So what is the clutch tamer system? And I guess what's different about it compared to clutch programs offered by Bickel, Racepak and others out there?
My next pair of tires will be radials. I have a four link car and to me there's no reason you can't make the chassis work with the tire, and the clutch too. I think it will become tougher though for the guy whos not going to spend the time to dial in clutch or tire pressure because the radial just isn't as forgiving as our old slicks
The big thing with a radial is that you basically have a line that you don't want to cross when it comes to shocking the tire. Anything you can do to smooth out power delivery is going to make it easier to operate closer to that line. Any torque peaks that you have in your power delivery need to be shaved down, which basically allows you to elevate the average amount of power you can deliver to the tire...make sense?
Counterweight style clutches produce an RPM drop trace that looks more like a backwards "J" with a hook at the bottom. Their sharp, near vertical drop indicates a quick loss of rpm (intense discharge of inertia energy), which transitions into a gradual "hook" near the bottom when the clutch begins slip more. That hook area at the bottom of the "J" is where most of an adjustable's slip actually occurs. The intense vertical drop is something you have limited control over, as a centrifugal design dictates that rpm must come down before clamp pressure can be reduced. This is a big reason why SoftLoc's and such are only marginally effective when trying to run radials, as they still have a relatively intense discharge of inertia energy just after the shift, until rpm comes down enough for the bulk of their slip to occur.
A diaphragm PP combined with a ClutchTamer makes it possible to build a slipper clutch that has a more diagonal/linear rpm drop trace than the typical centrifugal. This softer engagement in the instant just after the shift helps keep those radial tires stuck.
If you have a clutchless transmission, the Basic ClutchTamer will not give you any slip after your shifts, so your only current solution would be to use a traditional adjustable PP that has a centrifugal component. That gets you at least some form after shift slip, even though the "J" shaped rpm drop is less than optimal. The future will bring a system much like a fuel car, which will use some form of pneumatics or hydraulics to get the control needed to change that.
The ClutchTamer is just a brutally simple way to control a clutch. I'm sure myself and others will soon come up with more sophisticated/expensive means to get basically the same job done, you will have to wait if that's what you are looking for.
You can find more info on the ClutchTamer at clutchtamer.com
Grant
