Awesome man, hope you have some good air to run in. That thing as some left in it for sure.

 

diggler, we run at night on fridays. the 11.52 pass i ran last week was in 2424' DA, at 9:45pm. i know stephan and five7kid would kill for that kinda DA, but for us, where the track elevation is only like 400', it's pretty terrible. i can't wait till the fall!

 

How did you take 50 pounds out of your car I thought you had it pretty well stripped down already? I definitly think you have a lot left in it and I hope you hit your goal. Let us know how it goes. What plans do you have with your wifes chevelle?

 

i took the passenger seat and rear seats out

the wife's chevelle. 71 malibu factory small block/auto car. probably had a 307 in it, lol. it's going to be a cruiser. we're doing a 5.3/auto swap. it'll have ac/cruise etc. it'll be pro-touring ish. she has no desire to have a race car, just wants to have a fun driver that she can be proud of at a cruise in. the cool thing is that she's helping me do alot of the work

 

Tell that to guys like Tim Lynch running bottom 4's in the 1/8 w/ 2500+hp @ 3000lbs with a TH400 and a 2.10 gear set. They ran the Rossler for several years, went to the ATI superglide, and have now switched back to the Rossler 3-speed. We run 7's on the stock 2.48 gear set, I'll be shototing for 6's this go round and at least for starters will still be running a stock 2.48 gear set, though we may switch to the 2.10.

Agreed, I've been there myself; You go through a spell of gremlins and start second guessing yourself. Do what you know, tackle one problem at a time and it will all end up in the wash.

I'll still never be a th350 fan though, lol. Three cars that I know of that ran them down into the 9's, one running in the 8's now. Two of the cars running 9's started having reliability issues and swapped to a 400; neither slowed any on the same tune-ups, and have since added more power and have not had to second guess the trans.

Yeah, I'm with you there(the heat). I'm really looking forward to getting the car back out with the new combo, but not looking forward to pulling that 3.2a/15 suit on in 80-90* temps(that is of an evening for me). F* doing it during the day, 90+ with a heat index over 100.

 

yeah, even my single layer fire jacket had me sweating like crazy last week...i can't imagine having to wear a whole suit!

 

People are doing it...but it's not the norm. Lynch had a lot of problems with ATI and there product durability and service. It sent him running. Rossler is supporting his camp and promoting his product through Lynch. there were a lot of companies in line for him (Trust me) and if they met his terms he probably would have been running a glide.
I was just stating that IMO it would be a more controlled ride with a glide. I think that I have even read in the past where you have stated sometimes you have a hard time getting your 400 out of the whole at your power level. I could be mistaken though. Ultimately, the best option is what the user feels most comfortable with.
My opinions are based on the word of hundreads of 10.5 and Outlaw racers around the country and yours are based on actual seat time in a competitive 10.5car. So it's very interesting to hear how our opinions will differ but it's not surprising that they do.

 

alright, back on topic!

we had a GREAT second outing with the car. the air was actually a bit worse, but nothing crazy, 2855'. the new tach/shift light combo helped out a ton.

i made six passes. first run off the trailer was the same tune i made last weekend and ran an 11.52 at 119mph @ 2400' DA. This week first run was an 11.43 @ 120.52 on a 1.67 60'.

we took a plug out after that pass and the mark on the strap was so far down we decided to throw a bunch of timing at it. so i bumped it up to 37* all in by 4000. went faster, but i thought i heard it rattle on the big end. ran an 11.40 @ 120.8.

i took 2* out so i didn't rattle the motor and the added timing didn't seem to make any difference on the ET really so i just figured i'd not lean on it too hard. yup, at 35* total timing it picked up again...11.38...then 11.35, both at 121mph.

let the car cool down for a while, and let the air get a touch better while the ambient temps dropped. DA dropped to 2324'. had a guy in a cutlass that comes by my work talking trash all the time show up. i had to do something about that...he's been talking about "whoopin' dat ***" for quite a while...so we line 'em up. my 11.31 @ 121.8 to his 13.12 @ 106...it was nearly a waste of my time. that was my fastest pass of the night, it looked like this:

60': 1.674
330': 4.697
1/8: 7.246
mph: 96.08
1000': 9.45
1/4: 11.311
mph: 121.80

we had a great night...i can't wait till november when we get some negative DA's now!

 

that's awesome man!

that car's gonna 60ft like it's got no right when you put the th400 in it. Definitely something to be proud of.

and good work shutting up the loudmouth..............i work with one that drives a honda with a fart can.........

 

No wide band on it i am guessing? That thing STILL has more left in it.

Glad you shaved some more off, hope you can get some better air maybe?

 

Yeah Matt,that's how you do it!

 

i know it, i don't think 1.4's will be completely outta the question. i'm going to swtich to a hoosier drag radial later this season maybe when i wear my mickey thompsons out. they're quite a bit lighter (like 11#'s PER tire or something like that)

no wideband. tuning this thing old skool style

i'm pretty stoked. am i down with you n/a yet? i know your car runs mid 10's on spray...

 

fix that soft 60' and you might get your 10.9x pretty soon

 

Why all in so late?

 

here's a really cool pic my dad took (Mark Walter of Drag Story) of my car in the burnout box!

 

that car is just gorgeous


i think 1.4x is definitely attainable with the th400...especially if you're putting a brake in it

 

Yea, sounds like me. cannot wait to see wht you do with a 3 speed trans and get that 60 working harder.

 

since you're all done tuning yours, get up here and help me finish mine

 

the converter flashes to 4500, and the rpm's are never under 4500 at WOT, so i didn't think it'd matter where i put it in. i'm also not using a MAP right now, even though i probably should. it's set at 35* now with it all in by like 3k or something like that

thanks dude, it's truly a 15 footer though. it has always photographed well...

btw, if anyone is looking for one, that hood is for sale, and i'll let it go CHEAP (like $125 picked up cheap)

you'll get it, just keep crankin' away at it! you gotta quite getting distracted with all these other cars you have your hands in right now too, lol!

 

ya I have 2 cars lined up after I finish this other one, so "hopefully" I can even get time for mine in there as well. The afternoon was spent moving summit boxes around the garage to get more room to knock out the first car out of the way.

 

a quick video my brother took of me. first pass is a grudge race agains a guy who comes into work talking smack all the time. i ran an 11.311 @ 121.80mph to his 13.12 @ 106mph. it was a hoot! backec up my 11.31 pass with an 11.319 @ 121.51mph in the second pass on the videos. these were the last two passes of the night.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8o9qePaJOrs

 

good job matt...but did the honda in the pic beat you? what did the fuel look like on the plugs? did you look at them after timing changes?

 

Im no pro racer but I ask pro's when I need to do things like timing and all of them have always said all in by 2500 or less. [and yes many of them have 4-5000 stall TCs too, well they run a switch pitch so they can still drive on the street, 1800 street, flip a toggle switch n 5000 launches.]

Which is why I asked, I never seen anyone say all in by 4000 before, thought maybe it was something new I was missing out on or that engine is just different.

 

that honda did beat me. he ran an 11.14 @ 124...i shook his hand, it was impressive. he said it was sick and has been 10.8x's

plugs looked ok. i didn't change the jets. the plugs were a nice carmel color...probably a touch rich.

 

My timing is all in by....the moment I hit the start button, lol. Locked, full base, then pull timing from there for the spray or as we add boost(with their respective combos).

Congrats on the passes, that thing is moving for sure! Some good air and some more dialing will definitely see a bottom 11, maybe even a high 10, NA.


Re-jacking the thread, lol.

With the 2.10 or lower first gear it is becoming more and more comon. I've not had any issues off the line other than riding the wheenie bars pretty hard, and the 400 was the least of my causes for that. - I always laughed when I saw ATI's add showing Lynch's car and "over 200 runs, never broke", of course he didn't break one in over 200 passes, because they never made more than 2 hits on the same trans, lol. I watched Futch kill three $6k+ glides in 4-5 hits in his camaro, then him and Carlos killed a couple superglides in 2-3 hits in the vette; they run the bruno/lenco combo for a reason.

There's far more people that love glides than there are people like me who hate them, lol. I don't ask any one to switch from something that works for them, but glides don't work well for me so I don't run them. - A buddy just had his TH2.10XHD checked out after over 200 passes in the mid 7's in a 3000lb 632 nitrous car. It's never so much as had the fluid changed since being put in, and Carl only changed the clutches because he was there and the number of runs they had; they honestly still looked fine. Nothing else was touched.

 

good grief that must have hurt, running good and getting spanked by a *****

 

lol, yeah, but that thing was nasty, and i give him mad props. when i told him i weighed 3400lbs he was definitely impressed. i gotta figure out how to get about 200lbs out of the car.

 

Fill the tires with helium.

 

ok, i'm about to revoke your right to post in my thread

 

i'll be over with my grinder and sawzall..........we'll get the weight out hehehehehe

 

Remote control, maybe?

 

lmao that's awesome....

 

no as warren says, drivers are required ballast

 

lol, if it was remote control, the car would go down that track at 3100lbs! honestly though, that's still pretty heavy. i had this car down to 2910 without me in the car a few years ago. of course, a moser 9" and a roll bar aren't light.

hoosier drag radials are going to replace the mickey's when i wear them out. the hoosiers are 11lbs per tire lighter than the mickey's. i know that's only 22lbs, but it's 22lbs of rotating/unsprung weight. k-member will follow. the th400 is a bit heavier than the powerglide so i'll be gaining a big of weight there unfortunately.

i don't want to make it a non-street car, but if i could get this thing back down to 2900lbs without me in it and still have all the equipment in it i need, that would be awesome

 

do you have power steering in it again? or is that gone?

you may want to go to a pinto rack when you do the k member

 

The stock glass hatch is heavy as sin, though you probably need that weight in the rear?????

 

i do have power steering on the car again. even have an iroc box on the car. manual steering isn't worth the 20lbs i loose over the power steering. it's very nice to be able to turn into a parking spot with easy, even with a spool!

the big problem with the racks is that they generally reduce the steering radius, and that's a concern for me.


yes, but this car will always have the hatch as i'll never have lexan in the car, and the notches are not my favorite as far as styling.

 

Well how important is going faster to you

How much of a cage do ya got?

Wonder if you would be allow to run with out the hatch on?

Its easy to take on an off, with a friend.
A 10 min job at the most, no different then swappin tires once to the track.
No alignment issues, 4 bolts on and off.

 

The last post is a good reason why are cars are called m ullet mobiles. Come on take the hatch off at the track seriously? I understand lightening your car with things you dont need but thats a little much. If you cant get the time you want make more power instead of ripping apart your car just to hit a number. A beautiful car like matt's would look rediculous with the hatch off at the track. Thats my 2 cents at least and I think most would agree.

 

It depends on what kind of a racer he is.

If the times on the board are quicker then the rest, lookin like a goof for a 1/4mile should be worth it........


But for vanity sake, its why many end up with glass shells, so they can paint it pretty and still go fast.

 

ok, lets think of realistic ways to get weight out. 200lbs is a goal, though it may be an impossible goal.

here's my criteria: it's a street car so it needs to act mostly like a street car. all the windows must be glass and go up and down properly. the weight of manual vs power windows is neglegable, and i like my power windows enough for it to not matter anway.

here's what i've done to lighten the car:
-fiberglass hood
-front bumper support is out completely
-lightweight replacement carpet up front, no sound deadening
-zero HVAC equipment. no ducts, nothing
-zero radio equipment
-taken the back seats out, but still running factory front seats
-lightweight wheels, but they're not as light as some of the all out drag wheels (ie weld alumastars, bogarts, etc)
-aerospace components drag brakes on the back
-no front sway bar

what i've done to make it heavier:
-iron lq4 block
-moser 9"
-ls1 front brakes
-8pt roll bar
-power steering
-subframe connectors


i've got a bunch more particulars listed in my vBgarage.

i know that replacing the front seats with kirkey's will help. i know that taking the rear bumper support off will help. i know that a k-member/a-arms/coil-overs will help. i know that stripping the inside of the doors will help.

on the doors: how much can one take out of the doors and still have them function like stock? mine are 100% factory still. i want the windows to go up and down, the door locks to work, the mirrors to work correctly, and to keep all the handles in the stock location as i'm planning to keep the door panels in place. but them suckers are HEAVY!

discuss

gumby...i'm not taking my hatch off at the racetrack

 

already sounds like a race only drag car. No heat, no radio....no thanks

 

plasma cutters are awesome...just sayin'

 

shaggy i'll just fill my car with beer and leave it out in front of your place....have at it.

 

well, you're at the point where thinking about ounces is getting to be important. like a wise racer once said "think about the ounces and the pounds will come"

next steps to me would be....
race seats (either kirkey or composite)
manual brakes
"crash bars" in the doors
mini tub
drill out all the misc brackets and stuff in the interior for the rear seats and anything else you arent using anymore
Ozite carpet
aluminum center section for the rear (if you don't have one yet)
k member
a arms
you could do spindles/rack if you're really itching to dump weight. racecraft has some really really nice pieces for that, but that's more money than you probably want to spend

 

Have you taken the crash braces out of the doors?

 

negative. i have not done that yet. i'm going to try to tackle alot of this stuff this winter, but i need ideas in order to put them on my to-do list. i'm not really sure how to do this without hurting the paint on the outside of the door.

 

Actually your faster than I am N/A, I've only gone 11.37 @ 122, but I did go 10.31 @ 132 on 150 shot earlier this year in better air and then Ed told me to slow it down before I got a chance to install those 200 jets and get that 9 sec time slip on my old set up. Maybe this fall?

Well I stopped my turbo project and now I'm building a Motown LS 427 over the winter. The wife gave me the green light yet again.

 

Now that's what I'm talking about! lol

Seriously though, once you have a plasma you'll wonder how you ever worked w/o it. It out ranks the hot-glue gun and the air-stapler.



Aluminum center chunk is worth 30-40lbs and being unsprung weight it helps ride quality for a street car(extra justification right?). - IMO kirkey pro streets are very comfy, you just have to mount them right. Mount them flat and they suck, set the lay-back proper and you can literally sleep in them(even in the staging lanes after a late night thrash at a race.....not saying I know or nothing, lol). They just take a little more to get in/out of than a plain stock seat.

 

even my cheapo composite seat would've been ok if it had some more padding, or even a cover lol.

i didn't realize that those al center chunks were worth that much weight. could go to a spool too if he hasn't already.