pitboard- Vol 01 - Edition 01

Guest Article:

This Month's Tip:

To adjust your suspension you need a just a few simple things.

• First you need a good, accurate tire pressure gauge. A gauge with a bleeder valve is very useful. Gauges like this can be gotten at just about any racers supply house for about $ 30.00. Don’t waste your money on those expensive electronic gauges. Those are slow to use and never come with bleeder valves.
• The next bit of stuff to have is a compressed air tank for adjusting tire pressures. Tracks almost never have a handy air tank. Fill it at a gas station or use your home air compressor before heading out. Make sure the tank you buy has a safety relief valve
• A digital pyrometer is very important. Get one with a wire bead probe. These are used for measuring tire temperature differentials across the tread which is a good tool for judging whether your tires pressures and alignment settings are right. You can get one of these at any racers supply house..
• A notepad and pen are critical also. With so many adjustment parameters it is important to try to write everything down as you will never remember it all.

When at the track, first note your initial settings including the air pressure. Write it all down. Paint a stripe of white out on your tire’s sidewalls going down to the tread. It helps if you have someone do all these things for you as it gets pretty hectic when you are trying to get ready to run. Go out and drive the car, making mental notes on how it handles, what you like and what you dislike. When you pit or when your run is over, immediately  measure your tire temperatures. You only have a few seconds to do this as the temperatures drop quickly. If the course is clockwise, measure the left side of the car first starting with the left front. If it is counterclockwise, measure the right side first starting on the right front. You want to measure the treads temperature in three places, the outside, the middle and the inside. Push the wire of the bead probe slightly into the rubber for the most accurate measurement. Measure all the tires quickly and be sure to write it all down. Next measure and record the tires pressure quickly before the tires have a chance to cool much. Look at the white out stripe that you made. It is there to indicate if your tires are rolling onto the sidewalls. The stripe should not be worn past the rounded corner of the tread- sidewall junction.