My inclination is to run slicks. But, since I've never run drag radials I'm wondering if they would be a better option. I will not street drive the car. It is a dedicated bracket racer so I want it to hook and be consistent. What are you guys running and are you happy with them? Jim
If you don't want to waste time and also wondering when your going to spin and lose a race stay with slicks.
Whats your set up on the car ? Slicks are the only way to go IMO as long as you have a good stout rearend
Don't mean to be a prick, but Drag radial are just as good as Slicks. The drag radial is a stiff wall that is more friendly on the big end because you can run 17 psi vs 12 and lower with the Slick. Just a matter of what you are happy with. I have ran both and I do run a stiff wall slick, but wouldn't hesitate to to go to a Drag radial again. I'm running 10.4 @ 130 mph.
400hp carbureated roller 5.0, C-4 manual reverse valve body 2800 stall TC, 9" posi 3.89 gears, Caltracs, 15" Prostars. I'm also looking at M/T Pro Bracket radial slicks 28x9. Once I get it on the track, I will go to a spool and bigger axles.
Very close to my combo, you might want put a different gear ratio in it with 28" tire your 60' would probably be better, your top end speed will be great though with the 3.89s. I have a friend that runs e stock class and he runs both radial slicks and standard slicks he changes them depending on track conditions but he usually gains a slight bit using the radials. With the track temps at Firebird drag radials slicks would be a good choice.
These are tough questions sometimes because there are just sooooo many potential combinations of driving styles and various engine/chassis combo's that you'll seriously need to think about to accurately dial it all in for best results. Sure, lots of times people just throw more tire at it and can rightly say that either dot or slick will work just fine but too much tire beyond what's needed will only add drag and rolling resistance to slow you down. A 9" tire is not overly huge and I think it fits what you have pretty well. One of my bigger questions is this 2,800 advertised?.. or the actual true and tested flash speed of the converter? Everything that I have ever personally seen and learned about racing(racetrack or otherwise) has shown me the biggest thing to consider is the amount of "hit" the tire will see when it leaves the line(and during shifts for the higher powered/lower weight stuff). One older racer I knew in Seattle would say tuning tires on his race car was very similar to tuning a multi-disk clutch in that it created a spring damper/shock absorber affect. For this reason he used several different tires and compounds at the various tracks of the NW. This has everything to do with weight, gearing, chassis setup, even the shape of the engines power production(sml blk vs big blk, peaky vs broad, etc).. and final torque multiplication factor at the tire. Sidewall designs(steel or nylon) and heights also have a great deal to do with "tuning the hit" of the tire to any particular chassis, engine power, and driving style. Transbraked, footbraked, bigger motors, higher or ultra-high stall converters just don't prefer to run steel belted drag radials unless they can stuff enough tire in it. Even then, things can still quickly get interesting if the track goes away or you hit some greasy marbles or fluids so why even chance running a dot compliant street tire on a pure drag car? The other thing to consider is tire growth variations from the different designs with steel belts maintaining the most consistent diameters during the run. It may not be a top fuel funny car sized slick but it does in fact grow quite substantially as you're crossing the stripe. IMO, those gears combined with a 28" tall tire do not need any more diameter than they already have. At least not unless you give it more stall speed and improve the top end speeds to hit the line at higher tire rpm's then you'll currently see. What rpm do you see peak power at with this combo? Too sum it all up.. a 9" drag radial should be just fine with a 302/2,800/3.89 combo but I myself would forego the steel belts directional stability on the top end in favor of better digs and half tracks which may be gained from running a pure slick. I would also want to see at least 3,500 rpm true stall speed with any 400 horsepower 302. Without more converter you're leaving too much ET on the table, IMHO.
A friend of mine believes the same thing Rob does,a huge tire just slows you down.He has a 2800lb fox body,408,G-Force 5 spd & 4.88 gears running alcohol,M/T 29.5,10.5,15s.Last yr. at MIR he went 8.65 at 156mph,he`ll be running at Farmington,NC this wknd.
If your braket racing I'd say Hoosier slicks are the way to go. All slicks aren't created equal. I'm sure a radial would work but why chance it if it's a race only car.
I like the idea of the Hoosier stiff side wall slicks,but some people over on Yellow Bullit forums say they don`t last as long as other slicks.Now I don`t know how much HP he is making,but one driver commented he could not get more than 40 passes out of Hoosiers,liked the M/T better.If you look at the videos of the Ozark Mountain Super Shifters,many of the higher HP cars are using M/T,I know everyone has their preference but there must be a reason as these are 2 lower cost tires.Now most of the big boys run Goodyears where cost is no option,out of my league,when I make it to the trk I`ll be using M/T.
Right now I think I will go with M/T radial slicks. The Mav is a light weight, low torque small-block car. Firebird is usually hot, and at 2800' altitude power is down. I think the radial slicks will hook and last me all season. And I like the high speed stability of the radials. Firebird is a very smooth 1/4 mile track with very good traction when it is hot, which it is most every day. I don't intend to race anywhere else since I don't want to trailer a few hundred miles. The ideal situation for me is for the car to run 12.0 as that will put me at the bottom of Sportsman class (12.00 and slower bracket). I may even add weight to slow the car down. With everything optimized it should run high 10s at sea level and high 11s at 2800'. I should have the car weighed by the end of next week which will show me exactly where I am with power to weight. The engine made 397 hp at 6000 rpm on the engine dyno.
Hoosier are softer compound and the 28" tire is actually 28. The M/T tire isnt. And I'd say the tire life is dependant on driver and application. The Hoosier just worked for me. And I've heard a lot of guys who try them say they'd never buy another m/t. But I'm sure it goes both ways. I ran a set all Season and didn't wear them out. I also flip my tires from side to side after every race.
