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Calvert Racing Suspensions' CalTracs System Install - The HookupWe install CalTracs and a fresh 500-inch Wedge in the B-3 for improved elapsed times From the November, 2009 issue of Mopar Muscle By Dave Young Photography by Dave Young
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We recently upgraded the front... We recently upgraded the front suspension of our B-3 project, and this month we'll freshen and install a 500-inch Wedge, and upgrade the rear suspension with Calvert Racing Suspensions' CalTracs system. If you've been following the B-3 project, you know that we originally built this '67 Barracuda to run ten second elapsed times, on a budget of under ten thousand dollars. Having accomplished that goal, we've decided to upgrade the car and see just how quick we can go without cutting the car for larger back tires. Last month we installed new CAP Auto tubular suspension components up front, and this month we'll freshen up our "Wedged to the Max" 500-inch Indy headed big-block and put it in the Barracuda. To get our Barracuda to hook up with this additional power and torque, we knew we'd need the best bolt-in suspension components available for our A-Body, so we called Calvert Racing Suspensions and ordered their CalTracs system for our car. The engine we'll be installing in our Barracuda is a 500 cubic inch 440 with Indy SR cylinder heads that we built some time ago in our "Wedged to the Max" project. With a big roller cam and 12.5:1compression, this engine makes more than 750 horsepower and has a bunch of torque, so it should really test our Barracuda with its bolt-in suspension components and relatively small tires. Since the engine had some 400 passes on it though, we decided to disassemble and inspect it before dropping it in. Fortunately, our tear-down and inspection revealed no real engine damage, so we visited Summit Racing Equipment's website and ordered all necessary items to overhaul our big-block. Since our engine was so clean, we simply honed the cylinders to break the glaze, and installed Total-Seal file fit piston rings. The only problem with the crankshaft was an area on the thrust surface where the thrust bearing was showing some wear. We sent the crankshaft to Auto Performance Engines and had it repaired, then installed Federal-Mogul FEM-119,  1 Our B-3 project has run...  1 Our B-3 project has run a best of 10.13 in the quarter mile, but we wanted more. Feeling the need for speed, we'll bolt in a 500 cubic inch Indy headed wedge, and Calvert Racing Suspensions CalTracs to hook it up.  2 The engine we're installing...  2 The engine we're installing in our Barracuda is the Indy-headed 440, stroked to 500 cubic inches that we originally built for our "Wedged to the Max" project. We called Summit Racing Equipment, ordering new rings, bearings, timing chain, and gaskets for our big-block. This engine was running fine, but with more than 400 dragstrip passes we took the opportunity to freshen it up. At over 750 horsepower, this engine will certainly test our bolt-in CalTracs rear suspension.  3 Total Seal file-fit piston...  3 Total Seal file-fit piston rings were utilized for this application, with napier cut second rings and low tension oil rings. We run a vacuum pump on this engine which allows us to take advantage of the lower tension oil rings, freeing up a little power.  4 With the engine reassembled,...  4 With the engine reassembled, we dropped it in place and directed our attention to installing our Calvert rear suspension. We had clamped our leaf springs and installed an adjustable pinion snubber, but were still having problems hooking up. We'll be replacing our Super Stock leaf springs with the Calvert split mono-leaf springs.  5 Supporting the car on the...  5 Supporting the car on the lift, we lowered the rear end housing onto jackstands to support it while we replaced the suspension components.  6 The Calvert mono-leaf springs...  6 The Calvert mono-leaf springs are lighter than Super Stock springs, and are available in multiple spring rates and ride heights depending on your application.  7 Before installing the new...  7 Before installing the new springs, install the solid front bushings and front pivot assemblies.  8 The factory front spring...  8 The factory front spring mount can then be installed onto the new spring assembly.  9 The springs come with new...  9 The springs come with new rear bushings, and the rear spring mount and shackles are reused.  10 Before installing the...  10 Before installing the spring shackle and U-bolts, the force transfer links can be installed. Be sure to loosen the jam nut as this adjustment is one of the last ones made.  11 The CalTracs kit comes...  11 The CalTracs kit comes with everything you need to complete the installation, even new U-bolts of the appropriate size and strength.  12 Once the springs, shackles,...  12 Once the springs, shackles, and U-bolts are in place, the shock studs and shocks can be reinstalled. The force transfer links are then adjusted for zero preload with the car on the jacks. Later, we'll make the final adjustments with the weight on the wheels.  13 This is how the system...  13 This is how the system looks all bolted together. The CalTracs appear tough, and will definitely allow us to better tune the suspension of our Barracuda. As an added benefit, this system eliminates the need for a pinion snubber.  14 Using a digital angle...  14 Using a digital angle finder, we checked pinion angle and...  15 ...adjusted it to four...  15 ...adjusted it to four degrees using tapered shims under the rear end housing perches.  16 To set suspension preload,...  16 To set suspension preload, we lowered the car onto wheel scales with weight equivalent to the driver in the driver's seat. The force transfer links are then adjusted until the bushing touches the top of the spring, then preloaded ¼ turn based on Calvert's instructions.  17 After writing down the...  17 After writing down the scale numbers for future reference, we had the guys from Inline Performance Specialist check the front end alignment. For CalTracs to work properly, the front end needs at least 5 inches of travel, so it's very important that the front end stay properly aligned throughout that range.  18 At the track, we made...  18 At the track, we made a couple of easy passes to break in our fresh engine, then let the hammer drop. We could tell immediately that the car wanted to hook, but it went a little right and hazed the tires through the top end of the eighth mile to a 6.30 second elapsed time.  19 Since the car went right,...  19 Since the car went right, it means the right tire was spinning. By putting another quarter turn of preload in the force transfer link, the car launched hard and went straight, but still spun down-track.  20 By varying launch rpm...  20 By varying launch rpm and tire pressure, we achieved a best pass by leaving the starting line at a relatively low 3,000 rpm on the trans-brake, with rear tire pressure set at 10.5 psi.  21 While we're confident...  21 While we're confident new rear tires will improve our sixty foot and elapsed times, we were very happy with our performance on the first night out. The CalTracs helped us achieve our best sixty foot time of 1.37 seconds while running a 6.10 at over 116 mph in the eighth mile. To see video of us drag testing this suspension system, be sure to visit mopar musclemagazine.com.
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