Down on power, ideas and opinions needed

#21

I would expect different numbers with the plate open.

But maybe you should rebuild the whole thing first (poke at Fish!). :wink:

#22

I will re-test in the AM

#23

No and I realized that was in the Bentley manual just a short while ago. I can re-test mañana if the result could vary large enough.[/quote]

You should definately retest properly, but I’ll be surprised if you see much improvement.

#24

Possible causes for variance in compression #'s. Speaking out of my butt of course.

  1. Engine speed while running the starter. This is a combo of battery voltage, starter characteristics, state of lubrication of cylinders and cam. I added the cam because I was screwing around with heads the other week and found 4ftlbs variance in how much torque it took to turn the cam shaft. None of my theories to explain the 4ftlb difference panned out. I’m not saying 4 is a significant #, I’m just saying that there’s uncontrolled variables here.

For example, consider the wet leakdown test. When you put oil into the cylinders it’s reasonable that the starter is going to turn faster because you’ve just lubed the rings. How long do the cylinders walls stay lubed after you do this? Will the oil on the walls impact a leakdown test you do an hour later? I don’t know. What I do know is that once you’ve put some oil in the cylinders you’ve thrown in another uncontrolled variable.

  1. How the gauge responds to the pressure pulses. Not only will gauge calibrations differ, but the pulses are highly dynamic so two different brand gauges could simply respond differently to dynamic pulses.

  2. How the human reads the gauge. People are going to read the rapidly fluctuating gauge needle differently.

#25

Wet test performed and the numbers jumped to 180ish across the board. According to the fine Bentley folks:
“If this test yields higher compression readings than the “dry” compression test, the difference can be attributed to leakage between the piston rings and cylinder walls due either to wear or to broken piston rings.”

#26

This could certainly mean ring leakage, but it could also mean that the starter ran faster with lubricated rings. Do a wet and dry leakdown test and see if that test confirms the results from compression tests. When different kinds of tests start agreeing with each other, you know you’re getting closer to Truth .

This is a newish motor, right? Maybe the rings didn’t seat well so you just need a ring and hone. That can be done w/o removing motor…Rich did it a couple weeks ago. Or maybe the cylinders were bored too big…which would be a bummer.

#27

No, this is not a newish motor. I was hopeful that this “used” motor would have had just a tad bit more oomph in it to get me through the season respectfully. Regretfully, all it has done was had me questioning my abilities. Now that I am closer to the truth , I can begin my plan of attack moving forward.

#28

I think I’d exhaust that line of questioning first if I were you. It’s more depressing, but cheaper.

One engine = ten skeendays

#29

Steve, you really suck with all your “rational thoughts” and "realistic calculated analysis"
I hate you.

#30

[quote=“mcmmotorsports” post=67525]Steve, you really suck with all your “rational thoughts” and "realistic calculated analysis"
I hate you.[/quote]
Just ask Evan and Eric about last year. They experienced true satisfaction those (cough few cough) times they beat me, knowing that they brought knives to a gun fight.:woohoo:

#31

[quote=“mcmmotorsports” post=67508][quote=“Ranger” post=67506]
You’re in SpecE30 now and the competition is fierce here. As long as winning isn’t all that important, you’re going to have a blast. But if winning is important, well, there’s cheaper ways to feel inadequate.[/quote]

Winning isn’t everything…it’s the ONLY thing.[/quote]
I sense that it’s going to be a hard couple of years.

Go date a supermodel or something else equally fulfilling that will bolster your self-esteem. Then you can finish mid-pack with a big smile on your face, climb out of your car and exclaim “where’s the beer”.

#32

[quote=“Ranger” post=67528][quote=“mcmmotorsports” post=67508][quote=“Ranger” post=67506]
You’re in SpecE30 now and the competition is fierce here. As long as winning isn’t all that important, you’re going to have a blast. But if winning is important, well, there’s cheaper ways to feel inadequate.[/quote]

Winning isn’t everything…it’s the ONLY thing.[/quote]
I sense that it’s going to be a hard couple of years.

Go date a supermodel or something else equally fulfilling that will bolster your self-esteem. Then you can finish mid-pack with a big smile on your face, climb out of your car and exclaim “where’s the beer”.[/quote]

Scott, have you ever won a race? I don’t know if you have yet but once you do, you take a different outlook on the sport that we love.
See, long before I was a road course racer, I raced stock cars. I have been since 1993 in NY. It was a huge struggle for many years competing against very well funded teams with used tires and sub-par equipment. I used to finish mid-pack and got out with a smile on my face because I was doing something that many of my friends could only dream of. The best I could do was a 4th place finish in a feature event and a 2nd place finish in a last chance qualifying race. Fast forward to 2000 when I moved to North Carolina and started racing at East Carolina Motor Speedway in a pure stock bomber class. Again, sub-par equipment but I was racing. A driver who I had become friends with gave me an opportunity one weekend to drive his car since he was at Charlotte watching a cup race. This was a street stock car and not lacking in the performance dept. I started 7th and ended up finishing 2nd. I had more people approach me that weekend in awe of what I had done since the best the car owner ever finished was 4th. It was then that I realized that given the right equipment, I had the ability to get the job done. In 2005 I not only got my first stock car win, but 5 more on top of that en route to a 2nd place finish in the points.
Winning is an incredible feeling that has to be experienced to truly understand and appreciate.
Yes, I won some races in the 944, most of them solo wins but a few with a couple other cars on track. Those wins are great too, but when you have a full field of competitve cars and capable drivers, rising to the top and proving to yourself that, on that day, you are the best, is a feeling I want to experience again.
I am still learning how to make right AND left turns and will continue to grow as sports car driver with seat time, but until I feel I have a chance to win again, I am going to get frustrated. For the record, I am prepared for this and I think it will make my first E30 win that much more enjoyable.
Now, back to my E30. Could Skeen get in my car and bring it to the front? Very likely…but that is why he is a pro. Could someone with tons of experience at a certain track bring it to the front? Possibly. I don’t think we are fighting with tenths of seconds here though, I think the problem is much greater than that. With that said, I have no problem admitting when it is experience, or lack there of, that made me a back marker, all I am trying to do is eliminate that doubt. I might even put someone else in my car in a few weeks to confirm this.
I want to thank everyone for their input and help, it is what makes this class far superior to anything else out there.

Okay DeVinney, come on in and critique my spelling and grammar.

#33

Shit. I can’t find fault with your spelling, grammar, or opinions on the topic. As much as I like to bust your balls, you’re preaching exactly what this class is about.

#34

I’ve won some BMWCCA races, but there was only 5-7 cars in class. My best in NASA was to be in 4th at RA after about 20min and then tragedy struck with a spin at turn 7 as I hollered “Nooooooooooo”. God that was funny.

My background is running, cycling and triathlon going back to the late 70’s. I was obsessed with winning back then and got triathlon age group wins around the US and european world cup. The last win was the GA state championships in '06.

I was ok as a triathlete but I’m not that great as a car racer. I made a decision some years ago that I was going to have to find a way that I could still have fun at this even if I wasn’t getting on the podium. So that’s what I tried to do.

I spent most of my adult life trying to prove that I was toughest SOB around, that I was hard as woodpecker lips, and that anything physical that someone else could do or endure, I could go one step more.

Screw all that. It’s all childish BS. A person doesn’t need to prove themselves each day, just go have fun, brighten someone else’s day by giving them a hand, crack a joke, and wear a big smile.

Happiness is your car running well, you had lots of clean hard racing, and no car finished on a flatbed.

#35

I’ve always tried not to reveal how great I think I am. The only time it came out was 3 weeks ago when my sister in law saw in some girly magazine that she needed to give me the “your to old to be a racing driver” speech. I won’t share the context.

Read “Drive to Win” by carrol smith. If you don’t believe that your the greatest you don’t have a chance. Just try to keep it to yourself.

#36

For the most part, with the exception of poking DeVinney and Zawrotny with a stick, I do try to keep it to myself.

#37

Listen, you guys that think that you’re the best/greatest are obviously delirious…I would know…

#38

Time for a new topic: Racing Philosophy.

Like I’ve said many times, “gotta know who you are racing.” Thanks for the entertaining and spot-on stories talking about what this hobby represents.

In the meantime, my golf game has slipped from a tried-and-true 72 to a consistent 73. Rare are those games of 68 or 69.

RP

#39

“Pro” is relative.

Pro in the literal sense means you have run enough races at the regional level and you have the $600 to pay the fee to obtain a pro license. This allows you to race “professionally.”

There are people at the pro level all over the world that have no talent and only have a budget.

There are LOTS of club racers that have more talent in their left finger than may pro guys.

There are also the guys who don’t have much talent but love to use the checkbook. Been beaten by those types many times.

Once in a while the driver that has the most talent, but not necessarily the best car has his day. It doesn’t happen often in motorsports. A properly set up and developed suspension setup can make a mediocre driver look like a great one.

Great driver and great car, almost unbeatable. Great driver is defined as someone who can not necessarily be the fastest lap time, but consistenly be fast and makes good decisions while being aggressive enough to make moves that work.

#40

[quote=“Foglght” post=67540]“Pro” is relative.

Pro in the literal sense means you have run enough races at the regional level and you have the $600 to pay the fee to obtain a pro license. This allows you to race “professionally.”

There are people at the pro level all over the world that have no talent and only have a budget.

There are LOTS of club racers that have more talent in their left finger than may pro guys.

There are also the guys who don’t have much talent but love to use the checkbook. Been beaten by those types many times.

Once in a while the driver that has the most talent, but not necessarily the best car has his day. It doesn’t happen often in motorsports. A properly set up and developed suspension setup can make a mediocre driver look like a great one.

Great driver and great car, almost unbeatable. Great driver is defined as someone who can not necessarily be the fastest lap time, but consistenly be fast and makes good decisions while being aggressive enough to make moves that work.[/quote]

I would also add adaptability. We had Chip Herr (World Challenge) and Jeremy Hittle (SCCA/SM) in our SE30 on the pad backings at TH 25HR still running the 2:05’s in the dark. No brakes? Adapt.