Excellent thread!!! Now if only I could get my buddy to sign in a nd tell you about his little car.... Think it's good for about the #5 spot. I could say more, but I'd prefer him to do it, until then I'll leave you a picture.
OK guys I'll tell. I was hoping the cars' owner and my good friend Chris Allen would have signed in and taken up the story. I'm sure however he would not mind me telling, as I seem to spend alot of my time under the hood of this beast. '71 Riviera with specs as follows. '76 block bored + .038 and filled with forged Wiseco pistons. From memory I think deck is about + .005 and topped with Cometic head gaskets. Connecting, the pistons to the crank are a set of modified Cat H beam rods, and held together using a girdled Poston pan. A little word of warning when using these rods. Measure, measure, measure. Although a good rod, these had to be re-machined in just about every area to put them right! Total seal provide the seal in the ring department, compression works out to be just about 11:1. The heads, are a set of race ported Stage 1 aluminum Street Eliminator provided by AMP as is the custom camshaft. 235/240 duration @ .050 Lift is .497/.513 on 108* lobe separation and 104* intake centreline. Working the valves are a set of TA 1.65 roller rockers. Intake is a good old style B4B with a BG 850 Mighty Demon supplying the fuel. A Davis HEI lights the mixture which then exhausts through TA 2" headers and a custom 3" stainless exhaust with Straightline Performance mufflers. A tight Art Carr 10" converter transmits drive to a home built TH 400 and back to the stock 3.23:1 Posi rear. Front suspension has been rebuilt and features poly bushings, retains stock springs, sway bar removed for racing and QA1 shocks. Rear suspension, again stock springs, air bags and QA1 shocks. Rear tyres are currently Hoosier Quick Times, but as the picture shows, it needs a stiffer sidewall trying to move all that weight. Total weight now with driver is right around 4555Ibs. Although this new motor has only just been broken in and we haven't started tuning yet, this look promising with a best of 12.29 @ 111 mph. I'm sure when we get a handle on the tune up 11's are in there. Best 60 ft is around 1.75 and yes gentlemen that is a little daylight under that tyre! If you have any questions I'll do my best to answer them, I'm still hoping Chris will sign on and take up the story.
Wow Thats Damn Impressive! I hope he does sign in like to know more about it .. he runs the same set up i do in the back as far as suspension curious to know his air bag settings and shock settings too... and the stall on the convertor too... thats putting some pony's out! is that a roller cam or flat tappet? thanks!
The cam is a regular flat tappet using hydraulic lifters. Don't think we've ever tested the brake stall, although believe it's rated at 3500. Air bag settings, I'll have to ask, but think they are 10 psi driver side and about 30 passenger. Will have to confirm those. Shock settings: Usually start with them about 3 clicks back from full soft, both sides at the rear. Front: Generally start with passenger side at full soft, drivers side about 3 clicks back. Need to work on the suspension quite a bit for next year. Like rebuild the trailing arms, new bushings and the like.
Cool ... I run close to that same cam.But Less comp 9.3:1. 231 single pattern, 108 also at 104.. but i also use rhoads lifters. and H.S 1.65's which are closer to 1.72..Making my lift .556 what kind of air presure in the tires? I run M/T drags with 19 psi with tubes also... Maybe too much? I also run my shocks at 7 and bags both at 12 psi... thanks
Grandville, Have spoken to Chris. He's having computer problems logging in. So has asked me to carry on. On the old engine, ran a best of 12.86@108mph, ran the air bags at 5psi drivers' side and 25 passenger. Haven't had enough track time to tune the suspension yet. Run the Hoosiers at about 20 psi on a given day. The M/T's are one option we are looking to try, thinking that stiffer sidewall will help launch the weight of the car.
Ian Thanks!!..What was the old engine combo?...shocks set at 3 there too? I am trying to get my mph up..granted i am probably loosing 50 hp cause of the comp.. but i would think i should be closer to 104 -105..Some of my runs earlier this year indicated 12.70's at sea levl at about that mph..Had alot of headwinds this year and you know how these heavy cars like the wind lol.....Chryco..I do have more ..
The old motor didn't used to make the any where near the torque of the new one. Used to just run the shocks at full soft. We always seemed to be struggling for any form of consitency with the old set-up. It used to make a couple of good passes and then go to pieces with out changing a thing. Let me test the old grey cells a moment. '76 block bored +.030 and filled with Hypereutetic pistons, rods were stock, polished and well balanced. Chris ported his own iron heads and converted them to Stage 1 using TA stainless valves. Cam was the good old 241/241 Hemi Killer, think the lift was 499. Run a KB Wildcat intake manifold back then and initially an 800 spreadbore Holley and later the 850 Mighty Demon. Had a struggle to keep head gaskets in the motor, used to like blowing them into the valley. The motor came to a bit of a sad end on a high speed run and melted/cracked a couple of pistons because of a carburettor lean out. Have installed O2 sensor bungs inthe exhaust and now run an Innovate Motorsort air/fuel meter when racing. An excellent tool. You can see/take live readings or record a run. A much better way to tune.
So he went to a smaller cam now?was that on a 108 to? to build more torque? I have a pretty const 60ft but i want it down to the mid 1.7's and i like the way the riv is planting the tires thats why i ask.. I know we run different motors but were similar as far as weight ... chryco heres some more pics..
To build more torque, Yes I guess so. The main reason was for streetability and to help manifold vacuum, dare I say it for the brakes!! The best thing on this new motor is the heads. Stage I street Eliminators. AMP did an excellent job with the porting which why the motor makes all it's new power. The front of the car does rise up along way because there is very little left of the rebound stop. The excessive creasing of the sidewalls on the Hoosiers I think is probably hurting the 60ft, that is why we are looking to a tyre with a stiffer sidewall, like the MT's or maybe a radial slick.
Ok ladies, the list has been updated. Please let me know if something isn't right and I'll promptly make the change. I guess it's winter time (I wouldn't know), and the tinkering has begun. Any new goals for 2008? Any planned modifications you'd like to share? It's impressive to see some of the numbers up there, or actually all of them. I never got too far with the old car when it comes to times, but I bet I had just as much fun as the quick guys. For 2008 I would like to get everything in order on my newly acquired 66 Wildcat so I can take it for a baseline run, that's where I'm at.
So far only two "NailHead" powered cars & Rivs. at that. I feel good at being 15th. out of all the 455+ cubed & modified engines. Being "My" "Nail" for the most part is stock (with the exception of "My Rockers") with over 180K on it.
What octane is he running. I am curious if he gets by on pump gas or has to mix in a bit of race fuel.....
