Mopars, Drag Racing, Engine Building, etc…
Archive for December, 2008
Panorama Photography
Dec 31st
I forgot about this until now… way back on November 22nd while I was waiting in line for the gates at Speedworld to open, I got out of my truck and quickly snapped some pictures of the line. I made sure to lock the exposure because I wanted to make this into a panorama using image stitching software. Well, here it is! Be warned – it is big. This was the day of the 2008 ADRA Memorial Race.
Click on the image below to see the panorama.
Repairing the Car – Ignition System
Dec 30th
With the new headers on, the old Mopar Peformance spark plug wires can no longer avoid touching the headers (the new Hooker headers hug the block tighter). So this meant I needed to order new spark wires with 45 degree boots. I decided on the Moroso Ultra 40′s and they arrived from Summit Racing .
I carefully assembled the wires following the instructions that came with the kit. I also took this time to remove the old distributor cap and rotor and put new ones on. The old rotor was really snug on the shaft but I managed to get it off. The old cap and rotor were pretty worn out. I put everything back together and ran the engine. It all seems to work!
In the second image above you can see both the old and new rotors. The top one is the new rotor.
Repairing the Car – Alternator
Dec 28th
Technically I’m not repairing the alternator – just adjusting the way it is mounted to make it more stable. Currently the problem is that when the engine is running at idle RPM, the alternator shakes way too much for my liking. Right now the alternator is mounted to a triangular bracket which in turn is sitting on top of two one inch long spacers bolted to the engine. I suspect that the root of the problem are those spacers. The spacers were hand made – cut using an angle grinder. That made the top and bottom of the spacers not perfectly parallel, and each spacer was cut differently. I’m thinking that when both are used, together they create a fulcrum point which the bracket (acting as a lever) rocks back and forth on.
So, I figured out another way to rearrange the stuff to make the alternator more stable without repositioning it. I got rid of one spacer, and moved the other spacer to the alternator side of the bracket instead of the engine side. The bracket is now mounted flat against the engine (with a washer in between) and since only one spacer is used now, it eliminates or softens any fulcrum point making it harder for the alternator to wobble.
At the same time I straightened out the system so the pulley on the alternator is much more parallel to the crank pulley. After I did this work, I filled the radiator back up with water. Then I ran the engine for a minute… voila! The alternator now barely shakes at idle. I’m much happier with the alternator mounting setup now.
Later today I put on the header extensions and marked off where I want the header evac hose nipples to be welded onto them. Jerad came by to pick those up – he is going to have a friend weld those on for me.
Repairing the Car – Steering Joint
Dec 26th
Some of you might remember that I mentioned a few posts back that the factory steering pot coupler had its top knocked off and was leaking grease. The top would not go back on so I either had to get a new pot coupler or go for something nicer like a Flaming River u-joint adaper . The adapter arrived as part of a larger order from Summit Racing on Christmas Eve. Then today, the day after Christmas, two of my Uncles (Dave and Dick) came over to my place to help me install this into the car.
We followed the instructions that came with the Flaming River piece and also I used the factory chassis manual that I won off Ebay to figure out how to take the steering column off. After some unbolting the steering column came off pretty easily and we were able to get the old coupler off. Then Dave decided that we should take the steering shaft back to his friend’s shop, where we could use his nice power tools. We needed to cut an inch and a half off the end, and also to do some drilling for the pin.
We then brought the new steering shaft complete with flaming river u-joint back to my house and put the column back together. It all seems to work and the steering wheel spins just fine. The true test will be coming up when I take the car to the track – hopefully on New Year’s Day.
Repairing the Car – Trans Cooler Line
Dec 21st
One piece of unfinished business with repairing the car is the trans cooler line. We had to take it off because it was in the way of the new headers. I was going to order parts from Summit Racing to make a flexible stainless steel line to replace it… but decided to look into if I can reuse the existing one to save some money.
The first thing I did was pound out the existing hard line so it was nice and straight. That was easy enough – I just used a couple of jack stands, some rags, and a rubber mallet. It’s almost like the line wanted to be straight, it was a pretty effortless job.
Here are some pictures of me doing the job to straighten it out – you can see me wearing Jerad’s coveralls. Nice of him to leave that behind at my house! 
Then I went to home depot and got a tube bender for thirteen bucks. It was a nice tube bender – it did the job and fit the line perfectly. I put bends in the line where I wanted them to be and hooked the line back to the trans cooler and transmission.
Now that part is all done! I’ve ordered a bunch more parts from Summit Racing to finish the job of repairing the car. One major piece of the puzzle left to do is to get the header extensions and weld the header evac hose nipples onto them. The parts are coming from Summit and Jerad has got a friend that can do the welding job. Once that is done then we should be ok to take the car to the track for a shake down.
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