Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

During the insanity at my age of building a stocker from scratch, I cant help but ask has anyone ever written a list or article on the most useless changes or improvements not to waist your time and money on ( sometimes known as overkill ) ??? ( surely not all of you guys are too proud are you ??? ) Would anyone care to share their experience ???

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

Yes, an overkill fuel system. I had my eye on a $135 Holley Blue pump and regulator for my 302 ford with a Holley 4150 and posted a question to this forum. I let the guys talk me into a MagnaFuel 275 at $450 with a built in filter. It pumps out so much gas that the regulator is turned way down to keep from flooding the engine. I had the floats set wrong and gas flooded out of the carb like a fountain and started a pretty good fire. All is well but I toasted some wire.

Good investments for your stocker:

Painless Extreme Duty wire under the hood
Fire extinguisher next to the seat

Dale

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

Dale, investing on the Magnafuel pump was not a bad investment.
The Holley fuel pumps have been having lots of issues, especially leakage due to warped housings ever since they started manufacturing them in China.

Don't blame the fuel pump when you admitted to have set the floats incorrectly.

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

Hah! Where would you like me to start? I should do a "Mythbusters" thread on that subject, but I won't. It would do me no good and could anger and/or hurt a bunch of people.
I WILL say, in general, fuel systems and ignition systems with an honorable mention going to piston rings.

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

Dale, tech made me take my fire extinguisher out from inside my stocker, said it was not legal ballast. Tom

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

come on Billy, be a man !!!!!!!! Just leave the names out ???

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

There should be a rich deposit of that ore. Remember that we live in a consumer world.

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

IHRA requires a fire inside the car. NHRA does not allow it. I was told, when they made me take mine back out, it was a safety issue. That (correctly) if it was easy to get out of it's mount to use, it could also come out & bounce around inside the car during a wreck and injure you.

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

Allstar Racing Products sells an NHRA legal quick release fire extinguisher mount.

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

I hope this thread takes off. For those us looking to get in it someday, this will help us spend our money wisely right off the bat.

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

I read that through Summit before putting the extinguisher in. The factory mount is fastened to the sill bar on the drivers side with stainless steel zip ties and I'm prepared to remove it if I'm asked to.

With regards to my fuel pump, what it needs is a pressure gauge at the pump as well as the carb. Then I can back the feed from it down to a more reasonable level for my current needs without having it nearly choked at the carb end. A smaller one would have done the job, though and that's the point of this thread.

Some guy told me he uses two regulators under the hood on a single carb just to mess with the competition...

Dale

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

You want to get in the cheapest way,buy a turn key car. Or build a 5.0 mustang, best bang for your buck.

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

A dead head style regulator is not doing your fuel system or carb any favors.

As for a waste of money for me.
*The dual O2 sensors on my data logger system.
*Collector Tethers that have yet to be asked about in tech.

Sean

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

The six-pac picked up when I changed from a 5/16 fuel line with a sock on it to a 1/2 with a good pump instead of that Carter thing.

Snake oil = 0wt. anything its a little quicker but way more expensive in the long run.

Racing hyd. lifters the ones that bled down and did not pump up.

Some kind of collector that boosted power and torque yet slowed the car down.

The smaller camshaft that is supposed to be faster in the summer. Man talk about gullible!

Like Billy stated some piston rings.

The best one was the nitro in the oil trick. It smells like you are going to set the world on fire, but alas its just perfume.

Ceramic coating on a light weigh drum to improve service life of the drum, it worked very well, but it would burn the band up in four or five runs.

And just bunch of stuff I have thought about and built that did not work, but every once in a while I make something that helps a little or a lot and best part is I don't have to share or sell it.

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

maybe you could put a tether onit

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

Internet advice from guys that take what they read on line, never test ever, but think whatever they read elsewhere will work on "your" car.

That and the old Aluminum Hubs! Sure, they were light and cheap, but they shook every bolt loose on the racecar! Made pretty cool looking ashtrays.

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

Dale assuming you are talking about the MagnaFuel 4450. I'm wondering what regulator(s) you were using? What was you inlet supply line size and outlet line size as well as bypass line size? What was your system pressure? MB.

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

LOL That's a good one

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

That wouldn't have been L.Bargeman would it?

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

The pump is the Quickstar 275 with filter and the supply is two -8 lines from the fuel cell to a MF Y and return line is -8 also. Line to the engine bay is -10 and the regulator is a Magnafuel MP 9633 rated at 4 to 12 psi. I had it dialed down to 5 psi at the time of my fire. The carb float was hard to set and gas flowed like a fountain out of the carb. I have an Air Gap manifold and it served as a reservoir for the spilled gas. The starter sparked it. Exciting.


EDIT: Regarding fire extinguishers in race cars, it is addressed in Section 9:3 of General. Extinguishers mounted in race cars must be a minimum of 2.5 lbs. and securely fastened. Flip open clamps are prohibited. I need a bigger extinguisher and an approved clamp.

Dale

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

The mount I use... http://www.quadratec.com/products/98003_19X0_PG.htm along with http://www.quadratec.com/products/98003_001X_PG.htm#. I suppose it is legal...I feel better with it strapped within reach. I have it mounted high on the passenger side bar so it can be seen from outside in a panic situation.

http://i434.photobucket.com/albums/q...ps90e4e491.jpg

http://i434.photobucket.com/albums/q...ps271e582f.jpg

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

Anyone ever played the "Converter Game" ........you would have had to play to understand........wish I had that money back LOL

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

Thanks, Rich. That one and the AllStar are listed NHRA approved mounts according to Summit. H3R has an approved two part mount system, too. Smart placement, too.

Stupid Car Stuff: Billet Aluminum Window Cranks...

Dale

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

No, but I did play the Transbrake Game.

Ordered a C4 Streetfighter from TCI with the transbrake they had for it. A push in modulator for 71 and later cases was listed. The trans they sent me had a screw in so I looked up the number and it was a 70 case. I found a screw in module for a C4 on-line and it turned to be too big for the case.

I wound up going to a local transmission shop and buying a 72 case and paying them to pull all the parts out of the TCI trans and install them in the 72 case. The gasket they put in had a razor thin cut in it and it blew out the minute I turned the engine over. It's fine now but what an effort!

How about the flex plate shield that wouldn't fit the trans tunnel and had to be replaced with an SFI bell housing at 3X the price?

Dale

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

I played "the converter game" too. Like to have that money back also. I was originally told to call ATI, and buy whatever Charlie Plott recommended. Later blew money on two different "custom" converters that were supposed to be faster than the "just off-the-shelf " ATI. Both converters slowed the car at both ends of the track .

Next was step headers, then merge collectors. Depends on your combo, evidently some run faster with both. I found mine likes big, same sized primaries. It also likes big, straight collectors, over two different sets of merge collectors. Actually, one set did not slow the car, just ran the same. Talking to Jere Stahl, and after him seeing dyno sheets, time slips, and answering engine combo, converter and gear set questions, was told "That engine does not want small primaries or collectors". No sh* t. :-)
What he recommended was close to what I had settled on, except all 8 spark plugs come out, and my headers don't bang the ground if I have to lift during an excessive wheel stand. Also runs 5 Hun quicker, and almost 1 MPH faster. I think it was one of the last sets they built. Probably lucky Jere remembered my from way back.

Test & test, don't expect to get fast reading message boards. Get ready to spend time and money on track rentals, if you want to be somewhat fast.

What was said about trick rings also. I have some piston ring stories. LOL

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

I have a garage full of worthless stuff I already blew money on and I haven't even had the stocker down the track yet....the motors still on the stand, wait, the car is still on the rotisserie :confused:

I thought they said building a car from scratch would be fun:(

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

Racin be fun!!! Building ain't.......

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

I know I'm wired weird, but I love building them too. And all the testing.

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

You are not weird. You just enjoy what you do....What the old saying goes "Different strokes for different folks"....

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

How about some good advice:
Avoid the trick of the week and ricky racer advise.
What works for me may not for you as there may be a progression of steps before and after, think for yourself do your research no matter the source.
If you happen to receive advice from someone very knowledgeable at least try it.
Ask good questions.
The best advice I received: By the best quality parts you can afford, avoid purchasing the same item twice. You know the Mezier water pump is the way to go but may settle for the cheap generic brand model to start with. Heck you can but 2 or 3 cheap pumps for the cost of the Meziere; well you will need them.

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

Bought a quadrajet from carb builder x and I was told to buy from carb builder y. X was slower front half and Y was slower in back half. Same ET.
Take the rubber seal off where hood meets firewall. Found out it wasn't legal. Put seal on and it went faster.
Had square lipped seal on brake calipers. Put the round type seal on and have less drag. No ET gain.
I quit at 8 converters for one motor combo.
Monte has more frontal area then Camaro so you need more gear. Went from 5.67 to 5.86 nothing gained but a couple more RPM's at finish line.

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

Snake oil, fancy plugs and wires and yes those damn converter things:rolleyes: Best advice always came from grumpy old grey haired guys :eek: Great topic

Kevin

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

So from anybody in the pits? :O

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

I've learned just as much from what doesn't work as from what does work. If you don't try things you don't advance.

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

That's the best post in this thread!

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

Exactly!

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

Recommendation from a highly respected manufacturer, for an uncontrollable "square" intake cam lobe. Then further recommendation for "glass-like" tool steel retainers. Then further recommendation for beehive springs with smaller "glass-like" tool steel retainers.
A yes, these recommendations have kept my car in pieces for years !

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

hi, I noticed mention concerning rings earlier, also the" trick of the week camshaft" . seen lots of those, lol

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

Best advice always came from grumpy old grey haired guys

Wait - what- you have to have hair?

Give up Rusty just finish bolting it together and go!

hahaha

Re: Most expensive, least helpful and useless advice
 

This is somewhat of a variation on your question but over the years I've learned a lot about what you can get away with by looking at various things on race cars that have been in my shop that I never thought would have worked, usually things that I thought were way too flimsy to survive. An example was an 8 second full bodied car that had 1310 ujoints, a 3" alum driveshafts and a 10 bolt Chevy rearend, all with a ton of runs and no significant breakage. I think what happens in a lot of cases is a bracket car that progressively gets faster and lightweight parts don't get upgraded. Nice to learn lessons from someone elses torture testing.

That being said, I have a boatload of 'good idea' parts in the corner that didn't pan out. As most class racers have exhausted the easy performance improvement ideas, it comes down to a certain amount of educated trial and error. Someone once told me that at this point, if you get $1 worth of performance for every $3 spent, you're doing pretty good.

Jim Caughlin
SS 6019