[ho428]

Finally got the front brake ducts done. I'll try them out this weekend. Then I'll start on the oil cooler after Road Atlanta.

Decided to take the car to Pigeon Forge for the show last weekend since I didn't have a race. We need more race cars to make the shows. Way to much newer stuff at shows anymore. People, especially the younger crowd need to see what and where Pontiac Performance came from.

[Brian Baker]

That is one cool looking ride. Do you have any more pics to share? Here lately I'm finding the road racing Pontiacs to be very interesting...you just don't see them like you do drag racers.

[Region Warrior]

His car is WAY
Saw some pic's and maybe some vids? of it somewhere.

[gtoroadracer]

Good job Gordon, Brake ducts will help out alot, here is a picture on my setup. The bigger the inlet the better to try to capture as much air as possible and then feed it into a tube will help give the brakes as much air as possible. When you get some racing brakes try to get a set of curved vane rotors. They are really trick what you do is supply the air to the spindle in the middle of the inside of the rotor and as the rotor is turning the curved vanes pull the air through the rotors keeping them cool. I bought mine from Coleman racing and they work really well.

[Jack Gifford]

Originally Posted by ho428

Finally got the front brake ducts done...
... especially the younger crowd need to see what and where Pontiac Performance came from.

I couldn't agree more on getting vintage performance Pontiacs out for the crowds to see- glad you decided to "show" that mean-lookin' Firebird. Best of luck on the tracks!

The latest issure of Circle Track had some good "aero" articles. One writer encouraged racers to think-outside-the-box a little. One example given was the atrociously-inefficient air flow through convoluted hose, and he advised making every attempt to use smooth-wall tubing everywhere possible. Just something to think about, if you ever are seeking more volume of cooling air to the brakes. [Admittedly, the writer was also concerned about cooling ducts' contribution to the overall aero drag of the vehicle]

[ho428]

QUOTE=gtoroadracer;3674835]Good job Gordon, Brake ducts will help out alot, here is a picture on my setup. The bigger the inlet the better to try to capture as much air as possible and then feed it into a tube will help give the brakes as much air as possible.

Jeez Don, my swimming pool skimmer isn't as big as that opening.
I agree about the opening, we're looking at remaking mine a little to get a smoother transition into the 3" hose. But for now they're better than what I had, nothing.
I really need a caliper upgrade soon, I have drilled and vented rotors but single piston calipers.

My next venture into making new stuff is to make an enclosed aluminum air cleaner and duct it through the firewall into the cowl.

[Region Warrior]

ho428, do you have manual or power brakes?
Wonder'n how manual's are on a road course.

[ho428]

Manual, and they do pretty good. Std GM Master cyl and GM single piston calipers up front, just an M/P front disc conversion kit with the drilled rotor option, std drums in the rear. It slows down pretty good for what it is. I'd like to get some SSBC dual pistons in the front and a better MC though.
Then get some Hawk pads and shoes, but those things get real pricey.

I have the adjustable prop valve by the drivers seat, so far I haven't locked the rears up yet, but sooner or later that'll happen.

Worst situation so far was I got passed by an Audi R8 on a high speed straight, at the fastest possible spot they threw a red flag, I was praying he didn't stop as fast as he could and I was aiming to the left to drive around him if he did or it would have been ugly. His brakes are bigger than my rims.
In the pits later I thanked him, he said he saw me and thought about the brake dispairity so he eased to a stop.
There is definitely a lot more to this than going fast to think about in split seconds.

[gtoroadracer]

Slotted rotors are good, but stay away from drilled rotors. With today's technology with brake pads (example carbon metallic) the new brake pads do not outgas so a drilled rotor is not neccesary to allow the escape gas to go. Drilled rotors also have the tendency to crack under extreme temperatures. So a rotor cracking at high speed is not a good thing. I designed the brake ducts after watching a special on the hoover dam. They were showing how they created great water pressure canons to blast the rock by taking water and gradually running it down big tube and the closer they got to the water nozzle the smaller the tubes got which increased the water pressure. So I thought why not start with a large opening and compress it to a 3 inch tube and then funnel it to the middle of the spindle and pull the air through the rotors. It works great no brake fade at all and the brakes are always ready to go,at a 145mph stand on the brakes and they are all there. Like I warned you before the way your car is setup was the way mine was set up years ago before the rebuild. Once you get the feel for your car you are driving beyond what your brakes are capable of and you could destroy yuor car. Upgrade your brakes as soon as possible, remember one of the golden rules they taught you in driving school, if you can stop better you can go faster.

[ho428]

One thing about running in a vintage class is they limit your brake size and design. I have the max rotor dia, I could go to a 4 pistion if I could find one to fit the Rally II rims, I really don't want to change rims, but SSBC does make a dual pistion direct interchange for the single that'll fit.
The M/P kit was just the easiest way to get a complete package to start with as I'm learning as I go, and I can re-use the parts on another car.

As far as Rotors I had hoped find something better at some point and rotate these on to my Street-Strip car and take it's solid face rotors and change my 68 Vert cruiser from drums to single piston disc using the race car or more M/P parts.

Having three 68 Birds means I swap a lot of stuff around. Keeping it all straight is the hard part.

[gtoroadracer]

That is one of the reasons why I do not care for historic racing, they do not take into effect a safety concern that will allow people to tun safer brakes that work better to keep the drivers safer. They would rather have people go out and ruin their race cars. Gordon when you are looking for new brakes let me know and I will point you in the right direction. Race cars should have race brakes no question about it whether you are going in a straight line or around corners. If you can't stop a car in a situation then you have no control of the car.