Overseas new members ride

[Finnish Fireball]

I do not know all the details to your car but at one time I ended up with 120lbs of weight my engine is out 42” I run around 70 now. 

My car weighs 1800 with me in it and full of fuel front end weight ranges between 390 and 430lbs

Hey Paul, my wheelbase is 150", engine is out 58" (from front motorplate to center of rear) total weight is 1753 lbs me included, 405 lbs at front 1348 rear.
Thats with the 20 lbs nose ballast, and now I will double that and see if it's enough.

[THE FRENCHTOWN FLYER]

Just for grins, could you borrow a pair of smaller tires and try them?

[Finnish Fireball]

Just for grins, could you borrow a pair of smaller tires and try them?

I wish but it's highly unlikely. I see what you mean and agree, that might help. Another one is looser converter, this one is maybe too tight w. 4000 stall.
It will be interesting to see what the additional torque next season does for that stall. But, for the purpose of this car and my goals, the amount of races I get
per year, it is what it is and I'm fine with that less than optimal at this point. Money money... I have to take baby steps towards consistency and have fun on the way.

[Paul New]

I would add 80lbs to start if it was me

[Finnish Fireball]

20 lbs more nose ballast did the trick, no more crazy launches but nice wheelies are still present as I want it to be. I got it dialed in pretty consistent.
Set my index to 8.740 and went 8.750, 8.748, 8.743, 8.76 and  all were 148 mph. Then the next day after couple hours rain it slipped to 8.81
Not bad with rotten tires. This time I ruined my race with -.007 redlight...



My season is over and I can start writing the letter to Santa for needed blower parts and new slicks. I will switch from current 32x14.5x15  to 33x12x15
in aim to reduce the final gear ratio some. Hoosier has that size and it should fit perfect on my rims. Less width is good too in my book.
The editor of the leading local car magazine did a photoshoot at the track , he wants to cover my ride in his print.

[Finnish Fireball]

Finally the long wait is over, it took three months for my new 540 cid Merlin IV arrive from Ohio to Finland.
Nothing spectacular or all out latest fancy dandy, but a stout pump gas piece under my 8-71.






World Merlin IV 9.8" deck block 4.500" bore
Ohio Crank 4340 forged crank 4.25" stroke, double keyway snout upgrade for blower use
Ohio Crank Extreme Duty I-beam rods 6.385" long w. ARP2000 bolts, upgrade from H-beam
JE forged blower pistons -20cc dish. 8.4:1 CR zero deck
Total Seal file fit rings
Internal balance
Comp Cams solid roller blower cam Duration 300/308 deg advertised,  at 050" Lift: 255 int./262 exh, lift int .652"/ex .652" lobe sep. 114
Morel solid roller lifters .300" longer
Scorpion Race Series alu roller rocker arms 1.7:1 ratio 7/16" stud mount w. polylocks
Roller timing set + thrust washer + chrome cover
Brodix Dragon Slayer DS365 heads. 2.35" intake 1.88" exhaust. Solid roller springs 255 lbs seat / 610 lbs open max lift .700" 1.950" installed height
ARP head studs, Fel Pro MLS gaskets
Canton 7qt Drag Race oil pan, HV pump
ATI double keyway SFI balancer
OC SFI flexplate
Weiand polished blower intake w. pop-off
Hampton polished 8-71 blower
QF 850 cfm double pumper blower carbs x2
MSD pro billet small base distributor
Aeromotive A2000 fuel pump
Mallory billet regulator
MSD 8.5mm plug wires

[denverflatheader]

Finnish Fireball - money well spent.  I like that Merlin block design, with thicker cylinder walls and thicker deck.  Adds much stability over the stock Chevy.  The Total Seal rings also excellent choice.  Alan

[Finnish Fireball]

a little mock up to see how everything sits between the rails



I might need to install periscope to see anything behind that package

[Finnish Fireball]

[denverflatheader]

Finnish Fireball - made a magazine cover, congratulations.  I’d say that’s pretty rare occurrence for us here to see our dragster on a cover.  I see the word “dragster” with other words, what does it say?  Alan

p.s.  back around 1983, there was a picture of me driving my C2 vette in a City’s magazine news article.

[Finnish Fireball]

Alan it says "Front engine dragster takes us to roots of Drag Racing". It is a nice coverage, five pages total and great pics.
At least to my eye but I might be biased. 

[wideopen231]

It is cool when your hotrod make it into magazine.
When we came out with Starr Rider we had 4 or 5 page spread in Super Stock.

So how many copies did you buy? I cleaned out to magazine stands when our car was in it. Actually found a copy for sale on ebay a month ago.

[denverflatheader]

“Roots of Drag Racing” how appropriate; your pictures look like they were taken on an “airport runway.”  In the beginning, I think early 1950s, they first had drag racing at Santa Ana Airport in Orange County CA.  Now it’s renamed John Wayne Airport.  We use to fly into John Wayne Airport yearly, I would tell my wife and anyone sitting next to me, this is where drag racing started : )
   
We have a small airport (really an airfield) near the town Julesberg, located in northeast corner of Colorado.  It was also the site of early drag racing starting by the Platte Valley Customs car club in 1956.  An interesting fun fact is the Julesberg airfield drag strip back then was a NHRA sanctioned track.  Today they still close the airfield on some weekends and do drag racing meets.  They do a Hot Rod Revival drag race typically in August, just like the good old days.  Here’s a picture (I believe from Hot Rod Magazine Oct 1959) racing at Julesberg.
 
More info, I actually know both guys racing in the Oct. 1959 Julesberg photo, Butch Salter and Darrell Wark.  Butch from the Denver area and Darrell from Goodland Kansas.  The last time Darrell raced with our racing club was maybe 1998(?)  Butch still involved in land speed racing, I think going 200+ at the Front Range Airport One Mile race on Labor Day weekend 2015, plus a long time ago Butch had a mid 60s Jr. Fuel dragster that now another friend of mine (J. Marlett) owns and has converted it to Ford V8 flathead powered with glide. 

Butch told me his antique dragster in the Julesberg picture is long gone, but he still had the 4-banger engine sitting under his bench.  My other picture “talk about roots of drag racing” is an early dragster that I bought 23 years ago and has just been hanging around.  It’s a complete roller, vw torsion front, homemade straight tube axle with ford spindles, and narrowed banjo rear with the Chassis Research aluminum hubs with shortened banjo splined axles, and aluminum body panels.  For the period (late 1950s) it is well built.  The original owner/builder lived one block west of JCRS Shopping Center in Denver, and he had a Ford V8 flathead in it with 3-spd only using 2nd & 3rd.  And no doubt raced at Julesberg and a few other drag strips in the area waaaay back then.  Alan

[Finnish Fireball]

I put up a little video that wraps together the new engine build.

[Finnish Fireball]

A little sunbathing never hurts. First startup ok.