Update: 1/15/2013
We went to Atco raceway, NJ on 10/11/12, and with my new engine in the Charger. It ran real good and I ran a best of 10.97 @ 126.1 with a 1.46 sixty foot. Once again...this is an awesome track and has become my favorite.
10/17/10 We went to Island Dragstrip in western NJ and ran our best times yet. We made 7 runs and each one successively quicker (except the last run where I mis-shifted 2nd gear). Final et was 11.37 @ 119.78 MPH with a 1.49 sixty foot. Great track and good time.
9/28/09 I just completed a Manual Disc brake conversion on the front of the '68. It went well, but I ran into two issues. One is the flexible brake hose, and the other is the bump stop (because I also converted the upper control arms to the new Magnumforce tubular adjustables. They do mention this in the paperwork and it is clearly specified modifications will have to be made. Here are some of the pictures that show the modification I made.
The first is the brake hose bracket, being that with this setup, You have to route the hose to the front area. There is no bracket there (it;s in the back). I didn't want to cut that one off and put it in the front because I may want to correctly restore this car someday, so I tried to fabricate my own. I spent a little while trying to think what I could use and the only thing that I came up with is that a 5/8 wrench fits the brake hose fitting perfectly. So I bought two 5/8 wrenches and my nephew, Danny and I cut them off and ground them down so they were the same profile thickness of the bracket and I just welded them on in the front. The result may not look stock, but it works perfectly. Here is the result:
Before:
Wrenches used and cut off (unused ends):
Resulting bracket in front of tire/spindle:
Problem No. 2 was the bump stop misalignment with the new tubular arms (By the way, these are beautifully crafted and will correct any Camber/Caster dialing-in problems your car may have). I had to fabricate a new bump stop and chose the rear location to do it instead of the stock location in the front. It was a little too crowded there now with the brake hose and orig. bump stop (which again I left intact). Here are some pictures of the mod:
I carefully measured exactly where I wanted it and had to calculate the correct amount of bumper crush to get the arm where I wanted it to land in a fully unloaded position. This is because I need 5" of front tire travel extension for racing in order for my suspension to work properly and transfer all weight to the rear wheels. this new bump stop gave me 5" and is just about 1/8" from contacting the frame rail underneath the control arm (Close!!).
Here is the final result:
I just took it out today and broke in the rotors and pads and it feels good. At first I was real scared as it was not stopping good at all, but after a few miles of mild driving, they started grabbing real nicely. The pedal has a good amount of travel, but if I jam on the brakes, they lock up before the rears do, and I won't have any more fade problems on the highway.
Two more weeks for the race track. I post how it goes and some race shots. Thanks for checking it out!!
Here is a cool picture of the underside of the '68:
8/6/2009 Here are the new perches with the gussetts welded for strength. I am just working on converting the front brakes to discs and I will be going back to the track for some fun. stay tuned for more. Thanks for checking my ride out.
4/28/09 Well, I have just finished repairing the spring perches and welding in additional gussets. Sorry, no pictures yet. I just need to go over a few things and check the lash on the valves and I am ready to get back out there to the track in the next few weeks. Everything looks good and it's ready to go!!
3/8/09 I have posted a few videos of me racing the Charger after a bunch of people kept asking me how they can see me racing. this is the link. If it doesn't automatically take you there, just cut and paste the address below in the address box on your screen:
http://videos.streetfire.net/searchresults.aspx?term=1968%20dodge%20charger%20%20drag%20racing
Hope you enjoy them...
11/11/08 After doing a post race inspection, I discovered some damage to the spring perches on the rear. I never gusseted them, so they bant and crushed from rear rotating up. I will have to straighten them and reconfirm the pinion angle. Here is some pics of the damage:
Rear segment bent!
You can see the sides bent outward allowing the bottom of the perch to fold up:
On Friday, October 3, I went with a friend to Cecil County, MD. to race again. I got 7 runs in being it was a track rental. Once again, the car ran so strong. It ran an 11.56 @ 119MPH with a 1.53 60 foot time. I launch at 6000Rpm and the car just launched and screamed down the track. I shift as fast as the Tremec transmission allows me to. It does not like to be powershifted. The Caltrac bars I installed on the car work awesome. The car is super consistant out of the hole and adjustments show a difference when made. What a great track and the staff was very friendly and professional. I can't wait to go back there. Here are some pics and I hope you enjoy them:
Well, I finally went to the Drag strip and got a few runs in. I had a blast and I have to say, the Charger performed increadibly. It ran real strong and It is I that needs practice!! (It''s been a long time since I raced). I was very happy with the 117 MPH timeslip considering it weighs 4020 lbs with me in it. But, due to my driving, my best ET was only 11.8 sec. Should be more like 11.4 with the MPH it ran. Next time i'll do better. Check out some pics from the evening:
The burnout
Staged at the beams :
The Launch :
This is my '68 Charger R/T. I have had the priviledge of owning it since 1986. I was 19 when it changed my life. My passion completely changed from playing drums in a hardcore rock band and studying martial arts to wrenching on my Mopar every minute I could. I learned all that I know on this car and it has taught me a tremendous amount. this was my first paint job back in 1992 and it still looks decent. I have really matured throuout the years with it...going from a crazy kid racing in the streets and having quite a few close calls to a much more responsible driver whom respects this Charger and its speed. I find myself driving very tame when I am in it even though it has tremendous power. The engine is music to my ears. I will continue to enjoy this true classic and only let it rip at the racetrack, or on a very desolate road. If you hear the scream of a big block Mopar in the very distance, who knows, it could be me wringing it loose!!
This is some of the more recent work I have done to my Silver Charger...I fabricated a 3" exhaust system and it sound insane!! I also installed Caltracs with Mono leafs and I had to cutoff the spring perches and reweld them for the proper pinion angle. The pictures show the welds. And finally, I have new wheels and slicks for next season.
