Thread: 63 nova

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Have a 350 small block with bells and whisles, run a power glide with a 3500 stall. have 9 inch, posi 4:11 rear end

seems lik too slow coming out of the hole.. Would 456 gearsbe recommened by anyone?


oh, and how much oil should you lose after running 7 or 8 hard passes, rings, seats seem to be fine.. i went from full to add half a quart

several hours

Hey csf03716, heard any pros or cons on running 456 gears/

csf03716 it is a race car...
350 jobbed out, 822 heads, cam .560plus .100 hardened push rods, comp cam, springgs, gear drive timing, msd pro billit dist.
roller rockers, 750 demon racer

how much experience do you have?

quote:
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Originally posted by bgrd
Hey csf03716, heard any pros or cons on running 456 gears/
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you have to provide a helluva lot more info here before anyone "in the know" would answer that question...

sorry about my inept questions, no i don't have a lot of experience, kinda like a new hobby, guess i'm going through the mid life thingy... used to race all the time 30 years ago... the reason i asked bout the 456 gears is because the first gear in the power glide seems a a little slggish, (currently runnung 4:11 posi) and was wonder ing if 456';s would help my hole time and not suffer much in the top end speed....

you ask a lot of good questions and i appreciate your input...
looks like i have some homework to do..
the rear end is a Currie 9 inch ford with strande 31 spline axles

maybe i will run some times before i worry about 456 gears

i will do that and thanks again for your time...

quote:
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Originally posted by bgrd
you ask a lot of good questions and i appreciate your input...
looks like i have some homework to do..
the rear end is a Currie 9 inch ford with strande 31 spline axles

maybe i will run some times before i worry about 456 gears
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there are a lot of drag race computor programs on the market you might want to purchase one as a start i believe the investment would be worth it and it takes all the guess work outta your hands...you want to look for Techinspector 1 on here and ask him which one the beginners are useing or maybe he'll suggest a data program for you to use...either way it will be a plus for you to only have to plug in info and you'll be able to see changes with any little modifacations you make to the car...


any suggestions techinspector1, appreciate your help

bbl

bgrd,

I ran a '63 Nova with a fairly mild 400 small block, 3500 stall powerglide and 5.13-1 gears. At 1400 ft elevation those gears were just right. When I came down to sea level I ran out of RPM about 150 before the finish line. I had planned to drop to 4.88-1 gears, but sold the car before I got around to it. This was on a track only car. I was running 10.5 x 28.5 tires. That is as tall as I could get under the car. My wheel wells were radiused to get the tires in there.

Other considerations are tire diameter, the RPM range where your motor makes it's power, timing, weight of the car, how well it's hooking up and on and on. I agree the best thing to do is get some time slips, including 60 foot times and start experimenting from there. Remebmer that shorter tires also act like a lower gear.

Keep us posted on your project and good luck

Pat

techinspector, currently have a 3500 stall converter, i'm guessing hte weight of the car aeound 1800-2000

stu cool. how did you like your nova?
Stu my tires are 31x18.5/15

i'm hoping 456 gears will be an improvement after i run some times...


appreciate you guys input...

bgrd,

My Nova was a budget bracket racer and I really enjoyed it. Sounds like your car is all tubbed out, I assume with a full cage. With a tall tire like that I definitely think you need a deeper gear. Unless you have a lot of lightweight fiberglass pieces I would estimate your weight to be more than you think. My car was all metal, with a 6 point roll bar and subframe connectors. The interior was stripped except for a single fiberglass seat. With me(160#) aboard it weighed about 3000 pounds.

As you are experimenting, I suggest only changing one thing at at time so you know for sure what makes improvements.

Do you have a transbrake?

Pat

Pat, only fiber glass is hood and trunk... and you are correct about the full cage and frame... it has been approved and stamped by the ihra for a 8 second frame and cage... excuse my ignorance but what is a transbrke?


wil talk to you tomorrow, time for bed...
good night and God bless

A transbrake locks the transmission and lets you rev up against it to the stall limit of the converter, then release the brake to launch the car. Most of them lock the transmission in 1st and reverse, then release reverse. The resulting launch is like dumping a clutch in a manual trans car.

Your car is much morse sophisticated than mine was.

Pat

Stu, my 63 nova has a 3500 rpm stall converter, isn't that the same as a transbrake?