When it comes to alignments, the old suggestion was have the fronts tipped in a bit to to the middle, anyone Jamie? have any thoughts? How about castor, friend said 7% back or something.

 

Depends a bit on the intended use , but for a street car you don't want much negative camber ( in on top ) anything more than 1° will cause bad tire wear and looks terrible IMO. I shoot for 0-.5 °. With stock front end parts it's hard to get a lot of positive caster but you can usually get a couple degrees ( likely more with aftermarket control arms ) usually try to get them close to the same and as much as can be had with stock arms. Adjust them separately if there is any amount of pulling one way or the other. For toe in , 1/8 " measured at the tread has always worked for me. Just my opinion on this but I've done quite a few muscle cars this way.

 

Thanks 1/8 is what I've had done in the past.

 

This week has been a real bust for getting an alignment in, my wife and I are too booked up to get it in this week. Still trying for next week.

Engine #2 Discussion...
Okay so I'm trying to finalize the final parts list, but it sounds something like this:

• My bare LC9 block
• Summit Racing Pro Series crank, rods, and pistons to support 1400 someday
• MLS head gaskets, I have no intention to get into o rings and stuff like that
• Baker / Capizzi hydraulic roller
• Brodix heads

I'm still researching the heads, I'm not clear yet if they are available with the correct size valves for a 5.3, and I'm not sure what size combustion chamber they have. I'd like to make sure this combo ends up around +/-10.5:1.

 

I'm back from a week of vac in AZ/UT, let's bump this up because we all know this is one of our favorite builds even though it took me 3 years to build it and I have not made any passes yet.

Updates, it finally snowed here and they salted the roads booooo.

I have a LJ steering wheel to swap on, and I need to order some double adjustable shocks for the rear. For the shocks either I go budget and get Strange or Viking, or spend more and get Menscers or regular Afcos.

 

How about we make some passes with the current ‘plant? A built engine is gonna putt around the north side at 30 mph just like the one you have now….don’t waste your money! LOL!

 

And there he is...

Agreed, the built engine is more of a succession plan, I'm going to make passes early '22 regardless of what engine is in the car.

 

I've got double adjustable Vikings on my 4th gen currently and made a couple soft standing start hits on the street and it hooks hard.
Front end comes WAY up and car moves out, I know its not apples to apples but I've been very impressed with them so far.
Time will tell when I hit it on the brake at the track....

 

I’ve got double adjustable Vikings all around for my new ‘66 Malibu project. Going injected this time, blow thru was ok but MSD 6014 was frustrating. Had rear DA Vikings on my ‘81 Bu and they hooked good w a 275 but going to 295s this time since new car is back halved.

 

I'm on a 275 DR as well, Nitto for the street and MT ET for the track.

 

JIngles I'm rolling on 295/65s right now car hooks almost too well lol. I'll have to leave on some power for sure. Maybe you and Jamie can come up and video me putting it on the bumper at the Grove.

I've got Viking double fronts brand new on the car, and the rears are single Strange which I'd like to swap out and I got them for $100 but they were new.

 

I run Vikings as well. Crusaders up front and Warriors out back. I’ve also got a “go fund me” shock sensor setup (don’t ask) and they do what they’re told based on the data. If I see you at the Grove, I’ll get some footage for ya.

 

My buddy Kevin who runs a single S483/370 combo in NJ is swapping to pricier shocks, his QA1 fronts release too fast if you know what I mean. So might get Menscers which will have a slower rate of drop.

 

You can revalve the Crusaders yourself. It’s basically a needle and seat you swap out. Parts are about $15. Probably $350 now FJB

 

. Ready when you are! Grove is best place for me US 41 let’s people walk around the starting line and that drives me crazy!

 

Agreed on the starting line shinanigans. Hate it.

 

Yeah 41 is more of a grudge track.

Plus GLD redid the whole track using Kurt Johnson so it's going to be the best surface it's ever had.

 

I'm at the same spot, rear suspension time! The shocks are the only spot where i'm not sure which way i'm going. I called Afco after reading online about possible longevity on the street and they said they suggest getting them rebuilt every couple years for about $125. This is for the Big Gun X's. I don't know if that will hold true, but maybe. Otherwise, it will be Viking Crusaders for me.

 

Guess I'd be curious about the longevity on the street concern.
Is there a mileage window?
I would imagine the road condition plays a huge role for example the roads in California are horrific when compared to the roads in Washington State so I could see shocks wearing out very quickly on CA streets.
Additionally, I can't speak for you obviously but I put maybe 1,000 miles a year on my car so the Afco's may last quite a while if you're similar?

 

If i was running a series like some buddies have I'd pull the shocks end of every season and have them checked over, some friends have blown that off and then had shock issues because they think they can go 4 years without servicing them. I'm not speaking as an expert, I'm not sure how high maintenance they are but I've seen a buddy or two lose a race because they had a blown-out shock.

For my rears I'm thinking Afco, Strange or Viking. I'm kinda thinking rear shocks are not that big of a deaas the fronts, would anyone disagree I'm really open minded on this.