Advice is worth about what it costs????
This advice is from a guy (me) that had never pulled a sled a year ago today. I did one hook a Scheid's last August, three at Muncie in June this year and maybe 30 other hooks here in Missouri this summer. Some pullers have 20 years experience.
Variables to be considered are weight and type of sled, track condition/soil makeup, tire diameter, pressure, type tread, rear end ratio, truck weight, hitch height, etc... ... . But the number one thing to consider on your first pull is HOW MUCH CLUTCH do you have. I'm not try to make this complicated as sled pulling is fun and can be a very rewarding experience, our CTD's perform well in this sport. However if your clutch won't get the sled up to warp speed you will be happier and money ahead to pull in a slower gear. 1rst gear high side is safe on most any clutch, 5 or 6 speed with 3. 54 gears and reasonable tires. If you have a set of 38" boggers please read and reread Sled Pullers post above (memorize every word
) regarding take off. If you use 1rst hi with a 31" tire/no slippage you will pull the sled 13. 9 mph at 3000rpm. I use 3000rpm as I see no reason not to expect that out of our trucks, anyone that disagrees, please jump in here and tell me why. If you have 35" tire you will pull 15. 7mph. 1rst high will probably not win any local pulls but you will make a respectable distance, beat most brand X's, get practice and not work or break your truck. I was at a pull that had awesome traction on a claymix spongy track. A young man had won placed first and second earlier that afternoon at another sled pull, his first pull. He came to the track with a beautiful albeit huge set of MT Claw tires. His 6speed bombed truck had a popular 13in single disc aftermarket clutch. On his second try to move the sled in 3rd low, he pulled maybe 12 ft. , clutch smoked.
If you don't have a pulling clutch (dual disc or better IMHO) put on some nonagressive tires when you practice pulling in a faster gear, spinning your tires is good
, spinning your clutch after full release is :{ :{.
Calculating speeds with a 31" tire and 3000rpm gives:
5sp. 3rd low 17. 2mph
6sp. 3rd low 14. 1mph
6sp 4th low 20. 7mph 35" tire 23. 3mph
When I decided to pull, I called around about clutches. The Mitchells didn't try to sell me anything but patiently answered my questions. Finally they told me "your little truck is not going to hurt our clutch"
. I bought it, tried to break it, and Oo. Oo. ! I believe they are correct... ... . good luck all, have fun, and sorry for the long post. Larry Crawford
Attention: TDR Forum Junkies 
( OEM Tire size also being equal )
