[opeliac]

Originally Posted by Sirrotica

Just the last episode on Monday this week, Chief was lamenting about all the competition having a power advantage over him. I believe he has said, he's tipped the can to 25% Nitro also.

I'm not sure how long he's going to be able to remain at the top of their list without at least upgrading some part of the upper end, so that his engine breathes a little deeper. I realize he's one of the top tuners on the street, but when he maxes out his power, there isn't much left when he happens to be on a surface that isn't severely traction compromised.

I'm a big fan of Chief, and his car too, but it looks like he's at least going to have to step up his program somewhat over what he currently has, the competition isn't just sitting still. Dave is currently running a hemi in his nova, Monza has a 481X, as does Ryan Martin. Even Dominator manages to put a quick run together, here and there. I know he had (Dominator) a BBC in his car, but I don't think he still is using one of them for power....

I'd be shocked if Chief has ever been able to turn his up to the max on ANY street that they have been on...They've all made some decent looking passes, but NONE of them are running big MPH on those passes...Thats my opinion...

Also, as for the nitro talk...I'm still calling bull**** on that one...Along with the talk about locking up the converter on the streets...

Maybe the Boss Bird guys can share their opinions on adding nitro in a turbo combo...I know in the past, it was talked about being a no no...Maybe something has changed.

[Sirrotica]

Originally Posted by opeliac

I'd be shocked if Chief has ever been able to turn his up to the max on ANY street that they have been on...They've all made some decent looking passes, but NONE of them are running big MPH on those passes...Thats my opinion...

Also, as for the nitro talk...I'm still calling bull**** on that one...Along with the talk about locking up the converter on the streets...

Maybe the Boss Bird guys can share their opinions on adding nitro in a turbo combo...I know in the past, it was talked about being a no no...Maybe something has changed.

The nitro talk came from Chief's mouth, I didn't make it up.

What is so different about using a turbo as a compressor, over a blower?

As far as nitro and the Boss Bird. Jerry, the tuner of the Boss Bird, made decisions on how the combo was tuned, and what percentages they ran. Over the years Jerry has proven to be a wealth of information about nitro. I've spent a fair amount of time talking with him over the years about nitro. It's because I really didn't know anything first hand about it, and I was curious about it.

He preached to go in baby steps to keep carnage to a minimum in the engines.

I also happened to be standing next to Barcak's dragster when they failed to get all the fuel out of it before firing it up. The block exploded on #7 cylinder, and sent shrapnel into the trailer. Lots of potential for engine carnage when you don't follow the protocol to the letter.

From what Jerry had told me 25% is just tickling the fuel, as opposed to high percentages such as Eric and Mike were running.

Jerry did tell me that at percentages as low as 25% the fuel is still pretty tame, not anything near what 90% can do as far as destruction.

Not my opinion, just a fact:

Why are turbos banned in Top Fuel?

The only reason they are not running turbos is the rule restriction. The rules keep trying to limit top speed. A turbo nitro engine would definitely make more power available. The exhaust gases from nitro carry much more energy than other fuels which is a giant advantage.

[opeliac]

Originally Posted by Sirrotica

The nitro talk came from Chief's mouth, I didn't make it up.

What is so different about using a turbo as a compressor, over a blower?

As far as nitro and the Boss Bird. Jerry, the tuner of the Boss Bird, made decisions on how the combo was tuned, and what percentages they ran. Over the years Jerry has proven to be a wealth of information about nitro. I've spent a fair amount of time talking with him over the years about nitro. It's because I really didn't know anything first hand about it, and I was curious about it.

He preached to go in baby steps to keep carnage to a minimum in the engines.

I also happened to be standing next to Barcak's dragster when they failed to get all the fuel out of it before firing it up. The block exploded on #7 cylinder, and sent shrapnel into the trailer. Lots of potential for engine carnage when you don't follow the protocol to the letter.

From what Jerry had told me 25% is just tickling the fuel, as opposed to high percentages such as Eric and Mike were running.

Jerry did tell me that at percentages as low as 25% the fuel is still pretty tame, not anything near what 90% can do as far as destruction.

Not my opinion, just a fact:

I know Chief said it on TV, he also talked about using the lockup on the street...I have seen what locking up 2500-3000HP on the track looks like, and I just do not see that happening on the street...

As for the nitro...Its not about the percentage that he is talking about, it is the fact that all of the unburned fuel does not get blown out through the header tubes on a turbo car, it ends up in the exhaust housing...Now, maybe they have it figured out now, but about 15 years ago, some very very fast turbo guys couldnt get it to work...

Now I know that I could be 100% wrong on this...BUT, in my opinion...If ANYONE was truly successfully using nitromethane in their car on any of these shows, they damn sure wouldnt blast it out to everyone...If nitro suddenly was cool to use, the blower guys would be untouchable.

[Scott Roberts]

Originally Posted by opeliac

I know Chief said it on TV, he also talked about using the lockup on the street...I have seen what locking up 2500-3000HP on the track looks like, and I just do not see that happening on the street...

As for the nitro...Its not about the percentage that he is talking about, it is the fact that all of the unburned fuel does not get blown out through the header tubes on a turbo car, it ends up in the exhaust housing...Now, maybe they have it figured out now, but about 15 years ago, some very very fast turbo guys couldnt get it to work...

Now I know that I could be 100% wrong on this...BUT, in my opinion...If ANYONE was truly successfully using nitromethane in their car on any of these shows, they damn sure wouldnt blast it out to everyone...If nitro suddenly was cool to use, the blower guys would be untouchable.

There are other forms of highly oxygenated fuels that can be added to race fuel for some serious gains.. also, untraceable on a fuel test... it's been done..; )

[Mr Anonymous]

Originally Posted by opeliac

.If nitro suddenly was cool to use, the blower guys would be untouchable.

Yes, but I don't see how its maintainable at that level. The between rounds effort for them is already substantial. There should be a mandatory rule where you drive (plates, insurance, wipers, e-brake required) 20 miles to the race spot and go. At this point, they're just recreating the race track without the spectators onsite nor NHRA involvement.

They're basically a Pro-Mod combo now, if they transition to a top fuel engine, that's the logical last step I would assume - Using the ELarson idea of taking every idea thru its logical paces to its very end.

I take their racing as entertainment and that's what it's intended to be.