Project Street Legal Stocker

Blog has moved...

2010-12-29T12:56:00.002-06:00

I have moved my blog over to my hobby web site http://www.musclecardrive.com/blog/street-legal-stocker-blog.php

Season End Update

2010-09-12T22:35:00.005-06:00

Today marks the official end of my drag racing season this year. The season end is always bittersweet - it is great to get a break from racing (ie. save instead of spend money) and start planning for next season. However, there is some sadness knowing you won't see some familiar race faces for another 8 or 9 months until the track opens again. Although I'll write a few articles over the winter here is a quick "hits" and "misses" list for racing this past summer.

Hits: Personal best ET/mph of 13.79 @ 97.7mph, discovering my car is a legal "Pure Stock" IHRA car running 4 to 5 tenths under the index, starting to figure out how the wind affects my car, and limping my transmission through another season.

Misses: Making the same mistake 4 times this season by dialling too soft, listening to bad advice, losing focus at the lights, and not racing enough!

Happiness is Low ET's

2010-07-25T21:42:00.012-06:00

Phew, I finally made it! I'm happy to report Project Stocker finally broke the 13 second time barrier last weekend. Best ET of weekend was a 13.98 @ 97.2 mph. All other runs were between 13.99 and 14.02 with the exception of an odd run where the car slowed to 14.08. These new lower ET's were accomplished with the use of a short belt to bypass the power steering and a new exhaust system (mufflers still hooked up). Otherwise the car is untouched from last year. Despite a few transmission troubles earlier in the year I'm optimistic with some good air and a few more tricks that a 13.80 may just be in reach this season. Also, I know now from my mph that I'm only 20 horsepower away from making my goal of hitting the N/SA index. However, before I'll be able to do that the car drastically needs to improve the 60 foot times as they are stuck around 1.90 to 1.95. In reality, they need to be 1.70 to 1.75. More gear, more converter, and an improved suspension should take care of that problem.

FYI: The title of this blog post is a quote my dad had posted inside his 1969 Dodge Car Swinger 340. Anyhow, If you don't know the story about his car read about it here.

New Season Approaching

2010-04-21T21:20:00.003-06:00

With the passing on winter and an early spring it is easy to turn attention to racing. In the mail today I received the new SIR promotional package with posters and schedules. It is great to see the track reaching out to Division 6 racers with their $5000 big buck jackpot scheduled for August 7th. I plan to register for the race although I need to figure out some strategy for how a slow foot-braker can compete with a delay box car. It will be exciting to see what cars and drivers decide to tow to Saskatchewan for the race.

Over the last few months I've been talking with several efi mustang class racers and have regained a lot more hope that a street car may be able to get under the class index. It just means some more work and creativity to be competitive. So, I've made a few changes to keep moving forward. The power steering has been bypassed, a properly designed exhaust system is currently being shipped, rear suspension has been stiffened, AOD valve body has been tweaked for firmer 2-3 shift, and I'm working on locating a set of skinny front wheels and tires. All these simply changes combined with an aggressive tune should drop the ET to 13.80's. Although this is near a half a second off the index it is a huge leap from the 15.80's the car initially ran in 2003 (especially when you consider that the car still only makes the same 22o horsepower). More updates and pics to come soon.

Happy New Year?

2010-01-01T23:11:00.017-06:00

Project Stocker has taken a major setback as of mid December due to an NHRA decision to revisit the class indexes. For the 2010 year all stock eliminator and super stock classes have their class index reduced by 3 tenths. This means that the N/SA index went from 13.30 to 13.00. Even when adjusted for altitude at my local track the index would be 13.25 which is what I believe will be the maximum et potential my current combination can handle. Mix in some poor weather and I will just never get under the index.

For a well established class racer who has been at this game for a while and has a strong running car the index change mostly is an irritation. However, for the low buck crowd or those racers trying to get started in class racing the index decision is like having a door slammed in your face. The internet and work benches everywhere are stuffed with theories about why the indexes changed. Some accuse the NHRA or selling out to corporate interests while others argue the fault is with racers themselves for sandbagging quick cars. Regardless, the decision to reduce the indexes has a big impact on racers as it means they will need to spend a lot more money to be competitive. The scary part (IMHO) is that it starts to create a kind of country-club mentality in what is supposed to be a sportsman oriented class. The roots of local drag tracks everywhere can be traced back to the the "racing of the family sedan". The early stock and super stock cars helped form the backbone of bracket racing everywhere and have remained a staple of NHRA drag racing for 50 years. In fact, it is last class of racing in which a hard working and creative racer has an honest chance of building and racing at a National Event without breaking the bank. In the "big picture" of racing it just doesn't seem to make a lot of sense. Also, given the reality that car counts in stock and super stock are dropping in many divisions, how will lowering the indexes further help encourage more potential racers and index chasers to come out and race? Instead, many people might start asking themselves the question I'm wrestling with...why bother?

Season End Updates

2009-11-01T11:10:00.004-06:00

My drag racing season ended two months ago but I've been too busy at work and in life to get around to a post until today. The final race of the year for me was the SIR Alcohol Funny Car feature on August 22nd. This is a big race for Saskatchewan's only quarter mile facility and features IBAA cars and nearly 200 sportsman racers. Nearly record crowds and great weather made it a memorable event.

I made relatively few changes from the race two weeks earlier in August so performance was similar with et's around 14.30 all day and night. However, during the quarter finals I left too quick and ran flat out with the car picking up 4 hundredths. I've never had much success night racing so I was very pleased having made a few rounds. I definitely need a lot more practice night racing though.

I end the season this year with a nagging sense of frustration. I naively embarked on my stocker project believing I could find 'tenths' with some proven and simple bolt-on items. Upon reflection I realize that I should be searching for 'hundredths' and that the route to get this car under the index will be a lot longer and more costly than I first imagined. However, now with a solid drivetrain I can begin to experiment and tune in hopes of finding some et. I'm busy considering and saving for some winter project options. Areas to address will certainly include rear suspension, exhaust upgrades, tuning add-ons, skinnies, and the removal of a few items. One last thing - I'm starting to buy lotto tickets because those new Cobra Jet's look fantastic!

I Love This Motor

2009-08-11T20:45:00.020-06:00

"I love this motor" was a parting comment to a good friend during eliminations on the weekend. The racing weather on Sunday was consistent and so was the motor. Regardless of the water temperature and mild winds the car was running within 3 hundredths on each pass. That kind of consistency and a lot of luck combined for a win in the Sportsman category. What followed were run-offs between classes to determine the "King of the Track" who would receive a special Wally. I was fortunate enough to squeak out a couple of more wins and take home the very special trophy. Truthfully, I'm still in a state of shock that I actually won it...

As for the car performance this weekend it was very consistent running between 14.22 and 14.25 @ 95mph all day. Somewhat disappointing was the lack of et drop from the National Open. Despite a corrected altitude of nearly 2000ft less than Medicine Hat the car didn't pick up any mph or drop et. As in the last race the car seems to pull very hard in 1st and 2nd gear but seems to "level-off" around 4000 rpm in 3rd gear. The 302 EFI motor is designed for torque so it is not surprising that it runs of out steam early in the powerband. I need to find out what bottleneck is keeping the power back. The next investment will be some good quality headers and an adjustable fuel regulator. A custom cam with some more cylinder filling duration is also on the wish list. Oh yeah, any advice on finding more horsepower is appreciated!

I'm fortunate to have a few sponsors who support my racing each year. Their support is a big help to making racing more affordable. I am very grateful for their continued support!

FordF150.Net This is one of the largest Ford truck enthusiast web sites on the internet. It has evolved from humble beginnings in 1999 to a major Ford resource centre with over 100,000 members. It truly is the premier Ford truck site for anyone interested in discussing, researching, viewing, or reviewing all Ford truck products.

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National Open

2009-08-04T22:28:00.007-06:00

I finally got a chance to make some passes last weekend at the Medicine Hat National Open. It really felt great to hit a few lights and feel the excitement of a busy drag strip again. I had hoped for 13.90's but had to settle for 14.20's all weekend long. Between the extreme air (5000 feet +) and some valve body problems finding more power was not going to happen. Best pass this weekend was a 14.22 @ 91.6 mph on a 1.96 60 foot. The mph would have been 95mph (and et 14.17) but I was scrubbing some speed as I had the win. This run was done with a hot motor in the worst air of the weekend. This tells me that my motor likely wants to be running with less fuel.

There was a large turnout of stock /super stock cars last weekend which made for some exciting racing. There was a large variety of cars ranging from a GT/AA car through to a V/SA car. It made for very diverse racing for certain. To my surprise there was also a P/SA 1989 Mustang GT convertible stocker from Washington. It was really exciting to meet someone running a combo I'm trying to build. The owner was really helpful and has offered to help point me in the right direction with my own project. Blair from Nitroimage snapped quite a few pics of the action which some can be viewed here.

Next race will be an SIR points meet. I'll be playing with the valve body, timing advance, and my launch technique to see if I can manage some 14.0's.

Rained Out

2009-07-26T14:55:00.002-06:00

Unfortunately Mother Nature had other plans today for fans of Saskatchewan International Raceway. Despite a promising start to the morning, once time trials began the skies darkened and the rain started. Despite the efforts and hopes of the staff the race could not proceed. So, I'll have to wait until the Medicine Hat National Open to get a baseline ET for the new mill. Despite not getting any passes it was great to visit, or 'chin wag', with old friends today. I think I'll head on over to Nitro's SIR archives for the afternoon...

It Runs!

2009-07-24T16:18:00.002-06:00

After three weeks of thrashing "Project Street Legal Stocker" is finally running! This Sunday it will make its first pass with the new mill (fingers crossed). Unfortunately, I ran over my budget which meant I had to cut back on a few key items (ie. exhaust and fuel regulator). This will cut 2-3 tenths of ET as the factory exhaust and fuel settings are conservative. I can cheat the fuel system into enriching the fuel mixture with a resistor in place of the coolant temperature setting. However, you can't find a way for the motor to breath through the factory exhaust. Oh well, I'll keep buying those 6/49 tickets just in case :) Regardless, my goal of running class this year will have to wait.

When taking apart the old motor I was shocked to find out how much timing chain stretch was present. I had replaced the timing chain in the old motor with a high performance chain from a local dealer less than 20,000km ago. Anyhow, that chain stretched enough to create 3/4's of an inch of play in the chain. When I set the distributor in the new motor with the identical timing settings as used in the past it had moved from 10 advanced to 12 degrees retarded - that is 22 degrees of cam timing and a pile of torque that could never have been found before. My next post will be after the SIR race on Sunday July 26th. I'm hoping for 13.90's.

Out with the old...

2009-07-08T12:36:00.002-06:00

Four hours of unbolting things and a few helpers resulted in the old motor being plucked from the car last night. Good thing as the delivery company dropped off my new converter this morning. It feels like Christmas in July:)

June Update

2009-06-24T09:11:00.007-06:00

Since the yard project has nearly finished I've finally found some time to work in the garage. I wish it was all leisure work .... but, my daily driver 1.9L Ford Escort decided to suck a valve last week. However, I'm hopeful a used head and a handful of gaskets should get me back and running.

However, as for the Stocker Project I'm happy to report that the short block is officially together! The next step is to pull the old motor and begin stripping some parts. I've now collected a total of four upper and lower intake combinations to flow test. One source of power in the stock 5.0 is finding a good lower intake as they are a big flow inhibitor for stock heads. A ported stock lower will provided 15-25hp and tq in an otherwise stock motor. Since porting is not an option, I need the best "as cast" intake I can find. Every little bit helps.

Lastly, I was going to wait on ordering a new converter until next winter. However, I was impulsive and called Andre at Edge Racing Converters. Edge as well established as a leader in Ford AOD converters. Anyhow, they are building a custom 9.5 converter to match the new motor and gearing combination. If the parts work as they should and I get a little luck from the tuning Gods I might just get my stocker under the index this year.

Rather Be Racing

2009-05-24T19:58:00.003-06:00

I'm long overdue for a post. I'd love to be writing a post about how strong the new motor is running or all the progress I've made over the winter. However, between work and family priorities, I've had no time to work on the car. Any extra time recently found has been spent landscaping our yard. So, today while cars thundered down the track at SIR (okay..not true the season opener was rained out) I stood trying to figure out how to best plumb my underground sprinkler valves. Fortunately, it was a lot simpler than the line lock install I did last year :)

Anyhow, the heads are done awaiting pick-up from Ken and the rest of the long block is ready to bolt together. If the yard schedule holds the car should be ready for mid July. More to come...

February Updates

2009-02-02T15:24:00.002-06:00

It has been a cold winter in my part of the world. I have made less than progress due to my 2 degrees celsius garage. Once the temperature warms up a bit I’ll be able to post some pictures of the engine progress. The block, crank, rods and pistons are back from the machine shop and ready for assembly. As I await the delivery of the rebuild kit I’m planning for the upcoming cylinder head work. This is very important because in stock eliminator racing there are big power gains come from valve job, valves, and the camshaft. However, you are very limited with what can be done. You must run stock lift on the cam, stock valve size, and use a “stock style” valve. In fact, for many years the NHRA (and IHRA) limited the valve job to a prescriptive 3 angle job with the bottom cut not to proceed further than .250 of an inch below the seat. The 2009 NHRA rulebook has done away with this valve job ruling and now allows for any valve job and any angle(s). This is very good news for those of us who use the E7TE head on their 302. The stock heads flow pretty well despite having small valves and ports. However, they really wake up once the bowl to seat transition is improved. Although a stock eliminator class legal valve job is not to be any deeper in the bowl than the valve guide boss, this still leaves lots of room to create more air flow by smoothing the transition of the air from the port, to the bowl, around the valve, and into the combustion chamber. The problem with doing a good valve job is finding a knowledgeable machine shop to make your specific heads flow. The angles, depths, and processes used by machine shops are some of the most secretive knowledge in the racing industry. I intend on using Ferrea valves with Crane valve springs. As for the machining…well I would mention my machine shop – but that’s a secret ;)

Stocker Meets Winter

2008-12-05T09:56:00.005-06:00

Winter has arrived! As you can see, project street legal stocker sits waiting for its turn in my garage. For now, two cars, two kids, 4 bicycles, and far too much gardening equipment are getting in the way. However, my bench and cabinet are ready for the short block buildup. If all goes as scheduled the new mill should be running by July.

This years racing season ended without issue or excitement. As a Fathers Day present I handed the keys over to my father for the funny car feature at my local track (SIR). He ran in the street legal class and made it to the semi finals. This was a great success considering he hadn't raced in over 30 years! It just goes to show that "old guys" can get it done :) My final race of the season ended abruptly with a first round loss. I was late and my opponent was not. However, on a positive note, given over the 200 hard runs on the motor it was still pulling consistent et's and mph. Next update will be pics of the shortblock as the machine shop called to say my pieces are ready to go.

Racing Updates

2008-08-04T19:22:00.002-06:00

Well, the last month has been a busy one around home. I've had little time for racing and car work. However, I did manage to finally install my Hurst Roll Control. Without this device doing a proper and consistent burnout was always a bit of a challenge. I'm pretty sure my 60 foot inconsistency was due to the fact I was not able to get enough heat into the tires. Last weekends racing at the Medicine Hat National Open confirmed my theory.

My 60 foot were within 1/100 all weekend long and the ET's didn't vary more than 2/100's over the course of 2 days. Too bad the drivers reaction time didn't do the same :) I averaged .030 lights until the 3rd round on Saturday when I "lost the tree" and got distracted when it really counted. Like my mentor says - sometimes you need to make every mistake possible more than once in order to get better.

The good news is that I'm only 7 tenths off the N/SA index. Considering that my car is virtually a pure stock high mileage car I'm feeling confident I can get well under with my new motor and planned tranny combo. Also, it was just amazing to see so many stock/super stock racers in one place. They really are a professional and truly sportsman oriented group of people who love racing. I can't wait to go back next year.

A good phone call

2008-07-10T12:48:00.003-06:00

Yahoo! - the machinist called and the block, heads, rods, and pistons all measured out well within factory tolerances! This means some significant cost savings and more cash for go fast parts and clever machining. Another "check mark" for Ford in building the 5.0 HO with good TRW forged slugs and super hard blocks. Next step is to start accumulating some of the required hardware.

Since I'll be driving this car on the street and in varying temperatures and conditions I need to be pretty conservative on the ring package. I moly coated cast ring is likely the step I'll proceed in unless I come across a better idea (which happens alot). I'll also begin by using the factory cam which will cut down on my efi expenses. I could easily find 20+ hp in a purpose built cam. However, to run this economically and safely on the street I would need a custom chip burned and never draw much vacuum for my brakes and sensors (not to mention idling around 1500rpm). I'm pretty confident I can put down 260hp at the rear wheels based on my current pure stock combination. The key is freeing up the power that is already present through parasitics inside and outside the motor. More to come.

Motor build has begun...

2008-06-25T21:43:00.003-06:00

I dropped off a good core motor at a local machine shop yesterday. I know quite a few people who have had work done at this particular shop so he comes recommended. As a purist, I'm not interested in tweaking each NHRA rule to the extreme. However, I need to make some decent power. I expect the block to check out okay as it showed little scuffing and still had cross hatch visible in every cylinder. You have love efi 5.0 blocks - they are so hard that most of the beating is on the piston. Provided after the tanking everything specs okay I plan to re-use as much as possible. Am I naive - no. Cheap - yes :)

Next post will be shop updates.

My blog is reborn

2008-06-10T22:41:00.003-06:00

I used this blogspot for a few years as a teaching resource site for computer science. I always told my students I'd buy lunch for the first student who could explain the significance of my url handle "60foot". Eventually a student did in fact make the connection between my hobby (ie. drag racing addiction) and the label. I believe in starting things right. To me, the tree and the first 60 feet of the racetrack are where most races begin...and end.

Anyhow, this blog is just a fun place for me to log my progress towards building a NHRA legal stock eliminator car that is driven to the track and hopefully consistent enough to go a few rounds. I'm building a M/SA or N/SA 1989 Ford Mustang LX which will require low 13 second ET's. Stop by anytime!