Something funny...[Nitro Funny Car build thread]

Chevyonfuel

Last update prior to Christmas - sadly no photos as there's some secret stuff going on at the workshop .

The body's in the process of final mounting and tinwork, once that's complete it's just a case of fettling some fibreglass and it can go off for some primer once the lexan screens and wing are fitted.

Toward the end of January the motor should be apart to start cleaning and checking everything prior to final assembly. I don't think Easter will be achievable on cost grounds, rather than the car being ready. More updates in the New Year.

Merry Christmas folks, and thank you to those who subscribe to the thread, much appreciated

paulyoung666

Merry Xmas to you as well , looking forward to next year when I may be able to see the beast in action , where do you think you will be running it ?

Chevyonfuel

We'll only be running at Santa Pod - the other track has officially closed now, so it makes that decision easier . Hopefully by the summer everything will be running and we can arrange an AVF get together .

cosmicma

a very close friend of mines dad used to race at Santa Pod during the 60's in this

                                                                                                                                                 

i think things migh have changed a bit since then

Chevyonfuel

Metronome! It was a bit of a marmite car, I quite liked it though - if you consider the Fiat Topolino formed the basis of Fuel Altered for the Americans, Metronome was a UK equivalent, awesome and quirky bit of kit

IronGiant

Was the fuel tank stuck out the front because it was "safer" there?

paulyoung666

Other track ?

Chevyonfuel

In a twisted way, yes . The byproduct of getting the fuel tank away from the driver was that it helped get some weight over the front axle, and in a typical guardrail-interaction-episode, would throw the tank clear of the car, avoiding a fuel fire. Later cars have the tank encased within the chassis rails.

It's the same for most classes with the exception of Street Eliminator where the tank's placed in the back of the car (part for weight transfer to help with treaded tyres).

The slightly odd progression from fuel tank placement was the move toward fitting the fire bottled up front also. For Funny Cars this was more a weight and ballast thing. Again though, in the event of the car hitting the wall, the bottles tend to depart your vehicle and make a bid for freedom (think Gone in 60 Seconds remake - gas bottles flying around etc).

For that reason, we mounted the bottles on my car at the rear - a weight bar (lead shot, sand, some heavy stuff) can go on the front end to add the appropriate amount of counter ballast

Chevyonfuel

Shakespeare County Raceway; it's best known for being the venue for the Bulldog Bash, and the adjoining land used to host Global Gathering.

For years it's been subject to closing due to developers wanting to build on the land. This season was its last, so Santa Pod's picking up the more popular events from next year. I raced there a couple of times, it wasn't ideal for quick cars though - old armco barriers, a very bumpy shutdown area. At over 200mph things get a bit lively...

The one decent run I had there, I went into the shutdown area at something around 215mph and got some air when I hit the dip where the old runways cross each other. The front uprights in the chassis tried to punch through the main bottom rails, and it cracked the bottom in 3 places - never went there again...

paulyoung666

Thought that was where you were going to say , Stratford upon Avon iirc , the only other place I've been was just outside York , elvington , but that literally is just an old runway lol [emoji28]