NIsaacs said:
Mention was made that the u-joints in question were the largest in the industry. Maybe the industry (drag racing) is not keeping up with drive train strength to match the fast development of engine power. ". "NICK"
The U- joints of the highest hp machines , that still use U- joints are Blown Pro Mods . these cars have almost twice the torque of any Drag Racing diesel. And if the suspension is set up right then the failure rate is almost Zero.
I talked with the engineers of the manufactory, and with several other people , including Jerry Bickel , everyone’s position is the U- Joint failed from a misalignment , I am taking this position , because some one has to present the other side , and not let a incident , be attributed to the manufactory. If I was negative towards my competition , I would remain silent , and let them continue to break parts , or put ridiculously bigger , heavier , less efficient parts in their truck, and thereby slowing them down. I do not take that position , but live up to the spirit of the Professional License I hold , and try and impart some of the knowledge bank I have been lucky enough to acquire.
George Cathy builds or designs 99% of every fabricated rear end that goes in to a Pro Stock , or Pro Mod car running now He is in the group I usually go to lunch with on Fridays . When he got in the suburban to go to lunch , the pictures of the broken drive shaft were on the seat , his comment before he even heard the story , was drive line misalignment.
In phasing U-Joints and drive lines in a drag racing vehicles there are many things to considers, first the position of the motor in the frame . Most people , including myself , until it was explained to me believe that the motor should be in level with the chassis, but in reality it needs to be in with the front down 3 degrees . this is critical in the phasing of the U- Joint. Second the various suspensions components must be rigid enough to resist the action of the stressor placed on them when the load is placed on them . Example the rear end housing needs to have braces both inside and out , and is a very critical element of this equation. The four links need to be big enough to resist flex , the rear tree { the rear frame construction } in a pro car is one of the most critical elements in keeping the frame and rear suspension in the right alignment if any of these things give ,even a small amount , the results are as I believe happen here.
I am not trying to demean Keating’s team, I believe they are making big strides in running their truck with the handicaps they have to overcome. But to shed light of the knowledge bank that I have available in the guys I hang around with. Remember its not always the sum of your knowledge , but the sum of Knowledge you have available on speed dial.
Warren Johnson once told me when I first started to race for G. M. PERFORMANCE Parts in My Comp Dragster , and wanted his help in the advice department , that he had two rules when it came to his help.
First: don’t ask a question you already know the answer to,
Second: don’t ask a question you don’t understand the answer too.
In conclusion , torque is torque , a diesel make torque at a different Rpm then a gas motor , but the result after you properly process it thru gears and converters must be the same at the tail shaft of the transmission if you want to go fast , diesel don’t have any miraculous power , or abilities , nor are they handicapped , they just make power , and you must utilize it to the best ability to get it down the race track, you still have to incur the same tire speed with in 4 frames in the pass, to make the chassis work.
Attention: TDR Forum Junkies 
(The use of "we" above does not imply any official offiliation with KM. Just "we're" all trying to think this one through. ) 
