NMRA/NMCA’s Charlie Harmon talks live about the all new NMCA WEST series and goes in-depth about the upcoming Pomona, CA race. Watch last night’s interview here  at www.speedscenelive.com

]]> http://www.nmcadigital.com/2012/05/16/charlie-harmon-talks-on-speed-scene-live-about-the-nmca-west-pomona-event/feed/ http://www.nmcadigital.com/2012/05/15/bm-racing-performance/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=bm-racing-performance http://www.nmcadigital.com/2012/05/15/bm-racing-performance/#comments Tue, 15 May 2012 22:26:25 +0000 DGonzalez http://www.nmcadigital.com/?p=3949

There are a lot of aspects of a muscle car that add to the whole driving experience. The way the suspension performs, the way the brakes engage, the feel of the seats, and the shifter all add to the total package of your high-performance machine, so when one or more … Read More

There are a lot of aspects of a muscle car that add to the whole driving experience. The way the suspension performs, the way the brakes engage, the feel of the seats, and the shifter all add to the total package of your high-performance machine, so when one or more of those things are worn out, it can really take away from your adrenalin-fueled drive. If the shifter is sloppy, it can be a real pain because it can shake your wide open throttle confidence.

For the install we contacted Chris Johnson of 2Edge Performance in Costa Mesa. 2Edge will be handling the total revamp of this project in 2012.

We recently ran into a sloppy shifter problem with our new ’69 Camaro project so we contacted one of the best when it comes to high-performance shifters, If the shifter is sloppy it can be a real pain, and it can shake your wide open throttle confidence.  The shifter we had before was from the early 1990s and it was just worn out, it lacked the cover, and it’s looseness was just annoying. So before we fully tear into this project, we wanted to address the shifter issue with a cool B&M piece.

Here's a shot of the 1989-era shifter we were running in the Camaro. We were glad to get rid of that tired mechanism for a brand new piece from B&M: The legendary MegaShifter.

The MegaShifter comes with an array of different transmission brackets that cover most popular muscle car transmissions.

For this back-to-basics install, we opted for the tried-and-true MegaShifter from B&M. The MegaShifter is one of B&M’s all-time classic designs and according to their website, B&M has sold more MegaShifters than all the shifters in their entire line. The MegaShifter has a tough look and it’s ratchet action makes driving an automatic a blast, and it’s ideally suited for most popular universal applications. Dimensions measure 12.98” long, 12.61” high and 6.57” wide, however, the base can be trimmed to custom fit any floor. Like most racing shifters, the MegaShifter is cable operated for quick installation and accurate shifting. It also features a reverse lockout that meets NHRA and IHRA requirements. Other items included neutral safety switch, backup light switch, lighted gear indicator and polished aluminum t-handle with the famous B&M etched in, and cable and can be used with a reverse pattern valve body. The MegaShifter fits GM TH-400, 350, 250, 200, 700R4 and 200-4R, 4L60E and 4L65E. Ford C4, C6 and AOD (AOD requires a special installation kit). Chrysler ’66 & later Torqueflite A727 & A904 too.

B&M Racing & Performance 818.882.6422 bmracing.com

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At 284cc intake ports, expect some very high flow from Dart's 15-degree heads. With some light port work, we heard 404 cfm on intake at .900 lift is not unheard of.

Dart’s 15-degree Chevy heads are a powerful option for those looking to make big, high-rpm horsepower without a power adder and without the need for anything too exotic. Although they are a popular choice in the circle track world, 15-degree heads are an affordable, yet powerful choice even for the drag racer.

A light valvetrain is critical in a high winding combination like this, so Panno installed some 2.200” titanium intake and 1.622” titanium exhaust valves in the 15-degree castings.

Over the last couple years, one of the local allies of FSC magazine, Randy Panno, has been compiling parts for a wild 406 Chevy. We knew that Panno’s shortblock was no slouch and featured many light- weight components designed for high revs, so we thought it would be a perfect candidate to test some of Dart’s 15-degree cylinder heads on. Basically, we wanted find out how much power we could make with these not-too-typical cylinder heads. Panno wants to get 1,000 horsepower from his combination, and although he admits it’s a lofty goal, he’s going to try anyhow. “We plan on buzzing the motor quite a bit and we’re running a sheetmetal tunnel ram from CFE that should flow what we need,” Panno said. “My engine builder [Richard Conley] has built many engines over the years, and even some that currently hold NHRA records, so he’ll be applying some of his tricks to this engine build.” Some of the these ‘tricks’ include oiling system modifications, piston design, and a special camshaft profile.

These heads come with a dual bolt pattern exhaust face to allow for big tube headers. No need for adapter plates!

The heads of this engine project come from Dart’s 15-degree Race Series Chevy line and will be tested in basically out-of-the-box form except for a few modifi- cations, such as copper valve seats for    titanium valves, and some minor hand porting. Dart offers their cylinder heads in a standard configuration, however you can also order these heads with a full range of race series upgrades, including rolled valve angles, high-efficiency chambers and refined intake port designs, along with a slew of features to ensure the heads can be customized and modified to meet the needs of specific racing applications. Other features of these heads include: virgin 355-T61 aerospace alloy construction, compati- bility with most components designed for 18-degree heads, shallow combustion chambers for improved combustion and allows use of larger valves. In addition, these heads can accommodate valve seats that will fit up to 2.200″ intake valves and 1.625″ exhaust valves, and feature a tall, short side radius and deep valve bowl to enhance low lift flow. Other interesting aspects of these heads include a improved spark plug position, closer to the bore centerline to enhance flame travel and reduce spark plug advance requirement, and extra thick decks for 9:1 engines that need to be milled for high compression engines. Dual exhaust bolt patterns are drilled for standard 18-degree and spread-port header flanges and water passages between exhaust ports are cast in to improve cooling and prevent “hot spots” that can cause head gasket failure.

The combustion chamber measures 48cc and is particulaly shallow to allow for ultra high compression. On our engine project we're expecting about 18:1 with the right piston.

The factory valve seats will be removed in order to install titanium-friendly copper seats.

Steel shaft rockers from Crower were used on these 15-degree heads. Aluminum rockers are obviously lighter, but with the immense amount of valvespring pressures Panno is running he needed something that wouldn't flex.

Directing the airflow is this super-nice dual quad tunnel ram from CFE out of Michigan. We knew a single plane just wouldn't have the volume to support the type of power we wanted to produce, so the guys at CFE were able to build this killer intake to support our goals. Look for more pics of this piece in future installments where we bolt up the top end.

In 2012 expect to see this small-block combination touting Dart’s 15-degree cylinder heads in the pages of FSC. Even if we can’t get to 1K, we plan on using these heads to get Panno’s wild, stick bangin’ natural Nova in the single digits before the year is through.

Dart Machinery 248.362.1188 dartheads.com

Crower 619.661.6477 crower.com

CFE Racing Products Inc. 586.773.6310 cferacing.com