if my calculations are correct. sometimes you have to realize what's within your means.

Fireball

iTrader: (2)

If you are ever in the market, give a look at the diversion series of TIG welders....I bought one...nice little inverter machine that doesn't need tons of power

gtpro700

Matt, thanks for posting those pics of the hatch hold downs. Cars coming along great! Can't wait to see what this beast runs soon!

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

:drool:



and a nice little detail



my wife and i are celebrating 7 years of amazing life together this saturday, so i'm hoping to see a little further progress this sunday. racing is next saturday

bluegrassz

iTrader: (3)

Congrats!
Seven years is saying something nowadays.

The camaro is looking good. I saw a white Berlinetta yesterday and thought of your car.

STREETDEMON

congrats on the anniversary!

Fireball

iTrader: (2)

Nice struts lol....

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

so as we get near the start of the race season, we all get very anxious and start doing things we wouldn't normally. staying up late nights on end, getting up early every morning, just to try to get a few minutes of extra wrench time in. well last night, in an exhausted stupor, i decided to install my struts on my own. first side went on without a hitch. second was not as good. i managed to drop the strut out of the car and it bent the valve adjuster and is leaking. it will get a trip back to afco for repair. dealing with delays are always frustrating, but when it's self inflicted, it really sucks. i'll make sure everything else in the car is in order. as of right now, i do not believe we will be testing on the 21st. i will be checking for more testing sites and dates before beaver springs, but as you can imagine, i'm pretty deflated.

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

got word from afco. they received the strut and have already got a repair in the works. it should ship to me tomorrow afternoon and they anticipate i should receive the strut thursday.

since i'm waiting, i'm trying to take care of a few things. decided the dead window sweeps had to go. a buddy offered a set of 4th gen sweeps for free. they took a little trimming, but turned out GREAT







front half of the interior is all but done. rear sections are going to take some thought, and i'm thinking i'll deal with them when i get some down time during the season. i have to move forward with other projects at this point.



the new pa racing drop spindles utilize a 3/4-16 thread pitch. the factory uses a 3/4-20 thread pitch so i needed new nuts. you can order these all day long, but i am getting tired of finding a problem, then pausing for 2-3 days and waiting on the brown truck to show up with a solution, not to mention i've probably spent 3-500 on shipping alone this winter. that's just asinine. so...i grabbed some 3/4-16 nuts out of the bin and took care of business.







that's all for now. hoping to have some good news for this weekend!

Fireball

iTrader: (2)

Nice improvisation! A good source for stuff like that is mcmaster-carr...you can get weird bolts/parts/hardware in one day...

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

yup, i understand. i'm operating on too tight of margins to **** away money on shipping though. the hardware won't cost much but they always get you on shipping.

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

new strut showed up just before lunch Friday. I decided it would be a good idea to take my lunch break and run home to put it inside so i didn't have a high dollar strut sitting outside. on my way home, i realized just how nice the weather was, and how bad the forecast looked for the rest of the weekend, so i did something i almost never do; called into work and said i wouldn't be back. i thrashed for the next 5 hours and got the car together and on the trailer



my first pass was soft, but shows killer potential. i mph'd 136.77 mph, which is over 1 mph faster than any recorded mph so far. the launch was so low of rpm that i bogged, and short shifted 1-2 as well. the car felt solid so i decided to turn it up and launch off the 2-step.

2-step didn't activate. engine went straight to 7800. when the clutch was released, the torque arm saddle mount for the rear axle decided to take the rest of the night off. thankfully it looks like the mount itself is the only carnage. Of course, Jason at PA Racing is already on a solution, so we should be racing this weekend





new mount will be pro-mod strong

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

in other news, little radiator didn't do well. also, i'm pretty much over the small fuel cell up front, lol. i'm putting the stock sumped tank and the stock radiator back in. just less at track maintenance this way

WickedBowtie

What happened with radiator? Too small? Why are you over the fuel cell?

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

too small, won't keep it cool after a single run even in upper 60* ambient temps. i'm over the front mount fuel cell cause it really takes 2 people to fill it. 1 to hold a funnel, and 1 to pour a gas can without spilling. we are just a 2 person operation, and my wife is very distracted by keeping our 16 month old off the motorcycle pitted next door, or running in front of traffic or whatever, and so am i to a small degree, so our 2 person operation is really more like 3/4 of a person, lol! it's just too many steps. i like simple, and this isn't as simple as i thought it would be. it just doesn't fit with our racing style, which is to unload the car, make several passes without even opening the hood, and going home after a fun day, lol.

WickedBowtie

Right on...very good point. Great build by the way. Dig your videos too.

STREETDEMON

wow on the mount, safe to say you had a good bite at 7800!

Fireball

iTrader: (2)

I know how you feel! I did Outlaw Drag Radial for several years with just the wife and I working between runs....

something doesn't seem right with the rad setup...I had no issues keeping my 2000 hp setup cool with a small scirocco radiator setup. what water pump do you have? Expansion tanks are always good to run to ensure you don't have any air pockets in the cooling system.

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

i may revisit it later, but i can't afford the time to figure it out right now. i'm using a stock mechanical ls pump with a g-spot sensors electric water pump drive.

five7kid

iTrader: (14)

That thar be your classic stress riser fatigue with final ductile tensile failure...

Needs more meat around what in your picture is the right side of the bolt hole. A flat washer under the bolt head wouldn't hurt, either (Grade 8, of course).

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

yessir, new one is going to be wider on that side and thicker overall I will get washers too i almost sent you those pictures directly to get your opinion, but came to the same conclusion

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

this week's thrash list before first points race:
-put full size radiator back in (check!)
-put full size sumped fuel tank back in (check!)
-run new fuel lines (have one more fitting to pick up from speed shop and that's done)
-balance driveshaft and install new rear u-joint (check!)
-mount "pro-mod" torque arm saddle mount (should receive today)
-move 2-step switch (how this is done will be determined by when my new switch will be here)
-possibly install new valve springs, retainers, and locks. if not this week, definitely next week. (this is strictly pro-active maintenance, engine ran flawlessly all year last year and on first test hit last friday, this is looking to be out of reach for this week, lol!)

STREETDEMON

i'd rather be on the safe side with springs, no matter what. springs are cheap compared to heads/block/rotating assembly.

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

well beaver springs was a tough track for me. lots of idiosyncrasies i'm not used to, however we did like the drive up and enjoyed the track overall. what i thought was a spin issue, actually turned out to be a bog issue, and i didn't realize that till after 1st round. i redlit, like several of our competitors did first round. i had the quick latches on the hatch fail to hold on any more and the lift supports opened the rear hatch in the burnout box. the guy working the track tried to close the hatch, but only smashed it down harder which i believe may have hurt the latches. either way, once they got it latched, i was so anxious that i redlit. of course the hatch came up as soon as i launched, which was a big bog anyway, lol. no big news of personal bests, though i wasn't expecting it anyway, lol.

other than the hatch, i have no failures to report so onto the next one, this time with more RPM!

skinny z

Question for you:
Why do you launch at such high RPMs?
Isn't it better to leave at an RPM just over peak torque? What would that be in your case?
I wouldn't think it's in excess of 5000.
Just wondering.

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

anything lower bogs. there is no hydraulic coupler (torque converter) to help maintain engine speed. once that clutch locks up, it pulls engine down fast. you have to find a balance of tire spin, clutch slip, and maintaining engine speed. it's not easy. that's why most guys go auto.

Fireball

iTrader: (2)

If you're bogging, why not add a smidge of air to the tires....will help rolling resistance as well

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

yup, plan to mess with that sort of stuff this weekend. it's hard to make a move on something like air pressure when i had it working well last year. new season, new parts, new problems, lol! it may take me all season to get it right again, but i intend to get it right, and i know it'll be faster for it. this coming winter i hope to only do a bottom end refresh on the engine and keep on trucking. i want this thing repeatable by next season so i can finally start going rounds. i want auto footbrake guys to shake when they line up next to me, not laugh at the silly clutch car.

Wolfster14

Matt ,
what did you find out on the latches?
I actually put a set on the front of my hood. I had a very hard time getting them to latch every time. I had to back them off a little more to get them to work. Not really happy with the gap from the nose to the hood now but the wife was tired of helping me lift it on and off , so I quit messing with it.

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

i have them on the front edge of my hood as well and they work great there. it appears the hatch will need 4 total, but i'm not sure i have the space to put 2 in the middle. i'm tempted to make a move to the aerocatch latches.

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

forgot to mention, the driveshaft rebalance made a HUGE difference. when i push the clutch in at 130+ now, it's as smooth as butter! so happy about that, lol!

also i stayed up late last night and got the valve springs swapped out. also put some Ti retainers on and fresh locks to replace the steel ones. i'm going to run and get some fresh plugs and get it all back together tonight. all in all, i think i'm ready for this weekend

Wolfster14

Have you thought about maybe trying the larger Quick latches for the trunk instead of adding another set of the smaller ones?
I know they aint cheap, but they do look nice.
Think I will keep adjusting mine, maybe I can find that sweet spot.

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

small ones are $25/ea. large ones are $150/ea. no i'm not interested in buying the larger ones, lol!!!

Wolfster14

Wow I had no clue.
$300 for two pins. Yeah , they aren't that nice lol.
Good Luck this weekend.

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

Saturday was a much better outing than the previous 2. I made a rebound adjustment on the rear shocks, put tire pressure up to 13.5psi and 2-step back to 5500 and it really seemed to like the changes. I made 3 good passes. A 10.19, 10.21, and 10.24. I'm still fighting red lights for some reason so we went home early again, but I think I realized at least one issue there. For some reason I put 5 psi more air in front tires than I normally would, so I'll be reducing that before next outing. DA was right at 2200'. Looking at the data from last year, I picked up .15 ET and 1.5 mph in similar air conditions. It's worth noting that this track (Capitol) has always been a bit of a nemesis for me. With the adjustments, all of a sudden my car works well here, so we are looking forward to coming back now Additionally, the front struts are packed up and headed to Afco to get loosened up. As you can tell in the video here, the rear suspension looks like it's doing it's job, but I just can't get the weight to transfer, so hopefully by next weekend we should be good.


So a little more work to do and I think we'll be really close. I had a buddy come by yesterday with a set of scales as well. 2948 with me in the car. Right now the car is sitting at a 53/47 split. Not sure if that's ideal or not, but I'm really happy about the total weight. We are off this coming weekend and the following weekend we will be at Carlisle, PA for a little racing on Friday, and the GM Nationals car show on Saturday.

Oh, I seemed to have had something "click" over the winter and am now completing flat foot shifts with no issues

STREETDEMON

once you find the "sweet spot" pulling a full on power shift is pretty awesome. my anglia would keep the front end up for 2 gears if you caught it right, it was always a good show for those in the stands.

skinny z

That seems a more reasonable launch RPM. Did you mention that you have datalogging capabilities? RPMs after launch would be interesting to see.
The best part of that video? Getting a look (after the 3rd launch) of you banging through the gears once the slo-mo is done. The sound alone is worth the price of admission.
That total weight is very nice.
So is the licence plate.

Fireball

iTrader: (2)

Was curious how the valving on the AFCO front struts would work for you....they are factory set as BNC which is for more for the ultra-high hp application (keeping the nose down)