o.k i thought i would make a POST FOR setup and issues that almost everyone has with caltrac..also a place to start from for the first run/test pass along with how to adjust after you have a few passes. start at the front and make sure the front control arm are not binding. this is one of the biggest issues. you can do this with after market bushings or control arms or just elbow grease. the control arms should fall on there own without having to push them down. the front springs need to be of a drag style that will give you the best weight tranfer you can AND MUST HAVE ATLEAST 5" OF UPWARD TRAVEL IN THE FRONT END. shocks should be of a good drag style i like d/a afco's. AFTER DOING ALL THE ABOVE SET THE SHOCKS AT FULL LOOSE FOR THE FIRST FEW RUNS. FOR THE REAR same thing binding is the number 1 issue most the time it's in the shackels and the front leaf spring mounting bolt.. every car i see the bolts are over tightened you should be able to push the rear down 5-6" easy without the shock or caltrac mounted. lube all bushings well and don't over tighen. know that theres no binding, any adjustment later will work.. i always start in the upper hole and preload of 1/16 gap. this will give you a lot of pressure over the rear tire. shock settings ON REAR, i always start at full tight on extension... know that the car is setup for a test pass have someone video it.. THE CAR WILL DO ONLY A few THINGS NOW. IT WILL HOOK AND PULL A HUGE WHEELIE, IT WILL HOOK AND DO WANT YOUR NEED, IT WILL HOOK AND pull left or right, IT WILL HOOK AND SPIN 20FT OUT...IT WILL KILL THE REAR TIRE BY HITTING IT WAY TO HARD IF YOU HAVE DONE EVERYTHING UP TOP I'M 95% SURE IT WILL ONLY DO ONE OF THESE THINGS.. IF IT HOOKS AND PULLS A HUGE WHEELIE THEN TIGHTEN THE FRONT SHOCKS THIS SHOULD BE THE ONLY REASON TO TIGHTEN THE FRONT SHOCK....IF IT HOOKS AND PULLS TO THE RIGHT OR LEFT THEN PUT A LITTLE PRELOAD ON THE SIDE IT PULLS TO.. IF IT HOOKS AND SPINS 20FT OUT START LOOSENING THE EXTENSION ON THE REAR SHOCKS 1-2 CLICKS AT A TIME TO IT HOOKS AND STAYS ON THE REAR TIRE.. IF IT KILLS THE REAR TIRE YOU NEED TO PUT THE BARS IN THE LOWER HOLE AND ADJUST THE SAME AS YOU WOULD IN THE UPPER HOLE. IF YOU HAVE LOWERED THE CAR A LOT THERE OTHER TRICKS TO DO BUT FOR 98% OF THE CALTRAC CARS OUT THERE THIS WILL BE ALL YOU NEED.. if your running a dragradial with big power and a 2.3-2.5 fisrt gear ratio in your trans and a rear gear taller then 3.60 good luck!!! you will chase you tail for ever..
jeff c
76 nova with a 572 , 14.5 to 1 brodix 355 ovalports. 4.10 gear turbo 400 trans not sure on cam specs but suppose to be easy on parts and make around 925 to 950 . car is mini tubed has cal tracs and strange single adjustable shocks car weights 3320 with driver. tires are 29 14.50 hooseir quick time pros i think there twelve inches of tread . is there any chance in hell of making this thing hook with out a power glide or some sort of timming retard to get it out of the hole . they are the dot tires not slicks and there not drag radials either. i think the convertor is a 6000 ts convertor.
yes the dragradial are very stiff side wall.. the qtp are closer to a slick and take shock a lot more then a dragradial.. just make sure all the above is done and looked at closely
if you weigh 150# it may not go down 4-5 get a buddy 300-350# pushing on the back it should go down around there. or the rear leafs may be binding or the spring rate is to hi. you have mono leaf?
Gm Multi leaf straight from classic industries 143 pound spring rate. 5 packs.
About 2 years old.
Im only 180 so i dont really get that much bounce out of it.
Jeff you have been a big help with these caltracs thanks so much man.
About 2 years old.
Im only 180 so i dont really get that much bounce out of it.
Jeff you have been a big help with these caltracs thanks so much man.
take hit away from the tire. it's like this.. lower hole no preload is the softest hit then add preload adds more hit intill about 1 1/2 turns of preload then it goes in the upper hole with no preload then up to 1 1/2 turns of preload..thats softest to hardest
Will putting it in the lower hole move the instant center of the car forward? And if its hooking consistently is it worth trying? Right now we are in the upper holes with .5 turn of preload.
So what would be done differently in a car that is lowered 3-5 inches in the back?
Just wanted to say thanks for all the info on caltrac bars. Really appreciate it.
some guys run anti roll bar- some don't.. i think it money i could spend else where if your not make over 1300hp.. the split mono from caltrac will take a lot of power the landrum mono will bend at 900 ish..
Well, let's see...I have a 2.48 low gear TH400 AND 3.73 rear gears AND factory multi leaf springs AND run a 275 drag radial at about 700HP. I guess I am screwed.
Despite the less than ideal set up I actually am still real close to dialing it in. I can click off several 60s in the 1.35x range but then I'll have one where it blows the tires off. I have some more fine tuning to do but if that doesn't work and I could only replace one thing, should it be springs, trans or rear gear? Obviousely the trans would be waaay more expensive than the other 2 options.
Despite the less than ideal set up I actually am still real close to dialing it in. I can click off several 60s in the 1.35x range but then I'll have one where it blows the tires off. I have some more fine tuning to do but if that doesn't work and I could only replace one thing, should it be springs, trans or rear gear? Obviousely the trans would be waaay more expensive than the other 2 options.
went to the landrum website, their mono's are significantly cheaper than caltracs mono's...is there any downside to using the landrum stuff on a street/strip car? what is the ideal spring rate in a mono that is being used in conjunction with caltracs?
greg o, you should be fine at 700hp th400 and 3.73 gear.. i was talking power over 900 off the hit and well into 1300+ range.. mshred, the landrum bend under power levels of 900+.. right where the braket hits the top of the leaf it bends the landrums.. the clatrac are WAY thicker at that point and haven't seen one bent yet..
Hey greg,
You are running multi's so am I. What spring pack and rate are you running? Also what rear shocks are you running? Cause i had a problem getting a rear sock with enough extension to fit in the stock location?
Wondering if you had the same deliemma.
You are running multi's so am I. What spring pack and rate are you running? Also what rear shocks are you running? Cause i had a problem getting a rear sock with enough extension to fit in the stock location?
Wondering if you had the same deliemma.
any advice would be helpful....
69 camaro, all steel, glass hood
540 ci. victor 24 heads, pump gas, 785 hp ...engine dyno...
turbo 400 2.48 first gear, foot brake
4.10 rear
cal trac's complete set up, mono leaf, rancho single adj. etc.
275/60/15 M/T drag radial
Car has been a best of 10.19 with a 1.48 60 foot in the heat...
My 60 foot has been all over the place, I like to blame the track but the reality is ,it's probably my set up....
I have now put a fogger on it, but i am only spraying 150 at it (ahh the quest for nines, and then thats it, I swear this time ) So would you have a baseline set up for me to start with, or should I just keep reading your first post cause i think you have a general starting point.....
thanks in advance
69 camaro, all steel, glass hood
540 ci. victor 24 heads, pump gas, 785 hp ...engine dyno...
turbo 400 2.48 first gear, foot brake
4.10 rear
cal trac's complete set up, mono leaf, rancho single adj. etc.
275/60/15 M/T drag radial
Car has been a best of 10.19 with a 1.48 60 foot in the heat...
My 60 foot has been all over the place, I like to blame the track but the reality is ,it's probably my set up....
I have now put a fogger on it, but i am only spraying 150 at it (ahh the quest for nines, and then thats it, I swear this time ) So would you have a baseline set up for me to start with, or should I just keep reading your first post cause i think you have a general starting point.....
thanks in advance
put fronts full loose, try a little preload on the bar see if that helps. or go to the upper hole and set the shocks 3 clicks from full tight. this will hit the tire harder..does it pull the tire when it hooks know ?
Thanks Jeff for sharing this info .Would love to see this thread as a stickey so we dont have to search for it when running into problems (some of us dont race frequently or retain info so well). Your posts have helped me sneak up my 60s on my bbc 4spd 69 camaro but i realize my clutch management throws a whole other variable into the mix.N/A 525,11:1,4.56,soft loc at 680lbs static,27gms cw,29x9 slicks,3600lbs,set up as you spec'd .10.28 135.5mph ,1.50 60fts.,top hole ,3 flats on rt side,9 ways set on 6.working on a clutch cooldown method cause 60s get worse as clutch gets hotter after each run.
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