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  #1 (permalink)  
Old 07-25-2012, 06:52 PM
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Default Billboards as drag tyres

Hey there guys and gals,
Just wondering, do the Billboards work well as drag tyres (car only making about 270KW at the wheels).
I currently have 17 inch rims and Kumho Ecsta KU36 tyres fitted, and traction is a problem.
I have a set of 15 inch rims that I bought to fit Billboards onto, but have been bitten by the drag racing bug and want to improve my traction off the line.

Any feedback is appreciated.
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Old 07-25-2012, 07:09 PM
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Go for either Nitto or Mickey Thompson drag radials-much more effective. About .5 sec in 1/4 mile.
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Old 07-25-2012, 09:10 PM
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Seemingly Billboards were grippy enough to beat modern Y or Z rated tires on a 458

Shelby Cobra 427 vs Ferrari 458 Italia - YouTube

So depends what you want...
If it's an excuse to justify a set of Billboards then YES they are good enough IMHO, however, if you're racing for cattle farms you may find others more suitable.
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Old 07-25-2012, 11:18 PM
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Cheers guys.
Really trying to figure if a set of ET drag radials are worth .5s over billboards or are the ET's that much grippier that i may still fry the tryres trying to launch.
But also I suppose if too grippy, I may run the risk of blowing diff centres etc.

I think I will get the Billboards and see if there is any/much improvement over my current tyres.

Local tyre store has offered to swap tyres on rims before and after races if required.
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Old 07-26-2012, 11:52 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dimis View Post
Seemingly Billboards were grippy enough to beat modern Y or Z rated tires on a 458

Shelby Cobra 427 vs Ferrari 458 Italia - YouTube

So depends what you want...
If it's an excuse to justify a set of Billboards then YES they are good enough IMHO, however, if you're racing for cattle farms you may find others more suitable.
The Cobra had road racing slicks, not the 'billboards' as we know them. I have had a couple different sizes of M/T drag radials and they work great. That being said my Avons hook up just as well....at 2.5 times the cost of the drag radial.
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Old 07-26-2012, 12:10 PM
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The Cobra owner in that race also had them spray the track down for maximum grip since he wasn't allowed to run drag radials per the bet.
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Old 07-26-2012, 03:44 PM
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I have bias ply Hoosier Quick Time 295/50x15 on 15" rims that really hook up. Bruce !
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Old 07-26-2012, 04:13 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bruce M View Post
I have bias ply Hoosier Quick Time 295/50x15 on 15" rims that really hook up. Bruce !
Any pictures or links to info?
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Old 07-26-2012, 04:36 PM
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Billboards are grippy once heated up, but they will slip enough under hard acceleration to save parts. MT drag radials will snap half-shafts if you either don't upgrade to 31-spline axles/center section or shock the whole back half with five grand launches. Straight axles (Ford 9") tend to do quite well with the drag radials. And if the half-shafts survive the beatings, then make sure the driveshaft is also safety looped so that it doesn't remove your right arm. The nice thing about traction is that it also exposes the weakest link in the drivetrain.
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Old 07-30-2012, 05:29 AM
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Default Avon tires hook up too

I am a fan of M/T drag radials but after breaking axles, disintegrating universals, and twisting half shafts, I decided to go to the Avon tire in an attempt to "save" some parts. As you can see below, the Avons hook up. This damage was done with an off idle launch after heating up the meats a bit...... No worries, I used iron sewer pipe for the new half shafts

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Old 10-08-2012, 11:19 PM
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Can I ask what the technical name for Billboards is? Ie part number/name.
And are there any recomendations for stockists that will ship overseas?

My rims are 15x7 & 15x10, what sized Billboards would be recomended?
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Old 10-09-2012, 09:01 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by boxhead View Post
Can I ask what the technical name for Billboards is? Ie part number/name.
And are there any recomendations for stockists that will ship overseas?

My rims are 15x7 & 15x10, what sized Billboards would be recomended?
Fronts = Goodyear 26.5x8.0-15
Rears = Goodyear 26.5x10.0-15

Those are the standard sizes that you see most guys running. Check with Roger Krause Racing for possible international shipping options.

http://www.rogerkrausracing.com/
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Old 11-17-2012, 09:24 AM
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I think this will be fixed properly at SL1 but most of the time i observe this case that the diameter or circumference didn't match with the alloy rim size. So please make sure before it to fix.
So time i saw this problem that the diameter of screw also harassed. So should it to be checked too..
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Old 11-17-2012, 09:50 AM
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Boxhead,
I tried a few 1/4 mile runs with my former Goodyear Billboards after failing to heat up the tires properly before launch - they slipped and skipped pretty good the first 150 off the line. I heated them up some the 2nd time, launched, and completely disintegrated the internals of my Dana 44 differential into exactly 44 pieces Well, they worked! They will stick but you have to heat them up a bit before taking off from the launchpad.

If it were me and immediate traction is the need, I'd just buy the Avons and call it a day.
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Old 11-17-2012, 12:30 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by decooney View Post
Boxhead,
I tried a few 1/4 mile runs with my former Goodyear Billboards after failing to heat up the tires properly before launch - they slipped and skipped pretty good the first 150 off the line. I heated them up some the 2nd time, launched, and completely disintegrated the internals of my Dana 44 differential into exactly 44 pieces Well, they worked! They will stick but you have to heat them up a bit before taking off from the launchpad.
Sounds familiar.
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Old 11-17-2012, 04:41 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dimis View Post
Seemingly Billboards were grippy enough to beat modern Y or Z rated tires on a 458

Shelby Cobra 427 vs Ferrari 458 Italia - YouTube

So depends what you want...
If it's an excuse to justify a set of Billboards then YES they are good enough IMHO, however, if you're racing for cattle farms you may find others more suitable.
Don't think you can use that as an example, the sticky applied to the strip was ridiculous, probably bog down a fully charged golf cart
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