New Guy in Town

[bobinyelm]

Hi All,

Though I have lived in Texas off-and-on for almost 40 years, I now am again a new guy in the area, and have just trailered my Backdraft here (the engine, a relatively mild 375hp 351W, is still in Washington State) and am anxious to make contact with like-minded people and cars in the DFW area (and possibly south to where I live if there are any splinter groups this far out of town).

I've been a British car fan for years, having owned about 50 over the years, and still have my Morgan, but the Cobra seems to be so much more appropriate for the Texas road experience, and having English and American genes, seems like the perfect combination.

I formerly had a British car restoration shop up in Yelm, Washington (hence my email and username) where I did everything from suspension, bodywork, engine work, and painting, but I am afraid upon retirement I am now here without my shop, my lift, or my spray booth, though I managed to escape with about a ton (literally) of my hand tools, thankfully, because I will doubtless be using a few to combine my engine (when it arrives), my tranny (when I finalize purchase) and my chassis (which is sitting impotently in my garage).

Is there a website where I can find out about the Club "structure" and how one goes about becoming acquainted with folks hereabout?

Bob C.
Waxahachie

[mtpockets]

Bob,
I believe this is the place to stay in touch with the Dallas and Austin group. Both are lively groups with lots of colorful characters. Not to be short changed the Houston group has quite a reputation and uses a "yahoo groups" site to stay in touch. We even have a Backdraft dealer "Radical Roadsters of Texas" in town. If you're in the Houston area look us up. 2nd Saturday of every month, rain or shine we get together, tell lies, maybe cruise a little etc. In addition, when the weather is right, "Emergency Meetings" are called.
Again, welcome home to Texas.
Bill
BDR 621

[damdfw]

We meet the first Saturday of the month. We meet for breakfast during the warmer months and lunch during the cooler ones. "Structure" would be a bit of a stretch for this group. Just keep an eye on this form and a couple of days before the first Saturday someone will make a location suggestion. I think IHOP on 190 was suggested and then a tour of the Sam Pack collection for the June meeting.

Not sure of anyone else that far South. We are a bit spread out over the metro area.

[SSSammy]

Darn, I wish you were in far north Dallas .. we could use your expertise and tools. I think there'd be a T-shirt in it for you I am not aware of any Waxahachie members .. you'll have to be our stringer and initiate a recruiting drive there!

We use this very same forum as the Dallas group bulletin board. There is no organization .. or rules .. or dues .. or elections Every month, during the week before the first Saturday, a consensus is reached here on when and where we will meet. We are reliable, we DO meet every first Saturday. As David said, we are waiting to hear if our request to visit the Sam Pack Collection will be granted, and if so, will meet at the IHOP at 190 and Old Denton Hwy first for breakfast. Watch the Texas forum, details will get posted.

Sam

[jshel1]

Howdy Bob and Welcome,

My car is in about the same state as yours; state of build that is, but my engine is in Arkansas. Great group of folks here in DFW. Our regulars include owners of 1 Kirkam, 3 ERAs, 3 or 4 Backdraft, 4 Superformance, 2 CSX, 1 JBL, 1 Unique, 4 Hurricanes, 4 Lonestars, 1 Classic, 1 Shell Valley, 1 Exact Carbon, 2 Ford GTs, 3 GT500s, and several others that I don't know the cobra make. We usually have 9 to 15 cars in attendance any given month depending on weather.

There was a young guy located in Waxahachie who attended a few of our gatherings who was looking to purchase, but then stopped attending. Can't remember his handle, but perhaps he still lurks on the site from time to time. I recall that he had a 1950 something Cadillac.

[Joe Wicked]

Welcome Bob. I am still in the saving money stage, so I am Cobra dreaming still. The group here in DFW is awesome. Going to the meetings, you could not tell who has a car in the parking lot, who has one at home, and who is just wishing they had one. Everyone is accepted as equals. It really is about the people and not the cars. I have made some friends that I believe will continue to be friends for a very long time.

[Madmiles442]

Howdy Bob!
I see you brought the heat with you...
Great timing as next Saturday will be our meeting. Where you posted is where you'll see the chatter about where the meeting will be. We just figure it out the week before the first Saturday.
If we can get into the Sam Pack collection, you really must try and attend. I've heard it's an amazing collection of great cars.
As Bill mentioned, the BDR dealer in TX is James Yale at Radical Roadsters. http://www.radicalroadsters.com/
He builds top-notch cars and can help you with any question you have. He posts under the name JUS BIT.

[bobinyelm]

Thanks, guys!

Sounds like a pretty well-represented group of folks and cars! Next Saturday sounds like a winner, and I look forward to making it up there to meet some of the group. That might dovetail well since I am supposed to go to a car race in Ft Worth with a very old friend later in the day. Heck, until he proposed it, I didn't even realize there was a track over there! I've got a lot to learn and catch up on!

As far as expertise, it will be I who will likely be learning from you all, since I've never done the "kit car" experience (though in reality I wimped out by buying a 98% turn-key deal with the 'lazy-man's' example I chose). Heck, I don't even know how the register the car here in Texas when I get it done!

Having had buddies in the very early 70's with "real" CSX cars (they were well under $10k back then, of course), I have for a long time intended to actually build a car from a basic kit when they became available (and I finally became able to afford one), but never got around to it (a case of the shoemaker's kids having no shoes), but then another good friend in Olympia, WA near where I lived got me hot on the Cobra idea again when he became first a Hurricane and then Backdraft dealer. Thankfully, he finally "twisted my arm" until I bought one from him. It must have been a very easy twist, because I didn't even have any decent bruises to show my wife, though I told her how insistent he was, giving me literally no choice in the matter.

While I have the engine work done, I've yet to pick out the transmission I will install. After driving my friend's car (3.46 differential) in which he has a T-5, I was unhappy driving around town given the big gap between 4th and 5th/O.D., especially for driving at intermediate speeds 38-58mph). He has since switched to a 3.91 differential, which he likes far more, but I haven't driven it to see for myself. Five gears ought to be plenty with the light weight of the car and the adequate torque of the engine, though I am not sure whether to go with something like a T-56 with two overdrive gears (one a lot closer to 4th, then one like the T-5), or just get a T-5 or TKO-500/600 and have O.D. regeared to something like .75-.82. I'll be relying a lot on the opinions you all have formed based on your cars to make up my mind, I suspect.

I am really looking forward to meeting some like-minded gearheads because so far in my travels down here, I haven't seen much sporting iron on the roads. As you correctly point out, it's about the people, and not just about the cars, but the cars are a marvelous way to find common ground from which to forge associations that can maybe take root and grow.

Bob

[Francis]

I presume by Kit - you mean a cobra kit. You did not mention anything about wheelbase (wb). The Tremec 6 speed (t-56), you will find, is way too long dimensionally. If your W/B is 90", the T-56 will not work. I tried it. The T-5 with the 0.62 OD as you noted is not very easy to drive as you noted. It has a tendency to "buck" - and you are correct about the 3.42 gearing, a 3.73 or 3.91 would work much better. 3rd time a charm, I put the TKO-6 with the 0.82 OD with the stock 3.42 dana R/E. Runs beautifully with 500+HP 351/408W. The 0.82 can handle more torque.

If you're gonna do a lot of highway cruising, 65-80mph, then go with the 0.62. With 3.42 RE, 70mph, 1700 RPM - a lot quieter

If you intend to race it or a club "drive fast laps" around a track for fun, I would definitely go with the 0.82. Stay away from the 0.62, you will lose too much momentum on the straights, and you will be past in the straights - the dynamics of acceleration.

My 0.82 works better - at 70mph, in 5th, 2300 RPM. I can still accelerate quickly to over 100+.

Back to the W/B, there are several kits with WB variation from 90.5 to 94", that might accept the T-56 and give you the best of both worlds. This seems logical from a mathematical perspective (longer wb for a longer tranny), but the real world - I couldn't tell you.

[Madmiles442]

Bob, we are also blessed to have one of the best Tremec dealers in the country in Standard Transmission in Fort Worth. Lots of the Dallas gang has had theirs worked on there and they are awesome.
http://www.standardtransmission.com/

Jimi Guthrie from Standard posts here under the Transmission Talk forum.
Tell Jimi I sent you and maybe, just maybe, he'll add on your "Miles hassle-factor" pricing for you! jimig@standardtransmission.com

Here's a good discussion of transmission/rear end gear combo's. Check out the rpm calculator that's linked.
Rear Gear Ratio??

I agree with Francis - I have the 3.73 with the .62 and there is a big drop in rpm from 4th to 5th, but that's kinda the point. A close-ratio 4 speed that will get you through 120 mph with a big overdrive. There's an unhappy zone around 60 mph or so where the rpm's are too low for 5th but I got 20.43 mpg on a 3 hour drive to Austin at 75 mph!

[bobinyelm]

This is great! I've learned more already from your posts than I did at multiple websites and reading what I could find elsewhere.

I did a "Search" here, but I didn't do it by differential ratio (I used "tansmission") so it didn't turn up that thread, which was an interesting one.

I believe my W.B. is 93", and I remember reading somewhere (I think it was an article on converting a Mustang to 6-speed) the T-56 is 3/4" longer than the T-5 and TKO500/600, so it might fit OK, but it's pricier than some other options (yeah I know I am being cheap).

The BMW differentials used w/ BDR are available in 3.46 (which again was standard on my friend's Backdraft-I confess I haven't crawled under mine to see if there's a ratio tag), 3.73 (almost impossible to find I understand), 3.91, and I believe 4.11, with 3.91s pretty easy to come by for about $200 used.

I have to see how much they charge to regear a T-5's O.D. down to whatever .75-.80 is available for that. I understand the "World Class" T-5 is a pretty good, yet reasonably priced unit (due to being made in large numbers for Mustangs), vs. what a TKO 500/600 would cost w/ such an O.D. gear.

I will definitely talk with the guys at "Standard Transmission". Didn't know we had a good local source!

I agree that at 75mph the .64 O.D. w/ a 3.5 (+/-) differential is great, but so much of my intended driving is around town where 38-55mpg is common, and I noticed with my buddy's car (.64 OD w/ 3.46 diff) that I was kind of between gears, with the lower gear being obnoxiously loud (in civilized neighborhoods) while the higher gear was almost lugging.

What IS the most popular 6-speed out there (at the best price)? I am not going to be tracking the car, and I will be at or below 400hp, so I don't think I'll need a T-56 w/ the "Tranzilla" option.

While I normally don't like 6 speed transmissions (I see them as overkill), having the choice of two overdrive ratios seems like having your cake and eating it, too, especially for choosing a nice quiet, relaxed cruising gear/engine RPM combination.

Heck, maybe it would be cheaper to convert to an undercar exhaust, or pack my sidepipes with coarse stainless steel wool (as I once did to pass inspection with an old VW dune buggy w/ over-wheel open exhausts in Connecticut). That way, noise wouldn't be a factor (as I suspect it will be if not w/ me but w/ my wife sitting next to me, who would be the one you will see with her fingers in her ears) and I could go with the 5-speed and the lower gear around town. I'm sort of kidding, but I also like the looks of the cars w/out side pipes.

Thanks so much. I am a thirsty sponge soaking this great info up. I'll try not to wear everyone out w/ my endless questions.

Bob

[jshel1]

Bob,

I am locked in with my parts and will just have to wait and see how it drives. If I don't like it, I can always adjust... most economically by changing rear differential.

KC 408w; mostly cast parts, 195 heads, aluminum flywheel
T-3350 RRII (0.82 5th)
Ford 9" three-link w/ 3.5 +/-
It is the best I could come up with on my budget and some friendly opportunities that arose.

[Francis]

Bob, you get the impression there is a lot of local technical talent... You need to join us this Saturday.

More on the transmissions: Technical specs for the
TKO-500/600 at http://www.5speedtransmissions.com/tr-3550.html. When you view this site, click on the hot link that compares the Tremec to the Richmond trans. That will answer many of your questions wrt to RE ratios, tire height, and driving habits and preferences.
and the T-56 at http://www.5speedtransmissions.com/6_speed.html

I am puzzled by your "regearing". The 500 and 600 are available as 0.62, and 0.64/0.82, respectively. The 500 torque spec is <500 ft/lb, whereas the 600 can handle >500 torque. Both are approx $1900 new. The T-600 incremental cost is minimal, approx $75 more. Both are approx 24" long from bell housing to rear spline. if I remember, both weigh about 90lbs

The T-56 is almost 28" long. Gives you 2 OD Gear options you want. It will cost you about $2400-2500. It weighs about 125lbs.

I did not know about Jimi at standard transmission in FW, so I had to learn the hard way. Nothing like trial and error. Learn what you can, and validate with jimi.

See you this Saturday, Francis

[Roush #1]

Bob,

A BIG TEXAS WELCOME to you.

I am using the T56 with 3.89 rear gears and love it.

Jimi G (who is a regular poster on this forum) is the man on transmissions and will be able to help you on your decisions. BTW, in an earlier life, Jimi worked for a Cobra replica manufacturer in Ft. Worth so he is very familiar with the market.

Another BTW, there is a paint shop very near you in Ennis that paints a lot of Cobra replicas - David Braddy is the owner. From IH 35 on 287 towards Ennis, take the first road to the left past the Motorplex (Cooke Rd) . He is at the place with the white iron pipe fence on the right - shop is behind the house at the end of the road. I am sure David would appreciate a visit from another painter as they all painters seem to speak the same language.

I think it is a brotherhood of guys who have breathed too many paint fumes....LOL

Jody

[bwcobra15]

I'm just down the highway from you bob in Midlothian.... we should hook up... are you going to Tulsa?

[Madmiles442]

Originally Posted by bobinyelm

What IS the most popular 6-speed out there (at the best price)? I am not going to be tracking the car, and I will be at or below 400hp, so I don't think I'll need a T-56 w/ the "Tranzilla" option.
Bob

The most popular is 5 speed by far. My gut tells me the TKO is most popular, followed by the 3550, but I bet it's close.
Won't be tracking the car? Yea, that's what I said too....
At or below 400 hp? Yea, that's what I said too....
If you can afford it, get the TKO. Gives you unlimited future engine upgrade options.