Drag Racing Discussions > Front Engine Dragsters
Step 1 for a FED: Planning!
Tim Jones:
Like others have said TAKE YOUR TIME, if you build from scratch and your pockets aren't full of money it's going to take awhile, if someone offers advice you don't like hearing, put your feeling aside and think about why there are taking there time to offer it, all chassis guys aren't alike, That being said , after running a few of my own cars in the later 70's and working on fuel cars in the 80's and 90's, in 2011 I decided to get back into racing and have fun,,, but my build is an odd ball 58 style chassis powered by a ford flathead, with a 39 trans behind it, not many off the shelf stuff for this car,, I've added as much safety changes as I could think of with out changeing the general idea of the car, lots of tubeing added to the cockpit, I'm cheap when it comes to buying parts for the car, So I take my time, I've gotten lots of advice while building the car, i don't always take it but I atleast try to hear what they are getting at, I finally got to see the car run on it's own power last week, but thanks to a slipped coupler it was just a couple quick hits, plus my Grilfriend is driveing and has never done anything like this before , so it's going to be a slow process,, so take your time, Have fun , Here's a link to my build on the hamb , (Glenn didn't have this site when I started) Tim Jones http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/chassis-research-style-dragster-comp-coupe-build-flathead-powered.645702/
jenrick:
--- Quote from: fuel749 on June 15, 2015, 08:27:18 AM ---Building a car the way you're talking can be done and is done all the time. Whether or not you can do it for $15K depends on you and your group of friends abilities. I have several customers doing just what you're talking about, racing "fun" cars. They might not be terribly fast with mild small blocks, but they always have a smile on their faces. A 7.50 car is fine, it might even be what keeps you from going hog wild and pricing yourself out of racing. There's plenty of guys who want to race and never go quicker than mid 8's. There's also more different than just the shoulder hoop diameter, allowing for a lighter chassis which will help make your budget small block propel your car to better E.T's.
If you can afford a few thousand dollars to get started and are disciplined enough to put away a few hundred dollars a month to buy parts every three months, you can get there. Starting with a good plan and not changing course will save you money in the long run.
The keys here are discipline and follow through.
--- End quote ---
You hit the nail on the head sir, this is all about having a good time at the strip. I'm not in this to lay down a strip record or anything like that.
To those who are recommending a kit or roller, I'm pretty sure I'm going that route. Again I'm a competent welder, but the cost of a good welder alone really cuts into any savings doing it myself would provide.
--- Quote from: slingshot383 on June 16, 2015, 03:54:04 AM ---Before you buy, you need to know your dimensions. put on a fire suit, helmet proper shoes, gloves, and proper neck brace, with aid of a friend and a dinner plate, sit against a wall with your knees drawn up about half way and holding the dinner plate in front of you with your elbows just cocked a little and your shoulders flat against the wall. Get measurements for helmet to floor, plate to wall, width of shoulders and back to center of knees. These are your starting points for fitting a car to you. You have to fit the car to run it or you will never be comfortable.
--- End quote ---
Excellent point, I shall do so.
--- Quote from: dusterdave173 on June 16, 2015, 08:32:48 AM ---
Buy a roller--drop in a CHEAP SBC and just try it--you mentioned you do not have time to crew etc so how will you have time to race? It takes HELP to run one of these--can't do it alone at the track--that is a big issue going forward
--- End quote ---
Due to my work schedule and location making it out to any of the local dates is dang near impossible without taking time off from work. While I can probably do so if I take vacation, I can't do that often enough to work on someone's crew usefully. Having raced/crewed before (SCCA) I know how much of a commitment it takes to be an effective part of the machine versus just a guy who hangs out every once in a while. A couple of my buddies from work are more than willing to wrench since we all work the same schedule.
--- Quote from: slingshot383 on June 16, 2015, 03:54:04 AM ---I would snag a roller--aim for 9.0 1/4 mile and you will be astonished how fast that is and how cheap it can be done aiming for a 7.50 ride first time is fools errand IMO
--- End quote ---
That's pretty much what I'm going for, I ordered the specs for 7.50 so I could overbuild versus being chassis limited later down the line potentially, but I'm certainly not planning on a 8 car with what I'm trying to do.
Honestly a stage 3 chassis from David Beard or something similar seems the way to go.
-Jenrick
ricardo1967:
--- Quote from: Tim Jones on June 16, 2015, 10:20:23 AM ---Like others have said TAKE YOUR TIME, if you build from scratch and your pockets aren't full of money it's going to take awhile, if someone offers advice you don't like hearing, put your feeling aside and think about why there are taking there time to offer it, all chassis guys aren't alike, That being said , after running a few of my own cars in the later 70's and working on fuel cars in the 80's and 90's, in 2011 I decided to get back into racing and have fun,,, but my build is an odd ball 58 style chassis powered by a ford flathead, with a 39 trans behind it, not many off the shelf stuff for this car,, I've added as much safety changes as I could think of with out changeing the general idea of the car, lots of tubeing added to the cockpit, I'm cheap when it comes to buying parts for the car, So I take my time, I've gotten lots of advice while building the car, i don't always take it but I atleast try to hear what they are getting at, I finally got to see the car run on it's own power last week, but thanks to a slipped coupler it was just a couple quick hits, plus my Grilfriend is driveing and has never done anything like this before , so it's going to be a slow process,, so take your time, Have fun , Here's a link to my build on the hamb , (Glenn didn't have this site when I started) Tim Jones http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/chassis-research-style-dragster-comp-coupe-build-flathead-powered.645702/
--- End quote ---
Tim, very nice build thread!
hotrod316:
if you build it yourself i would go to the 6.0 cert. not the 7.50 just thoughts :o
steve m.
George:
-Jenrick, where are you located?
Navigation
[0] Message Index
[#] Next page
[*] Previous page
Go to full version