Drag and Drive News 7/30
Intro – On this week’s episode, we’ll talk to the Miles of Mayhem team members, National Get Out N Drive day plans, Mechanical drama with Bill Spangler, big announcement from Hustlin Horsepower, Sick Shootout updates, and of course the Built for Drag and Drive brought to you by our friends at Sweet Patina.
Congrats to Hustlin Horsepower team on the announcement of a baby.
3rd Annual National Get Out N’ Drive Day – Oct 2, join car guys and girls across the country getting out in their cars to support local businesses and enjoy their hobby. The Get Out N Drive podcast established the National Get Out N Drive Day to encourage everyone to hit the road, enjoy your co-pilots and see the sights. Cars and driving are part of the road trip of our lives. We must preserve this tradition so take the day to Get Out N drive and capture the adventure of the open road. Can’t Get Out N Drive? You can watch a classic road trip movie, get out the Hot Wheels or RC cars and play, or work on that project car to get them ready for the 2023 National Get Out N Drive Day! Visit getoutndrive.com for more info.
Make sure to use hashtags #getoutndrive #driveday2022 and #whatdrivesyou so everyone can see your day.
Supply Chain Struggles – How has the parts shortages affected engine builders?
Ryan Mueller said “One thing that has been a challenge but ended up being a silver lining is Valves. We all know the best answer for big power, high rpm LS engines for intake valves is Titanium. But for a large majority of the LS crowd it is just not in the budget to swing Titanium cost. The problem with stainless valves is there are just not a lot of options in the severe duty category that have the proper margin thickness, material grade etc to handle the extreme demands of todays engines. So I reached out to a couple of suppliers and asked if they could make what I viewed as the toughest stainless valve available with my margin thickness, dimensions etc. Long story short this ended up being the best thing I could have done as it made a reliable valve at half the cost. The ultimate test they have been through so far was one of my customers in Georgia who put 62lbs of boost on them. 30 passes and still running solid! Now would I recommend those valves for that much boost? No! But none the less it was an ultimate test that gives my full confidence in the new found affordable solution!” So, without the parts struggles, these valves wouldn’t exist.
Mike Lough said “We are spending any profits we make, on parts that are available to try to stay ahead and keep them on the shelf here for builds that we know will be coming. I am direct with all manufacturers (Dart, Callies, Brodix, Manley, Wiseco, etc.) and deal with them as much as possible. But in times like this we have even had to buy parts from parts warehouses. And in some cases even had to go to Amazon and Ebay just because someone on there had something we need. There are many parts that are not available anywhere and take up to a year and a half to get. If people want exotic builds they have to wait with no ETA on it.”
Bill Spangler – Cylinder Head struggle? On Midwest Drags, Bill and Joe were cruising in the FUB Fairmont, after turning in their two timeslips at US41 Dragway, currently in first place of the Street Machine Eliminator class….and they heard the clatter of a broken rocker arm… Turns out, the heads had been repaired in the past with a helicoil in the rocker stud. Unfortunately, that repair did not like the abuse of 250+ street miles in the Big Block Ford and it was the rocker stud that broke… Once the car was home, Bill made the decision to go ahead and upgrade the heads and reached out to legendary Ford guy, Charlie Evans. Charlie had a set of worked SR71 heads and matching rocker set, that had been worked already. Bill sent Charlie his intake to be port matched and worked as well. The combo should be back together in the next few weeks. The combo should make 50 more hp than before, meaning Bill should be even more consistent to stay the 10.0 King of Drag and Drive events.
Steve Morris SMX connecting rod explosion
Built for Drag and Drive
Previous feature updates –
Paulie – Block is good but crank was not. His new 440 Source crank is on its way. Also in transit is a set of Callies Ultra Duty I beam rods.
Redhat – Rear axle is in without hassle!
David Siddon – Said he “Had a great day test and tuning today at thunder mountain raceway. The track is an 1/8 mile and is over 4000 feet in elevation so cars run a little slower there. I fixed the high rpm miss and sorted out launching off the brake. The car got consistently quicker throughout the day and ran a best of 8.34 at over 80 mph. The 49 is still on the rich side so I suspect it will be running high 11s to 12 flat next weekend at the Langley Loafers Old Time Drags at Mission BC.
Darcy Hanlan – Darcy owns the Coalstang, and you can find the full build on his youtube channel and Instagram of the same name. The car takes budget build to the next level, like when he purchased the car for $1000, he turned around and sold the engine/trans for $850. Or purchasing the ’94 12-valve donor truck for $1500 and selling the body for $950. He says the “initial build was quick. Nothing fancy. Just stuffed it in there as fast and cheap as possible. That’s why i first chose to do non-intercooled. Less fabrication and less weight. I didn’t even have a fan or alternator for the first few months i drove it…” He’d charge the battery to run the heater or headlights, saying the battery would last about three days. He adds, “to go fast on a budget, the magic is being lightweight. It’s easier on parts and I don’t need as much horsepower” The car has been 10.6 at 136 mph. “my car currently makes 650whp on 57 pounds of boost and I spray 175 shot of nitrous.” Darcy’s limited to a 6.40 because of safety and says with the new transbrake, he should be able to run that easily.
Most of the car is built with hand me downs and used parts. “Powerdriven Diesel provided a billet input shaft that they had twisted in a 1500+ hp truck, it works perfect in my car”
He ends by giving a “huge shout out to my cousin Dean and his son Eric Branham for helping me put the car together. Team z and Powerdriven diesel for parts and advice. when I built the car I thought it would be really cool because this 12 Valve can drive right across North America and not break a sweat.”
Tony Buerckert – Miles of Mayhem will be the cars 3rd drag and drive event and Tony’s 5th.
He said he’s owned the car since 2019 and had it out for the first time in 2020.
When I asked why he built that car, he replied, “I choose the car because i have always loved the Belair family of cars and because it’s something that not everyone builds. mostly because it’s heavy and most don’t want a 4 door which I love more my family.”
Powertrain is a LS with a 98/103 precision turbo and a powerglide trans backed by a gear vendor [Overdrive] for all the highway miles.
Suspension in the front is a bolt on Mustang II clip and rear Calvert split monoleaf and Caltrac bars.
Still deciding what class to run, thinking of running the 5.8x index class but a part of me wants to set it loose and try for low 5s all week.
Shout out to my wife and kids, my old man (Jake Bueckert), Keith and Brazier Race & Machine.
Event Updates
Day Count – 16 days to Miles of Mayhem
37 days until Race Week
51 days until Hot Rod Drag Week
56 Days until One Guys Garage Drag Weekend
Sick Shootout – The Second Sick Shootout was held this past weekend at Martin, MI. Only cars to compete in a drag and drive competition are eligible for these events. These help bridge the gap between events and are a great way to see #racecarfriends! Martin, MI proved to be a very fast track with several racers running some Personal Bests!
Schroeder – 4.12 Morris – 4.332 Klepinger 5.195 1/8 and 8.0682 Sack 4.61 McGilton 4.85 Bailey 4.35 Camaro 4.56 Flanders 5.24
Upcoming Sick Shootout – Small Tire Shootout – Virginia Motorsports Park with the PDRA on July 30-31
Entries are Rick Steinke (Honk if Parts Fall Off), JP Franks, Dave Workman, Chuck Zeek, Azeem Sheikh
John Manckia, Bryan Anders, David Fontaine
Race Week – All tracks are set, schedule is as follows – Sunday Sept 4 – Tech and Racing at Thunder Valley in OKC. Day Two is Texas Motorplex. Day three is back north to Tulsa. Day four is going to be interesting because we will race again in Tulsa that night. I’m certain there will be an awesome drive for day four around the area. Day five returns to OKC for the Shootout! Fastest cars duke it out for prize money and bragging rights. There is also a bracket class for everyone to enter. RMRW was the first to do this and I can’t wait to see it again for Race Week!
RMRW Fastest 100 List Update
Welcome to the New Comers –
#32 Tom Franks, #34 Jason King, #39 Sandon Slaubaugh, #41 Nick Lawson, #82 Steven Willingham, #84 George Siciliano, #85 Matt Moore, #100 Lang Jobe holding on with a 9.6563
Congrats to the folks that moved up the list –
Payden Bullock moved up 42 spots – From 97th to 55th! Cleetus moved from 17th to 4th, Jason Hurley moved from 16th to 5th, Robert Williams moved from 52nd to 51st