Slick's front & rear??

[James Thomas]

Ok, I gotta ask this question because:
1. I never really thought about it?
2. Just didn't sound right to me.

Question is have any of you fellas ever run drag slicks (not DR's) on the front and rear of your SyTy? I got one guy telling me he runs them front and rear on his "hopped up drag Blazer". Says you gotta be real careful with the pressure and work your way down because it can get real squirly and float, but start at 25 psi and work your way down and you will be ok.

I know the FWD boys run slicks on the front (of course) but slicks front and rear just sounded strange and maybe dangerous too? Hmmmm....... dunno bout this one :dunno:?

Thanks!

_______________
James

 

[turbodig]

Re: Slick's front & rear??

Ok, I gotta ask this question because:
1. I never really thought about it?
2. Just didn't sound right to me.

Question is have any of you fellas ever run drag slicks (not DR's) on the front and rear of your SyTy? I got one guy telling me he runs them front and rear on his "hopped up drag Blazer". Says you gotta be real careful with the pressure and work your way down because it can get real squirly and float, but start at 25 psi and work your way down and you will be ok.

I know the FWD boys run slicks on the front (of course) but slicks front and rear just sounded strange and maybe dangerous too? Hmmmm....... dunno bout this one :dunno:?

Thanks!

_______________
James

He might do it, but it ain't NHRA kosher. There's a rule in the book that says something to the effect that a 4wd/AWD vehicle can't have slicks on the front.

Doesn't preclude DOT stickies, however.

The big question becomes how you warm 'em up. The rears would be doable with a cable-activated front unlock. How you'd warm the fronts (aside from the Ed Hess-style 4 wheeler)...?

I would think having sticky mickey radials on the front and a good slick on the back would be the best option, that way. Unlock the front, do your big rear burn, lock the fronts, then a quick dry hop to clean the fronts.

 

[NOJIMMY]

Re: Slick's front & rear??

...a LONG TIME Ago I used to see things like this at a strip
http://www.oldsclub.org/JWO/TheHairyHurstOlds/hairy_hurst_olds.htm
which was definitely before radials were invented. Was a sight to behold!
Granted, Champ and Indy Cars use "slicks" but they aint awd/4-wheel drive blazers.

Nowdays tho, people claim to have all kinds of equipment/builds - some stupid/some good.
Personally, I`d run away from anyone claiming to be to use 4 bias ply slicks on a blazer
(as they definitely aren't the shining star in the universe, whether actually true or not)!

The reasons are many (however people do the strangest things):
-Strip rules (nobody wants to be killed, injured or legally obligated with insurance limits)
-Handling (bias ply tires grow, deform, wiggle, and require precise air adjustment to actually work)
-Assuming one has the diff`s to even take advantage of this (ie f/r Spools)...turning would be a problem. Didnt ask whether this was an auto or manual tranny bazer.
-Mixed radials/bias plys hop, wiggle, and would tend to send you into the wall (defeating low et runs)
-Weight (that combo would be heavy), clearance, etc
-Warm up/Burn out power required to heat up all four (guess he could side step a clutch or use a tranny brake).
-If bubba and his blazer lined up, any good challenger would seriously worry about being hit with flying
debris/vehicle/parts. KInda like seeing spikes in all fours (for ice racing); chains; or studs on a drag racer.

I know guys that supposedly put sand bags in their pickups to increase traction as well on the street - but
a lot this kinda engineering is done after consuming multiple 6 packs! Hopefully your wiser.

-Larry Brown

 

[James Thomas]

Re: Slick's front & rear??

...a LONG TIME Ago I used to see things like this at a strip
http://www.oldsclub.org/JWO/TheHairyHurstOlds/hairy_hurst_olds.htm
which was definitely before radials were invented. Was a sight to behold!
Granted, Champ and Indy Cars use "slicks" but they aint awd/4-wheel drive blazers.

Nowdays tho, people claim to have all kinds of equipment/builds - some stupid/some good.
Personally, I`d run away from anyone claiming to be to use 4 bias ply slicks on a blazer
(as they definitely aren't the shining star in the universe, whether actually true or not)!

The reasons are many (however people do the strangest things):
-Strip rules (nobody wants to be killed, injured or legally obligated with insurance limits)
-Handling (bias ply tires grow, deform, wiggle, and require precise air adjustment to actually work)
-Assuming one has the diff`s to even take advantage of this (ie f/r Spools)...turning would be a problem. Didnt ask whether this was an auto or manual tranny bazer.
-Mixed radials/bias plys hop, wiggle, and would tend to send you into the wall (defeating low et runs)
-Weight (that combo would be heavy), clearance, etc
-Warm up/Burn out power required to heat up all four (guess he could side step a clutch or use a tranny brake).
-If bubba and his blazer lined up, any good challenger would seriously worry about being hit with flying
debris/vehicle/parts. KInda like seeing spikes in all fours (for ice racing); chains; or studs on a drag racer.

I know guys that supposedly put sand bags in their pickups to increase traction as well on the street - but
a lot this kinda engineering is done after consuming multiple 6 packs! Hopefully your wiser.

-Larry Brown

Mmmm...... In a nut shell, DITTO. I just thought I would ask cause I thought maybe the rules had changed with the various different AWD vehicles through the years and better tire tech. and construction? I wouldn't do it if it was legal though.

__________
James

 

[NOJIMMY]

Re: Slick's front & rear??

okay, now that thats out-of-the-way,
...its funny what people will do, say, or brainstorm over while "bench racing":
-wrinkle walls without rim locks/screws which eventually cutoff valve stems due to movement on the rim
-tires that require tubes without them (with liquid goo inside)
-too wide a tire on too narrow a rim (or vise-versa)
-wheel adaptors and slicks with standard length studs (or worse yet, studs that are broken off)
-use of brake fluid on tires to make shiny/black and use of sticky compounds
-mixed use of radials and bias ply slicks
-patched or plugged slicks with low psi
-strange uses for cement blocks (jack stands, ballast, ramps, etc)
-under or overheating tires in burnout box (ie there is an optimum temp and everything else is overkill)
-or even failing to torque their prize wheels on disk brakes (choosing to warp the rotors with uneven wheel stud pressure)

I once saw a muscle car with slicks "light-em-up" in gravel throwing stones on everyone elses car.
Didn't take long for the "mob" to form, pull him out of his vehicle, and beat the living ?#@$ out of him.
People do the strangest things (like putting a parachute on their car for looks and then pulling the cord)! Actually saw a guy "start" his ole ford by jacking it up (bumper jack of course), put a
rope around the dangling tire, and yank....the whole thing fell! Its like watch a baby change
an 18-wheeler split-rim tire.....you dont wanna be around for the ending with some folks!
Mythbusters did a segment where they put live bullets in as fuses...(ie headlights). Electricity
flowed but an extreme short (that could fry wires) caused the bullet to go off....which was pointed
toward the dummy/driver`s crotch of course. The rifle bullet fit perfectly into the fuse holder.

-Larry Brown

 

[turbodig]

Re: Slick's front & rear??

Tire growth would be an issue with our transfer case... a slick would grow (especially at big trap speeds), while a radial on the front would tend to resist growing.

The resulting mismatch in front/rear tire diameters would scrub off a fair amount of speed, I would think.

You could do some revolution/coast down testing to get the two balanced at speed, but at rest (launch) you'd be off. That would probably be the lesser of two evils, since you spend far
less time at < 60 MPH than you do above that.

 

[mhoover]

Re: Slick's front & rear??

we did it with MTs in the back and ET streets in the front...... had no problems except snapping a couple of shafts in the transfer case. change those to ty shafts and had no more problems. also had stock axles in the front..........

MATT