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#1
03-26-2014, 10:51 PM
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Converter and tire recomendations
I am currently running the original 11" 3000 stall converter I bought for my car back when I was a 21 year old kid. It's the only performance converter I've had in the car and ran my best time of 10.87/124.83 with it back in 1987. The cam I was running was a Cam Dynamics solid flat-tappet pushing 1.65 rockers yielding .622/.644 lift with .050 duration of 265/275 on 106 lobe separation installed straight up at 106. Compression is in the 11.5 to 12:1 range with extensively ported intakes and mostly stock exhaust ports. Headers were 1.75 X 3" collectors. Intake manifold was either a very modified Torker1 w/800 Holley or a loaned stock unmodified Nash/Warrior 2x4 with 2 -660 holleys. I ran the personal best with the 2x4 but I got the modified Torker1 with 800 to run a best of 11.00@123.29. Crank is factory 455 with 73-74 455SD rods, and 530 gram Ross flat-tops on lightweight taper wristpins with Total Seal Gappless rings, and for what its worth, the volume on the 48 intakes after porting is 175cc. Chamber volume is 69 ccs after being opened up from somthing in the low 60ccs (dont remember exactly but they were the super small 48 chambers like what would be used on a 69 350HO engine.
As can be seen in the old 1987 video in my signature, I ran 11.5x29.5 Firestone wrinklewalls with slapper bars and airshocks to get my fenders off of the tires...front suspension was original equipment. The suspension was really non existant and I relied on big tires to get whatever traction I got. After all this time I'm going to get the car back to the track soon but have made some changes to both the existing engine and the suspension. Changes for the engine are as follows: The engine will be the same shortblock freshened up with new rings on the same pistons (same compression ratio.) A new Lunati flat tappet with a little bigger specs at .637/.660 lift with .050 duration of 275/289 on 106 lobe separation installed on a 104 intake lobe centerline. The same heads are being ran but with stud girdles and the exhaust ports reworked, generally enlarged all the way through and gasket matched. New Maddog headers with stepped primaries to 1/78 with 3.5 collectors. Intake manifold now will be a modified 2x4 Wenzler 1 with the same 660 Holleys. I still have the modified Torker 1 to try but dont have the Nash 2x4 any longer. I will no longer be running the big wrinkle walls hanging out of the fenders as I want a cleaner look...at least in that area. I would like tire recomendations including radial versus wrinkle wall in the 10.5 inch range in both a DOT and non DOT approved to go with the suspension improvements that include: CE 3 way adjustable drag shocks front and rear (no more air shocks lol), new rear springs (multi-leaf...unfortunatley I didn get the split-leafs), new Moroso Trick Drag Springs in the front and Cal-Trac bars in place of the slapper bars. I'm hoping I will actually have a working drag race type suspension that will help plant the smaller tires. Also, I have added sub-frame connectors What is your best recommendation for a converter? Do you think a smaller dia looser converter would be called for with the changes to the engine and could the suspension and smaller tires handle a harder launch from more converter. I would appreciate tire and converter recomendations. Like I said, I've only had one converter the whole time I've owned the car and could benefit from experienced advice. What converter company should I go with that knows what Pontiacs like? Over the years I've collected a couple of used Race converters I've kept around for hen I get back to the track, but I dont know their condition, one is a 10" and I have to check the other, it might be a step smaller. Who would you guys recommend I send the converters to for rebuilding and how should I tell them to build them as far as stall , etc. Sorry for the long post, but I know good recommendations require a lot of info...that, and I also tend to get a bit too wordy...lol Thanks in advance. Oh,...of all things, I forgot to mention rearend gears. Right now the car still has 4.56 gears I ran my best time with ( but also ran 10.96 with 4.10s...4.56 gears weren't worth all the extra RPMs at the finish line) but to accomodate the smaller 27 to 28" dia tires and a possible addition of a 2x4 plate Nitrous system a deceased friend left me, I will probably be running 3.55s Last edited by 10secbird; 03-26-2014 at 11:50 PM. |
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#2
03-26-2014, 11:09 PM
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Call PTC, tell them what you have, and what you want to do, and buy their product. They have done well for me, three different times. One of those was when I needed to tighten my RT's and they tightened my converter.
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1969 Firebird, Tx3-455/468 machined by CVMS E-heads by Dave Wilcox/Comp Cams 300B-6 flat solid 850DP on E-85 by Eric Niefert/T2 1" plastic spacer T-400/PTC 4000/390's/30x9 Hoosier radial slicks,#3400 1.38 60' 6.32 @ 108 MPH at Northeast Dragway NC 5/23/15 (9th pass on new engine) https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ePCu2v...ature=youtu.be 1.37 60' 6.26 @ 109 half track, 9.86 @ 136 1/4 mile, #3350 11/26/16 at Richmond Dragway (125th pass on new engine) |
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#3
03-26-2014, 11:30 PM
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#4
03-26-2014, 11:43 PM
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http://www.ptcrace.com/
Just ordered my new converter from them, still waiting to get it in the car. My brother is running one from them that seems pretty close out the box. Nice people to deal with and extremely quick turn around time. |
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#5
03-27-2014, 01:52 AM
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PTC is in FL, and I remember talking to you at Sacto. I have run 355, 373 (390 currently) and (410 gears with a Muncie). Any one of these will work good with the right converter. I sat out last year, but I have a new 455/468 engine I still need to assemble before making any passes this year. I'm pulling the front sheet metal to fix some rust and shed some weight before installing my 468. I hope to be up and running by May or June. My home track is Northeast Dragway in NC.
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1969 Firebird, Tx3-455/468 machined by CVMS E-heads by Dave Wilcox/Comp Cams 300B-6 flat solid 850DP on E-85 by Eric Niefert/T2 1" plastic spacer T-400/PTC 4000/390's/30x9 Hoosier radial slicks,#3400 1.38 60' 6.32 @ 108 MPH at Northeast Dragway NC 5/23/15 (9th pass on new engine) https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ePCu2v...ature=youtu.be 1.37 60' 6.26 @ 109 half track, 9.86 @ 136 1/4 mile, #3350 11/26/16 at Richmond Dragway (125th pass on new engine) |
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#6
03-27-2014, 10:52 AM
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If your referring to Performance Torque Converters, they are in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. X2 on their service and return time. I dealt with Kenny Ford for my converter.
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#7
03-27-2014, 01:31 PM
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#8
03-27-2014, 05:18 PM
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I would recommend the Phoenix tires which is the old Firestone compound. I run a 28.5-9 -15 tire and my car will 60 foot 1.38 all day. I run the 29.5 10.5 Phoenix on my wifes Dart and her car 60s 1.33 . I am a dealer for Phoenix tire and I can get you a better deal than Summit or Jegs. PM me if interested in some tires and I will have them shipped to your front door. As far as converter is concerned I run a 9 inch 4600 stall from COAN and it was .2 and 3mph faster than my (Butler )TCI 8 inch converter that flashed at 5200. Here is a vid from the last time at the track last month. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IrHIH...&feature=share
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#9
03-27-2014, 08:28 PM
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Thanks everyone. Ventura...I like that launch...tell me what your suspension consists of. And tell me more about your tires...are they radial slicks....
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#10
03-27-2014, 08:41 PM
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#11
03-28-2014, 06:08 AM
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I wish I would have waited a bit longer back when I bought my new rear leaf springs, I bought the CalTracs 10 years ago and Calvert hadnt came out with the split-leafs yet. I had the the front frame off and replaced all body mounts and control arm bushings with an Energy Suspension Polyurethane kit. Seeing that your car can launch like that on a 9" slick is very motivating and gives me hope that with a similar sized tire I can still run as good or even better than I did with the big tires hanging out of my fenders. If I could get my car to launch like yours does with 10" tires, I'd be one happy camper. I think our cars are very similar in many aspects...we have similar engine combos, (except for the heads of course) very close to the same suspension components, and our cars probably weigh close to the same. I am hoping the engine improvemnets I listed, along with the suspension improvements, will get me running closer to 10.60 @ 128....and the right converter might be the clencher. What can I expect to pay for a converter like the one you are running? I've pretty much made up my mind to go with 3.55 gears. |
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#12
03-28-2014, 06:17 AM
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I talked to PTC last fall and they said $850 for a 8" or 9" full race converter with antiballoon plates, but you'll have to call and confirm with your combo.
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1967 Firechicken, 499", Edl heads, 262/266@0.050" duration and 0.627"/0.643 lift SR cam, 3.90 gear, 28" tire, 3550#. 10.01@134.3 mph with a 1.45 60'. Still WAY under the rollbar rule. |
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#13
03-28-2014, 11:35 AM
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