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Alterkation and caltracs?

4K views 13 replies 3 participants last post by  BBLM23 
#1 ·
Anyone here running an Alterkation and caltracs with mono's? From what I'm reading you need a loose front end with at least 5" of travel to get the caltracs to work, I don't have that with the Alterkation so.....
 
#2 ·
Try to get the front end as loose as possible in the upward travel, i don't think i have 5 inches of travel in mine neither, i went with lighter TBs from my 383 TBs and noticed no difference in my 60fts. even though the up travel is much looser (go figure) alot of torgue i guess! also try to limit the rear seperation to 2 inches, thats what helped me, i was seperating about 4 inches and porpusing bad, but i'm still using old factory leafs, had to preload my bars 1/2 turn to keep things under control. as long as the front is able to come up faster & higher then the rear at launch you should be ok. "rake" is another thing to check, 1 to 1.1/2 in.

I guess i should have ask, are you having problems now? how fast is the car.
 
#3 ·
I haven't fitted the Caltracs yet, I would need to alter the front spring boxes (not wide enough) and probably reset the pinion angle as well, I want to be sure they are going to work before I go through all that for nothing. In any case I will run the car first with the superstock springs it already has as a baseline. I was just wondering if anyone else had tried this setup and had trouble getting it to work.
 
#5 ·
Sorry, I don't read here as thoroughly as I used to.
I had a stock front end with sway bar removed and 90/10 shocks (CE?). I had stock six leaf springs and Caltracs. Car hooked every time.

I switched to an AlterKtion. Car would only hook under ideal track conditions. I was racing at night. Two time trials could be 1.67 short time, by 1st round they would be 1.86 -2.08. Bad wheelspin. I called Calvert and he wanted more front end travel. When I ordered the AlterKtion I got lighter springs then Bill normally used. Then I switched them lighter again, and again. The earlier AlterKtions (like mine) had three inches of total travel at the shock, more at the wheel. I think Bill changed it to four inches at the shock. Three inches is fine for a high horsepower car that is yanking the front end off the ground, it will actually limit the wheelstand. On a lower HP street car it wasn't enough. I adjusted so I had a little over two inches of up travel in the shock. I adjusted the shocks. Mine were 5 position that I got with the Caltracs. I tried both holes in the Caltracs and different preloads. Nothing improved.

I finally convinced Calvert to sell me the Mono springs. We spoke many times, usually on his dime. He didn't want to sell me something, not have it work and for me to be upset. I have spun the tires twice since I switched to the Mono springs. I made a pass in a misty rain and didn't spin. I have run 11.64@115mph. Best short time of 1.57, typical is 1.60-1.62.
 
G
#6 ·
Hi guys, what are Alterkation ?My set up is 3050 pound cuda with 440, 3000 stall caltracs and mono leaf, 1.48 best 60 foot, 10.46 at 127.71 miles an hour, but the norm is 1.5,s at 1.5,s with secondary bounce. Front lift s sometimes and sometimes not. Have tried upper holes and lower holes and rancho shocks. Still working on it. 0 preload seems the best , but have figured out my shocks on the rear were bottomed out so have the right set in and kinda starting over. Shocks on the front are, oh oh brain dead here, red ones 90,10,s. On slow motion video is amazing how much the rear springs and rear drop, but body kinda just stays there. Tim

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#7 ·
Thanks BBLM23, that's just the input I was after. I too have the early Alterkation and I'm sure when I was talking to Bill about it a couple of years back he said there was a longer shock I could fit if front end travel was a problem. Sounds like you have the problem sorted without resorting to that, so based on that I will fit the caltracs later this year and see how it works out. When I get the new motor built I'll have 600+HP so maybe it'll just yank the tires and I won't have a problem.....
 
G
#9 ·
If memory serves, I believe I did send the longer shocks to Walt. Those early systems used a shock that just didn't allow enough travel for a good 60' on a leaf spring car. Ladder bar/4-link cars don't need that much, so they never had an issue, just the leaf spring guys. We use the longer shock on all of them now though, so we're down to just helping out the few guys with the early systems.

Putting the longer shock in the early system isn't a perfect arrangement, but it's usually just enough to do the trick.


Tim, the Alterktion kit is under the front of BBLM23's picture there...
 
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