Nostalgia Pro Stock - Super Stock Springs

Hey everybody,

I'm just curious if anybody is currently still using a Super Stock spring / Pinion snubber combo and fast they are going. ET ? MPH ? 60' ? I would also like to know if anybody is currently using a "Rear" anti roll bar with Super stock springs?

Building a 72 Pro Stock Cuda. I have it in my mind that it will most likely get switched to a Caltrack system, split mono leaf and a slider in the end but I would really like to just try the S/S springs and see what we can do It also allows me to build the car and then custom tailor the Caltrack system to the car. Ride height, spring Length’s etc. But.... if the S/S springs work, they might just stay put! Who knows

This car WILL be active, not so much as a "every" weekend racer but will attend and race a few Nostalgia events per year.

Facts to consider.... E-body, approx. 2800lbs, 800 to 1000 HP, 31x10.5w tire, Auto (for now but has clutch peddle ), Dana, 4.10 gear

Anybody have any personal experience with this type of combo here?

Thanks for reading

Cal-tracs are smoother, more consistent and have better longevity than the current MP SS springs.

Back in the early 90s......

69' Barracuda, SS springs with the cheap shocks they were usually paired with and nothing else as far as snubbers, bars, etc. 3280#, Mark Williams Dana 60, with 4.56s, stock ratio 727 with 8" converter that was foot braked to about 2000rpm and flashed to around 5000rpm. Nothing special 499ci wedge, with Indy 440-1s. 9.20s to 9.40s depending on weather conditions at ATCO, with a best 60' of 1.28. Street driven as if gas was free..........and although we're still dummies, we were much dumber back then.

PS.......inboard kit w/ 12" Firestones on 15 x 12 Centerlines.

If Cal-tracs are an option I wouldn't waste the time or money on S/S springs and pinion snubber.

The whole idea with S/S springs is the front segment has virtually no flex - all that is left to the rear segment. So basically you now have a solid front lower link. The snubber acts as the upper link.. Tuning is limited to moving the front mount up or down and/or the pinion snubber gap.

Cal-tracs work in a similar manner - the front mono segment has a bit of flex. The lower bars are lengthened or shortened to affect the flex and subsequent "hit". But the advantage is that both sides are adjustable.

Before I bought Cal-Tracks I would spend the same money and buy the Assassin bars from Smith Race craft in Texas. Far more adjustable.

That just means you'll be saying "sh!t, that didn't work" more often.

I don't know what type support is provided for the Assassin Bars but I would be hard to imagine them doing any better than Calvert.

The Rube Goldberg of traction aids.

99% of the fastest leaf spring cars are using Cal-tacs.

Adjustability is bad? Got it. Learn to tune and they work. Any dedicated race car that isn’t rule limited to leaf springs should run the Rube Goldberg inspired 4 link.

More adjustability does not necessarily equate to better performance. I have many slots on the crank gear of my timing set. It doesn't mean the other slots provide any value to my combination.

How do know ? Once you find what works you don’t change it but how did you get there ?

Against SS:
designed for a heavier car with smaller tires and far less power
the left-right spring bias is not what your car wants, and difficult to modify

This. Power to weight ratio is way different than a 60's Super Stocker. Caltracs and monoleafs (not SS springs) can work but are only optimal for classes that only allow bolt on suspension mods.
Your going to want a 4 link or at least ladder bars.

If I was you I would put that money towards a set of ladder bars and coil overs shock conversion, that frees up a bunch of clearances for bigger tires later
My old pump gas street car with that set up would hooked up in a mud puddle during a rain storm
A.K.A. it would hook really well on the street and at the tracks, best 60 ft. was around 1.37 That pushes you way back in the seat at the hit, it will even hurt your neck and back until you get use to it leaving that hard

My pump gas with mufflers street car with Cal-Tracs and 275's has done 1.36, so....

I've been 1.34-1.37 with 002/003 and a snubber., best ever 1.31 all steel/stock glass 71 Dart with a good rb stroker. I wouldn't consider the 60's it's strong point though. It was inconsistent, and when wheelie-ing would go right. But it is cheap. It would body lift the left rear a good bit but hardly anything on the right rear. Which is why I think it went right by shortening /pulling the left rear forward.

Hey , Thanks for responding.

Did you have a Rear Anti Roll bar on the car? Just curious. Also.. How stable "stable" was the car at the big end?

Chris

Also... you mind me asking where you got that scoop? And how tall it is? Same one I am currently looking for ... I think... lol

I need one of the "Mopar Pro Stock Hoods" too for my nostalgia dart build. When I was seeing if they were around, I believe speedway motors had them. An ebay search may get you started as to who actually has them too.

I went 1.34 and 9.80’s in a 3350 pound A body Duster. Not minitubbed, 28 by 10 tire, with cheap CE 3 way shocks all around, 002/003 super stock springs, no pinion snubber.
Car was ultra consistent, would hook on ice.
That said, i consider an E body a harder car to get to work because of no rear overhang like A and B bodies have. Significant liability.
Were it me, making 800-1000 horsepower, and not looking to set world speed records, but trying to have a reliable car, i would move right past Calverts and go with ladder bars, or 4 link.

I think the key word here is nostalgia- Obviously ladder bars or a 4 link would be better.

Leaf-link if you're trying to be period correct. And it works.

Seen a lot of nostalgia cars with ladder bars, etc

Those scoops were made by Harwood back in the day.

First it depends which super stock springs you are using, the old originals are pretty good, but the later ones sold by chrysler, made in mexico not so much. From my experience super stock spring work good until you get into the low tens. Cal Tracs, or similar designs, seem to be the most popular and I have seen them work very well with really fast cars well into the eights. I did a 4-link, as I could do the work myself, nothing beats the function of a fourlink coupled with good double adjustable shocks. The fourlinks only drawback maybe be the large range of adjustability, you can go down a rabbit hole if you do not understand how they work. Ladder bars work great if they are done right, only issue I have is that as you change the car as years go by, you may horsepower your way by the ladder bar sweet spot, then major fabrication may be involved to find it back, but the fourlink just find a new hole.

If you want the nostalgia look, then call Eaton in Michigan and have them build you a pair. You'll get more consistency with tuning then using the mopar SS stuff. Those assassins' are quite good but boy do they add the pounds. Look for someone at the track during a nhra divisional meet and see if you can find a hemi or 440 stocker that's running the SS leaf and get their input. They may say stock SS but usually the leafs have been changed.

No anti roll bar, great on the top end. The car would go almost 139mph, it did go 139 once.usually 137 something though. That was my favorite part of the track. Typically running people down. I ran in a no box class. This is a foot brake car also.

The one in the pictures was from summit it was abs, they don't sell that one anymore It was 7h x 43 long, Speedway motors has fiberglass ones, 3 different sizes. I just bought one of those, there pretty nice. I wanted a little smaller one. I also bought one off ebay but being only 5 inches high I didn't use it. Still pretty nice though.

Funkhouser makes some really nice leaf spring sliders that work awesome.

Exactly what i was thinking, you beat me to it!

I know the car the op is talking about. He wants to take it back to 1972 Pro Stock application. Ladder bars started being used a lot in the next years 1973/4/5/6. The Cars on 002-3 SS springs went around 9.40 back in 1972 with both a Stick and Clutch Flite. The motor for this car will start out with around 800HP to get the bugs out of the car and then the next motor will be around 1050 HP then there could be a third motor with 1250 HP if this does not over power the Chassis making it unsafe at both the start and top end. He has both sets of old and new SS 002 003 springs. Will they work for his application and go straight from start to finish? Do you think the 60 foot will be terrible? The use of Caltracs has been discussed for the car for the future and if people have tested their car with SS Spring and they do not work going fast then maybe the car will have to start will Caltracs but the stock look with Springs is what is trying to be accomplished if it that can be done. Car is light but has not been weighed yet. It could go 9.00s at 150 or faster so this is why he has asked how good these super stock springs are both on the Line and top end. Ladder bars in the past have been used in this car but likely will never be used again. Just looking for information from people that have used SS Springs or are still using SS Springs to try to get a feel for what he is trying to accomplish.

Sounds like a really cool car and I like being as true as possible to nostalgia stuff. I believe the fastest I have heard of was a member here that ran high 8's on SS springs (Red '64 B body?). I don't believe they lasted a long time at that power level and might not have been the most consistent, but he made passes and a good number of them. The car tended to wheelstand so while I don't know if the 60 foot was great for that ET, it certainly got moving in a hurry.

Remember that car. Red and white, think he was from Kansas if i remember right.
The guy who bought mine went on to run 9.62 at 140 with it. Still has it, still on the same leafs. Thats a solid 700 horse at 3220 race weight its currently at. I bet it would still work with more steam.

An alternative- My bracket Dart has an Art Morrison 4-link in it, on leafs. The springs were moved into the frame rails, and I floated the housing by making a split aluminum bushing. The bushing properly locates the housing, and simply uses four 3/8 bolts that run through to a plate under the spring. It's genuinely slick, and will also give you the proper period correct look.

[spoiler][/spoiler]I ran SS springs until last Fall. The fastest it ran was a 9.36 @ 146 and the fastest 60' was a 1.34. I weigh 3225 w/ me and am roughly 900hp. I was starting to have a lot of issues with the car hopping and it literally looked like it was going to break the springs on the hit. I switched to caltracs and d/a shocks and things have gotten better. My next move is to take some rear out it. Currently a 4.88 gonna go to a 4.10 over the winter. (68 cuda)

Weight being 2225 a typing error?
Doug

I have SS springs on my 'cuda with a sway bar & 4.3 rear gears. on unprepped tracks i get 1.5-1.6 60's footbraking it. I'm limiting the power on my combo as the class I race in has an 11.00et cap, but on a prepped track we'll go 10.5's. I have better traction with MT Drag radials than the Hellcats. I'm so consistant with this combo, on prepped track meetings my et varies by as little as 0.03 over the whole day. Winner winner chicken dinner.

lol. Good catch Doug.

3225 with me

Should be making 780 ish at that weight at 146 mph

yeah... the current 60' with the caltracs is a 1.37. I'm loosing a lot in the 60' that I need to figure out. It's been a fight. It made a 1.34 60' with the old motor and SS springs. 2 weeks ago it was 117mph at the 1/8 and 147 at the 1/4 with a 1.37 60'

I’m going to start my own thread with launch videos. I can use some advice in shock settings etc… the car keeps unloading and spinning

I'd probably get in contact with Greg Luneack and get a pair of Tri-City Launcher springs as opposed to fighting some unknown 002/003 springs if you really want to avoid the Cal-Tracs or ladder bars. The Leaf-Link will rip the spring eyes out of the leaf springs, not to mention oblong the mounting points.

If it was my car, and the provisions are there for the ladder bars, then I would do a ladder/leaf floater setup at the power levels you're looking at.

Yes... exactly. I have a "legal" SS/BA car that has a ladder bar and coil over. I am well aware of the "advantages". I'm just trying to keep this new project "period" correct as the safety part of things allows.

That sounds pretty cool. You wouldnt happen to have a pic or 2 of that would you?