Attention: TDR Forum Junkies 
The “towing and hauling” guys have their own forum. Why don’t the “racing and rebellion” guys have theirs? 
I got surprised by another hopped up Cummins today.
I was talking diesel performance with a friend of mine when this ’96 3500 5-spd pulls up. He had heard about me and wanted to race. Although I never race, I couldn’t back down in front of my friend so I agreed.
I looked at his truck before our encounter and immediately noticed the BANKS twin ram intake. He said it had a banks system on it and that is how he bought it. He didn’t know what a camplate was, but did know about adjusting the starwheel for more or less smoke and responsiveness. He said he could bury his EGT gauge and that shocked me. I doubt Gale Banks would sell a product that could bury the EGT gauge, so I looked at the motor one more time. I noticed his AFC housing had three different types of screws in it, so I’m sure the camplate had been moved or modified a few times.
We drive out to the drag strip and stage. I arm the propane system, slip it into four wheel drive and start trying to spool up the HX-40. We give each other the nod a few times and then he dumps his clutch. I waited for his movement and then let her rip. I saw him grab second (yes, second) and then I was by him. I pulled about four lengths ahead in a ¼ mile then slowed to a stop. He turned around and said he wanted to run them again but with the propane turned off this time. I agreed.
This time I forgot to engage four wheel drive, and I didn’t spool the HX-40 enough to even spin a tire. He launched so hard that I thought he would pull the front tires off the ground. Each time he grabbed another gear, his front end bounced what seemed like a foot. My HX-40 wasn’t spooled up until my 1-2 shift point and he was already in 3rd gear. We ran side by side through his first four gears with me having ½ of a truck length on him. When he got into 5th gear, he actually started to catch and pass me! I was so shocked that I reached up and flipped on the propane again to keep him from beating me.
I realize that 5-spds have a lower speeded OD gear than my auto so he had a gearing advantage in OD, and I’m running an unlocked torque converter, but I didn’t think he should be close to me.
He slipped his brand new Dual Friction Centerforce clutch so badly that I could smell it in my truck.
He told me later that he never let off the throttle during the race. He had a Bank’s Powerpack which gives him the 14cm exhaust housing. He also had enough camplate to bury his pyro and push 38 psi of boost.
It looks like I’ll be needing that big P7100 after all. This was too close of a call for me.
-Chris
I got surprised by another hopped up Cummins today.
I was talking diesel performance with a friend of mine when this ’96 3500 5-spd pulls up. He had heard about me and wanted to race. Although I never race, I couldn’t back down in front of my friend so I agreed.
I looked at his truck before our encounter and immediately noticed the BANKS twin ram intake. He said it had a banks system on it and that is how he bought it. He didn’t know what a camplate was, but did know about adjusting the starwheel for more or less smoke and responsiveness. He said he could bury his EGT gauge and that shocked me. I doubt Gale Banks would sell a product that could bury the EGT gauge, so I looked at the motor one more time. I noticed his AFC housing had three different types of screws in it, so I’m sure the camplate had been moved or modified a few times.
We drive out to the drag strip and stage. I arm the propane system, slip it into four wheel drive and start trying to spool up the HX-40. We give each other the nod a few times and then he dumps his clutch. I waited for his movement and then let her rip. I saw him grab second (yes, second) and then I was by him. I pulled about four lengths ahead in a ¼ mile then slowed to a stop. He turned around and said he wanted to run them again but with the propane turned off this time. I agreed.
This time I forgot to engage four wheel drive, and I didn’t spool the HX-40 enough to even spin a tire. He launched so hard that I thought he would pull the front tires off the ground. Each time he grabbed another gear, his front end bounced what seemed like a foot. My HX-40 wasn’t spooled up until my 1-2 shift point and he was already in 3rd gear. We ran side by side through his first four gears with me having ½ of a truck length on him. When he got into 5th gear, he actually started to catch and pass me! I was so shocked that I reached up and flipped on the propane again to keep him from beating me.
I realize that 5-spds have a lower speeded OD gear than my auto so he had a gearing advantage in OD, and I’m running an unlocked torque converter, but I didn’t think he should be close to me.
He slipped his brand new Dual Friction Centerforce clutch so badly that I could smell it in my truck.
He told me later that he never let off the throttle during the race.
He had a Bank’s Powerpack which gives him the 14cm exhaust housing. He also had enough camplate to bury his pyro and push 38 psi of boost. It looks like I’ll be needing that big P7100 after all. This was too close of a call for me.
-Chris
