JMortensen

Clifton is running a 350mm rear tire, and it's a slick. Probably stickier than the Kuhmo. Also it's not a retardedly huge rim, which is a plus...

Checked this on three XDs today, two normal XDs and one of them was an XDm, and the barrels did not wiggle with even a pretty good push. Trigger felt acceptable to me. Still need to find some time to get to the range to actually get some experience with them. Felt good in the hand though... On a side note it seems that some people are just not keeping up with the times. The local shop was about $250 more expensive than what I've found online. When I brought that to the sales lady's attention she said that there was no way that they could possibly be selling a new gun for that amount. She then went into how I should support local businesses (I didn't want to argue, so I didn't mention that I have a mail order business and do most of my business out of state). Then I commented on the trigger, and how I had heard complaints about it and she said that the person who was complaining about the trigger was probably a plumber and didn't know what they were talking about. I thought that was a nice sentiment. I guess by that logic I wouldn't know my ass from a hole in the ground about anything but dogs and doors since I sell doggie doors. Needless to say I won't be going back to that store.

You're nuts dude. The biggest issue IMO is the driveline of the van. I do not think that it will hold up well at all under that kind of abuse. My steel trailer is 2300#, that's with a wood deck. A less extravagant trailer might be 2000# if you're lucky, mine is a tilt. Car, figure 2000# if you really get it light. You can check aluminum trailer weights, but I wouldn't think you'd find something less than 1500#, and the cost difference will be pretty big to get aluminum. I predict swift and total transaxle destruction if you try to do this on a regular basis. I would suggest a cheaper steel trailer and spend the money you save on a cheap older full size truck for a tow vehicle.

Oh, and I went to the gun store and they were closed. They must be at home watching the election...

Got another idea. On that ebay type thing that Forrest linked to I saw that they have some SWEET deals on the regular XD. So another thought is to buy a compact XD for about $400, then save up some real money and get a 1911 for accuracy later on. I saw a ported XD compact with a 3" barrel for $404 or something like that, full size and the tactical (extra full size) was the same price. Most of the people who have shot the XD and reported on it really seem to like it. The main gripe with those that don't is the trigger, and there are kits to fix the trigger for about $60.

That is correct. I've had mine spin going into a steep driveway at an angle as well. They both need some traction to do their thing. Only a spool or a locker will drive a wheel with no traction beyond the breakaway pressure.

That makes sense John, but if you can keep 1/5th of the traction on the inside wheel then the ATB has the advantage. If you can't, then I'll agree that he is right on this point. I obviously misunderstood what he was talking about and was incorrect when I thought he assumed the inside tire would spin. EDIT, wait, no I'm not... If you put 750 ft lbs to a HLSD and the inside tire can only handle 50, then the inside tire will spin. The diff cannot reduce the amount of torque that comes out of the diff, it can only bias the torque. Sorry, brainfart there...

That is a very nice .pdf and I'm sure it will come in very handy when this subject comes up again. It also backs up my point on the wiki page contradiction. While you may be right about the caster issue (honestly couldn't say one way or the other), I'd say that it is very hard to get the front end of a Z to stick without a good deal of caster. So if you need the caster, the HLSD doesn't work well. Other methods of changing balance like stiffer rear bar would also cause problems.

Your understanding of the HLSD is incorrect. These are also referred to as Automatic Torque Biasing differentials, because they put a different amount of torque (power) to one wheel or the other, based on the torque bias ratio. The downside to the ATB or HLSD diff is that when one side gets no traction, or when the car exceeds 4:1 or 5:1 or whatever the ratio that the diff can support is, then the inside wheel will spin. This is all pretty tricky and there is a lot of dispute as to how they work. Wikipedia now has a page I see, but it also looks inconsistent: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torsen From that page: One would think the exact opposite would happen, since the inside tire is the one that you don't want to spin, and it has less load on it so it would be far more likely to spin. Contradiction: Now I think they have it right. By applying the brake to the side that has minimal traction, the force is multiplied, and the opposite wheel (if this were in a corner this would be the outside wheel) gets the multiplied force from the diff. As far as what LSD to buy, I think if you're autoxing the Z you should go with CLSD.

The only way I know of to change accel vs decel lockup is to change the angle of the ramps or the shape of the cross pin so that it is more aggressive or less aggressive. While I'm sure that at the upper levels they are changing these things for a given track, for most of us we get something and run it, or maybe we have two different LSD choices, one more and one less aggressive. As far as dragging the inside tire helping turn in, it would work that way if it was only the inside tire getting dragged. Instead on decel a 2 way LSD like Nissan made is locking both wheels together, and that makes it harder to turn in because the drive wheels want to go straight. A 1.5 way provides some lesser degree of lockup, and a 1 way only locks up on accel. I think most HLSDs are 1 way.

I see that now. It just struck me as an odd thing to compare the LSDs to the computerized yaw control and it stuck in my head, and I guess I somehow got confused there. I guess I'd need to see more to buy this argument. At least in theory I would think it was as I said before; if the car was set up so that it didn't spin the inside tire, the HLSD should have no disadvantage in that regard, and it's smoother handing and less drag from the tires should be an advantage. This idea assumes that the heat generated in the diff is where the hp is lost. Granted, that is where some hp is lost, but I was more referring to the tire/ground interface. Surely we can agree that dragging a tire across the road takes more power than rolling it.

I'm not sure I'm very impressed with this article either. Even though I prefer the CLSD and frequently argue for it I think he sells the HLSD short. The arguments that I've heard from proponents of the HLSD is that it allows for better turn in as flexicoker mentions. The other common one is that the HLSD eats up less hp in it's operation as it doesn't tend to "overlock" the wheels and drag the inside around corners to the same degree as a CLSD. Ortiz seems to assume that the HLSD will always spin the inside tire and be slower than the CLSD even though it is possible to tune around that tendency via a lower rear roll stiffness, wider rear tires, lower tire pressures, etc. On a fast course with no tight turns and the car set up so that it doesn't spin the inside tire, one would expect the HLSD to have an advantage all else being equal. At an autox or a road course with tight turns or where the car gets light and might have more of a tendency to spin the inside, one would expect the CLSD to have an advantage. Beyond all that, what does the function of the diff have to do with simulating computerized yaw control? The question had me asking why someone would ask that question.

$1100 is too much right now. One other thing; this is not the last firearm I am ever going to buy, nor is it the only gun I own. So if I get a Sig or an XD it's not as though I'll be mired in mediocrity for the rest of my days...

There really isn't a particular number I'm looking for. I just don't like 9mm after reading a story years back about a lady who was shot 5 times with a 9mm, at which point she decided she had better play dead or she was going to get shot again. I didn't like the "old timer" loads for the .45 ACP that were available 10 or 15 years ago. Its similar to .45 colt. You can get a gun that will handle a load superior to a .44 mag, but the bullets you buy at the store are weak enough for a 130 year old SAA to handle. I'm sure a .45 +P load would appeal to me. The .40 just seems like the right size and load for a defensive weapon in general, that's the only reason I picked that caliber, even though I'm not really relying on it for defense. 90 gr at 2000 fps, that's pretty crazy!!!

The issue with .45 ACP so far as I can tell is it is loaded weak, and the +P loads are a lot more expensive. I don't want to get into reloading, I did a bunch of handgun and rifle reloading when I was a kid, and it was a bit of a hassle, and I'm not nearly as into shooting as I was back then. Much easier for me to buy in bulk than to reload at this point. The issue with 1911s is that there are so damn many of them and they all look the same to me. I have no idea what is good or crap. I feel like if I didn't know what a Llama was and it had a price tag of $900 there would be no way for me to know that it was complete shiza. The .45 would really have to impress, but I'm not going to rule it out.

It's an F40.

Thanks Forrest. Have no fear, I will test fire whatever I buy before I put money down. I did shoot a Glock 22 in .40 about 15 years ago and didn't like it much. It had a weird feel on the recoil, like it wiggled back and forth as it rolled back in my hand. Very odd sensation. I remember not liking the trigger too. I haven't fired any of the other plastic guns. Again, plastic is not the motivating factor, and I'm not particularly pro or anti-plastic. If the S&W 4006 was as good a gun as the XDm, it would be on my list. According to the reviews I've read though, it isn't. Plus I'm not even sure they make it anymore. I couldn't find it on the S&W website. As to the 1911 thing, I will go test fire one. I've heard it suggested too many times not to at this point. I know that a 1911 is potentially more accurate, but it also seems like you need to spend $1500 on one to get those results. Is that incorrect? If not, it really doesn't matter if it fires better or not, I won't be able to afford it. In checking the Para Ordinance website the cheapest full size I saw was about $1100, still about 50% over budget. http://www.para-usa.com/new/product.php A Ferrari F40 would be a better car to race than my built up Z, but I'm still building the Z if you get my drift. I appreciate ALL the comments though. Keep them coming, I feel like I'm getting closer...

No, it was a Llama. Or if you prefer, a POS. It also didn't feed round nose well. Leaning heavily towards the XDm at this point. Looking at some reviews it seems like accuracy will be on par with the Sig and HK.

If I'm following you correctly, the correct thing to do would be to make a bushing that fits the isolator and the shock shaft so that there is no slack between the two.

Chamfer should be the INSIDE of the tube as Dave says, not the outside.

I think he's using the extrudabody individual throttle bodies and calling them air horns, then asking what extensions to use with them. Please correct me if that is wrong. The ITBs can be fairly large, larger than carbs because the injector will atomize fuel better at low rpms than carbs do. If you're building a full on high rpm engine get the big ones. If you want a lower end motor I'd go with the 45s. I would not bother with 40s. The "extension" you're referring to is what most people call an air horn. As stated is smooths the flow and increases velocity in the intake manifold. I've only seen the extrudabody ITBs with a very short air horn and I would suggest that you run one, as it will make a difference vs not having one.

That's not unusual for Vettes and is not some sign of trickery by GM. I remember Jeremy Clarkson doing that same thing on Top Gear during a Vette review segment a while back.

I think you're wrong. Some cars use SEALED BEARINGS, like Toyota trucks for instance. Haven't seen a stock bearing that is open like this one. Those Toy bearings go bad fairly regularly too.

Not particular to the plastic guns, that just seems to be what is out there and popular in my price range. The XDM seems like a good possibility. It comes with a "match barrel", a case and a couple magazines and a crappy looking holster and magazine holder. The standard HK USP looks nice too. I think the tactical version is a bit on the spendy side for me. 2" groups at 25 yards that would make me very happy. I've got other guns for long range shooting. I've never been a big fan of 1911s. Don't really know why, maybe it was that crappy 45 that kept popping those hot cases on my forehead. That was a 1911 knockoff, and I know it's not fair to compare it to the real thing, but it seems like a good one would cost more than I want to spend anyway.

I've got my shotgun loaded with #8 and then #4. May not be as lethal as buckshot, but I still think it would put somebody down. I do need to get a shorter barrel though. I can't imagine my 20 gauge shotgun being louder than a pistol. My dad's .357 would have my ears ringing after one shot. I could shoot the shotgun quite a few times with no hearing protection before it bothered me. I'll check out the H&K, thanks.