can I do it myself????

[Runner]

 are you talking about virgil sellers?   if so thats terrible he was a great guy and a racing icon in the area.      you might try putting the stock balancer back on and see if the vibration goes away.  i wonder if your engine got balanced with the balalncer and flex plate?   also could be a badly balanced converter?    im guessing you replaced the flex plate?  is so did you put a b&m on it? 

   as for the track. i emailed  one of the county commisioners about a month ago and got this reply i got on mAY 15TH  .
"We hope to open in a month or 6 weeks depending on the judge authorizing the sale
Thanks for writing.
Mark Richard"

   this is the the reply a friend of mine got on may 20th and he then forwared it to me also from mark richard.

"John, sorry for the delayed response.
We are working feverishly to make sure we at least get the Friday night drags open this season.  All of this is predicated on the Judge authorizing the sale.  He is to hear the case on June 19th, so precious time is slipping away but we are moving forward, developing a proposed calendar and preparing for the steps to open if we end up owning the track. 
Best regards,"

[RECHRGD]

Yes, Virgil Sellers.  I remember talking to him once about the 1960's racing scene in So. Cal. and we figured that our paths had crossed down there, back in the the day. RIP Virgil.  The vibration is definitely driveline related.  I only feel it with relation to how much pedal I'm giving it.  It started last year when I put in the GV unit and had to change the angle of the tailpiece to clear the crossmember.  I tried some 1 degree shims in the rear axle.  It helped, but did not cure it.  When re-installing the the tranny over the winter, I modified the crossmember so that the tranny is back at pretty much the original angle, but the shims are still in place and now the vibration is back (and worse than before) under power.  No vibration at all if just cruising.  BTW, why is the new valve train noisy (tick, tick, tick, tick).  Brian blamed it on the fast ramp of the cam along with the Crane Gold rockers.  All the settings were checked and he said it was nothing to worry about.  It sounds more like a solid lifter car now.  Bob

[firefighter3931]

Bob, the vibration is most likely a pinion angle issue. With a street car you want a 2* nose down angle so you'll have to take some measurements at the transmission and the differential and do some calculatiing. If the trans is 4* nose down and the diff is 4* nose up the effective pinion angle would be zero....so in that case you would need a 2* shim under the spring perch to bring you to 2* nose down. This is just an example to illustrate the concept but that is what you're looking for 

The HL Comp cams are a little noisier than a stock hydraulic....nothing to be concerned about. Make sure you are using a good EP additive in your oil like EOS, ZZDP plus or even the Comp Cams breakin lube. 



Ron


Ps here's a thread on rear suspension setup with some discussion on pinion angle :


http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/topic,45075.0.html

[RECHRGD]

Thanks Ron! Hopefully it will get all sorted out on tuesday.  Good to know that the 'noise' is normal for a build like mine.  I've got about 200 miles on the oil and additive that was changed after the start-up and before the dyno.  Should I change it again now or should it be good for for a few hundred more?  BTW we cut open the filter after the start-up and all looked good.  Bob

[Runner]

i raced this weekend in walla walla and i heard about virgil from several spokane area racers.  its a real shame. he was always a super guy at the track, a real showman  and he will be missed.


heres  video of a couple years ago. 


  http://videos.streetfire.net/video/Wheel-Stander-Crash-Park_5174.htm

[firefighter3931]

Thanks Ron! Hopefully it will get all sorted out on tuesday.  Good to know that the 'noise' is normal for a build like mine.  I've got about 200 miles on the oil and additive that was changed after the start-up and before the dyno.  Should I change it again now or should it be good for for a few hundred more?  BTW we cut open the filter after the start-up and all looked good.  Bob

Bob, with the oil/filter changed right after the cam breakin you are good to go. I would change it again at 1000 miles then normal intervals afterwards. 

Keep us posted on the drivetrain vibration issues.



Ron

[RECHRGD]

OK, we found out that they guy that installed the shims last year put them in backwards and actually had the nose up.  We turned them around (they were 2* pieces) and it felt better but not completely cured.  We put in 4* shims and no more vibration under power.  The guy at the shop I went to said that the tranny mount felt way too soft also.  I guess I'll try to get a poly one and see if that stiffens it up a bit.  I did jump on it once from a roll (about 15mph) and was surprised that it didn't break the tires loose.  Also the 1-2 shift is pretty soft.  I did feel the seat of the pants power increase and really got pushed back in my seat.  I guess I should take my tranny guy for a ride and see what he has to say.  Bob

[Runner]

hey bob, did the tranny get a transgo kit?.   and were you in first gear when you jumped on it?.  whats it do when you jump on it from a stop?   whats the new converter flash to?    how much torque did the motor make?

[RECHRGD]

hey bob, did the tranny get a transgo kit?. and were you in first gear when you jumped on it?. whats it do when you jump on it from a stop? whats the new converter flash to? how much torque did the motor make?

Hi Mike!  Tom (at Bekkerings) said that he put in a different shift kit to soften the shifts.  I don't know if it is a Transgo.  The old one was.  I was in 1st gear when I jumped on it and I have not tried it from a dead stop yet.  When Brian had the car on the dyno he said that the converter was flashing at 3300 rpm.  Max. torque is 343.73 at the wheels and that happens at about the same rpm that the converter flashes.  It pulls like a freight train on the highway.  Bob

[Runner]

did you want a softer shift?   and did he put the "other" kit in the same valve body that had the transgo kit in it?  if so that might be an issue since you do some perminant alterations to the valve body with the transgo kit.    this is definatly something id run past john kunkel.  ive found that most budget shift improver kits are a waste of money.   

[RECHRGD]

did you want a softer shift? and did he put the "other" kit in the same valve body that had the transgo kit in it? if so that might be an issue since you do some perminant alterations to the valve body with the transgo kit. this is definatly something id run past john kunkel. ive found that most budget shift improver kits are a waste of money.

The original tranny was built with the transgo kit by a guy that worked at a tranny shop in town that has since closed.  He did a great job.  That thing shifted nice and firm but not too firm.  2nd gear rubber was a normal occurrence.  For some reason, after several years and over 20K miles, it gave up on the way back from a show in Richland.  I had Tom at Bekkerings rebuild it using the same transgo kit.  It would shift fine under hard acceleration, but around town in drive the 2/3 shift would clunk so loud it was embarrassing.  Also sometimes the 2/3 shift felt like it was doing a transbrake kind of thing and would actually throw you forward before the shift was complete.  I took it to Tom and he made some adjustments, but nothing that really made much difference.  He told me that he had to "soften up the shifts" and he would have to rebuild it again.  When he took it apart, he found metal shavings everywhere, so something was definitely not right.  He changed the valve body to one from a 4x4 truck.  He said that, since I was building up the engine for more power, the 4x4 valve body would hold up better.  The new tranny shifts like a new car but leaks in two spots, so I'll be taking the car in for the leaks to be fixed.  I think I'll get a poly mount and have that installed while it's there.  After I get the new mount in I'll feel more comfortable beating on it from a dead stop.  Bob

[firefighter3931]

Bob, once you have the leaks addressed and feel comfortable ; try shifting it manually and see how it feels.



Ron

[Runner]

hey bob,  hows the car running?  did you get the tranny stuff taken  care of?   

[RECHRGD]

hey bob, hows the car running? did you get the tranny stuff taken care of?

Hi Mike!  Sorry for not keeping you updated.  I've had a bunch of stuff going on.  The car runs great, but I haven't had a chance to address the tranny yet.  I bought a new poly tranny mount and some poly-loc engine mounts from Schumacher and will get those installed when the tranny leaks are being dealt with.  I did get brave and tried jumping on it again from about 5 mph.  The tires broke loose for about 30 feet or so with the car wanting to drift a little sideways before catching traction.  I need to adjust the shifting points up, as it now is shifting at about 5,000 rpm in auto.  The car seems to run hotter in traffic than it did before.  I'm not sure why except for the fact that I now have a tranny cooler sitting in front of the radiator that was not there before.  Even with the electric pusher fan on it has approached 230* a couple of times.  I'm thinking of trying a bit more timing.  Maybe that will help the temp. go down and also free up some more power.  When it was dyno'd they went from 33* to 36* and lost some power.  They just put it back to 33* and called it good, so maybe the sweet spot is at 34* or 35*.  Worth a try I guess.  Still nothing new on SRP.  I doubt we'll get any racing in this year.   Bob

[firefighter3931]

  The car seems to run hotter in traffic than it did before.  I'm not sure why except for the fact that I now have a tranny cooler sitting in front of the radiator that was not there before.  Even with the electric pusher fan on it has approached 230* a couple of times.  I'm thinking of trying a bit more timing.  Maybe that will help the temp. go down and also free up some more power.  When it was dyno'd they went from 33* to 36* and lost some power.  They just put it back to 33* and called it good, so maybe the sweet spot is at 34* or 35*.  Worth a try I guess. 

Bob, when you get a chance check your spark lead at idle. You should have at least 16-18* at 800 rpm or it will run hot. You might have to recurve the distributor at some point if there is too much mechanical advance built into it. Retarded ignition timing even at lower engine speeds will cause excessive heat. 



Ron



Ron

[RECHRGD]

Thanks Ron!!  That makes sense---I'll check it out.  Bob