jgkurz

I'd guess the taper is not necessary but I didn't think it would hurt. The cone on the original bumpstop is meant to provide a progressive bump rather than a harsh hit. The taper on my bumpstop probably doesn't have enough material to provide much of a progressive bump.

I hear the Sony default software is way better than the Panasonic. Nero 7 is suppose to support AVCHD so I might try the demo before I buy. When you burn to a DVD and play to your DVD player as opposed to a Blu-Ray player does the video look still look good?

Right now I'd either burn it to DVD and upscale to 1080i or convert to MPEG2. I might also leave it in the AVCHD format for later HD-DVD or Blu-Ray burning. I understand the Play Station 3 will play M2TS format but I haven't confirmed it yet.

I'm considering a purchase of a new 1080i HiDef camcorder and was wondering if anyone had some experience. Looks like the major drawback is support for the AVCHD format. So far I like the Panasonic HDC-SD1. I'm going to Bonneville Speed Week in August and want to get some decent video.

I cut each bump stop with a hacksaw then shaped them on my bench grinder. Before and after

Dang!!! I didn't make it Sunday and missed the best HybridZ. Grrrrrr:sad: viperredls1z, Do you autocross in the Portland or Eugene area? Have you drag raced your car at all?

I chose to o-ring my block and use an OEM Nissan head gasket. I have JE pistons and so far the engine has held up to as much as 25lb boost, one overheating and some abuse early on when I didn't have an intercooler. I agree that nothing will make your engine detonation proof. Better components will probably take the abuse longer but still will eventually fail with poor tuning. No one has mentioned it yet but using studs rather than head bolts will make a HUGE difference in keeping the head gasket in place.

I have a 3000cfm 16" Zirgo on my Arizona Z Alum radiator. Zirgo's distribution warehouse and offices are actually here in Portland Oregon so I went down to their storefront to check out the different fans. Zirgo makes some astounding CFM claims that, according to the sales guy, are because they use different test procedures that result in better CFM ratings. He didn't know more than that but my impression was that the Zirgo CFM rating are a bit generous. He also mentioned that the depth specifications are off on some of their fans. For example I originally wanted a ZFU16S which has a depth spec of 3.5". When I measured it the depth was actually 4.2". I still bought a Zirgo fan but was annoyed with the incorrect information. I'm not bashing Zirgo, I'm just stating the facts as I was told by the Ziro sales rep.

Here's one of my favorites. This car came close to winning Hot Rod's Pump Gas Drags! In my opinion, building a successful 8 or 9 sec car that runs on pump gas separates the wanna-be horsepower builders (like myself) from the real guru's. http://drag.race-cars.com/carsold/other/1057588103/1057588103ss.htm

I'll be there rain or shine, but I'm hoping for shine.

As I'm sure you know, building a "reliable" 800HP engine is much different than building a 800HP big block that is only good for a trip or two to the drag strip. I too am "brand neutral". I think almost every manufacturer has engines that are/were excellent and some that were less desirable. The BBC is the king for making big power on the cheap, but I contend that once you start making 800HP and above that the cost evens out. My father builds 427 side-oilers that use almost all after-market parts. Even the blocks are aluminum after-market. At that level it's my opinion that it'll cost you big $$$ no matter what brand you choose.

Excellent video. Makes me want to upgrade my hardtail to an FSR... We have a ride here in Oregon I want to try from Mt Hood's Timberline lodge down to Rhododendron. It starts at 6,600ft and goes 19mi down to 1282ft. http://tinyurl.com/2j9gt7

I guess the proof is real life experience. I've launched all my Z's with R200's at the strip for years and I haven't lost one yet. Of the few blown R200's I've been involved with I can't say I know what the final failure analysis result was. Cheers.

Jon, I wasn't implying that the R200 is bad because a 6 cylinder can break it. I have a turbo L6 with 427ft/lbTQ and haven't broke it yet, even when drag racing. I was trying to suggest that if some folks with a six cylinder can break a healthy R200, specifically the spider gears as you pointed out, that a 600HP big block will be even more risky. If the big block is running a manual trans then it'd be worse yet. In a nutshell, I'm of the opinion the the R230 will last longer than and R200 under that same abuse. Don't you agree?

Wow, you sure have more confidence in the R200 then I do. My personal opinion is the R200 is tremendously strong diff considering it's size. However I wouldn't trust it long behind a 600+ HP big block. I guess it all depends on how the car is driven. There are examples of folks on this forum that have grenaded an R200 behind the L6. Weight will also play a big part in survivabilty. Other than the typical gear howl, most R200's will live a long and happy life.

My Tec3 and the Wolf3D both have the ability to use staged injection. E85 would be an ideal application for staged injection. I don't know about 40psi though...

Justin, I agree that nobody is maxing out 1000cc injectors but the reason for staged injectors isn't necessarily about max capacity. Having the ability for two sets of injectors would allow the use of MUCH cheaper lower cc injectors to satisfy the max fuel requirement plus you could ensure a smooth idle by using only the first six smaller injectors. Once you starting using the BIG injectors, idle quality AFR suffers, especially if you are using a batch fire injection instead of sequential. With my batch fired six 550cc injectors at 1.7ms I get about a 14:5 idle AFR so there isn't much room to move if I go up to 680 or 720 or 750cc. Regardless, one of the reasons I like my EFI is I can pass DEQ emissions testing then go to the dyno without making a change. . I also understand that this still doesn't negate the extra cost and complexity of building a staged injection manifold. Thanks for putting your time and effort into this project.

I thought everyone on this thread might enjoy this article I found.... http://tinyurl.com/2cyyzx

I couldn't agree more... the Hornet/Super Hornet also replaced the A6E, KA6D and soon the EA6B. http://www.military.com/features/0,15240,131740,00.html?ESRC=navy.nl I suppose technology will always move forward but in my opinion we have moved backwards in ability to save cost.

What he said!!!!!!

Found this on the web. Supposedly it's from the 2006 NHRA Rule Book "Doors handles must be functional, inside & out. “Shaved” door handles not permitted unless there is an obvious mechanical means for our safety crew to open the driver and front passenger doors from the outside." I called Gene at Woodburn Dragstrip and he said unless the safety crews had a way to get in the car it wouldn't pass tech inspection. I also found out I need an SFI approved jacket if I'm going to race. Apparently as of Feb 1, 2006 a new NHRA rule was put in place that requires a jacket if you have an aftermarket power adder like a turbo or NOS. This is for 13.99 and faster.

I plan on racing Woodburn this year. I typically go to PIR which is convenient and a good time but I'd like to run a real dragstrip this year. My car is on jackstands now but should be done in June. If the car is running well I might show up at the "Street Legal / Imports / Testing (3:00PM)". on Friday 6/25.

I recently moved from Portland to the original OC. aka Oregon City.

Not quite as sexy but I run 2.5 from the turbo to the IC and 3" from the IC to the throttlebody. Pics are in my signature.

My main concern was the length of pipe between the manifold and the wastegate. My wastegate will be remotely mounted about 12" to 14" away from the turbo. The wastegate outlet will be merged back into my exhaust about 18" from the turbo on the downpipe.