The 24 Hours of Lemons Forums → Lemons Tech → Wrenching and Racing Tips and Tricks
Take pictures of things like wiring harnesses, and belt and hose routing BEFORE you disassemble everything. S/F....Ken M
+1000
Oh, and while tires are crazy expense that it seems like a way to shave money to stay in a budget don't do it. Get good tires, it is worth it to be more competitive and stay on the track.
Also it should be noted that Cheap tires often wear faster on the track than the more expensive even if it has a higher tread rating, meaning that your cheaper tires may also cost you more money because you go through them twice as fast.
Same thing can be said for a lot of parts especially the budget exempt things like brakes and ball joints and bearings. It often is cheaper to buy the good stuff than have to replace them all the time.
Get decent penetrating fluid. WD-40 is not a penetrating fluid. Liquid wrench is terrible. The two I recommend are either Kroil or a homebrew mix of 50:50 ATF and diesel. I got the homebrew tip from a family friend who works for a major airline as a mechanic. It's amazing how well either of those work when you let them soak a while.
Every stuck bolt will come out with enough patience. It just requires the right combination of penetrating fluid, heat, and impact force.
I second the recommendation for Kroil. I used it a lot when I first got the Super Snipes, and was very pleased.
Spray a bit on, give the frozen nut/bolt a few taps, go have lunch/beer (or work on something else), then remove
previously-frozen fastener.
It also works well on the occasional black widow spider. 
(No guarantees here, but it worked for me.)
Very large channel-lock pliers are a great way to push caliper pistons back into their bores when you install new pads - especially when everything is blazing hot.
Get decent penetrating fluid. WD-40 is not a penetrating fluid. Liquid wrench is terrible. The two I recommend are either Kroil or a homebrew mix of 50:50 ATF and diesel. I got the homebrew tip from a family friend who works for a major airline as a mechanic. It's amazing how well either of those work when you let them soak a while.
Every stuck bolt will come out with enough patience. It just requires the right combination of penetrating fluid, heat, and impact force.
You can add PB to the list thought it is a step below Kroil. I have not found the ATF/Kerosene mix to be nearly as effective.
Depending on how much time you have heating, dousing with penetrating fluid and giving it a rap or two with a hammer as it cools...rinse and repeat over days...can free up thing you already bought the helicoil kit for.
I have not had any luck with PB either. I rate it on the same level as liquid wrench. I've not tried ATF and Kerosene, but ATF and Diesel works really well, though a step below Kroil.
I agree with that cycle though. Usually only takes me a few cycles on the most stubborn bolts these days.
A simple four step method for fastener removal - or removal of anything - once we determine it's stuck.
1. Finesse - Use a proper wrench, a little lubricant, a long lever and some patience.
2. Force - Bigger lever, breaker bar, hammer...whatever...GET AFTER IT. No rounding though.
3. Fire - Set fire to it, then set fire to it again.
4 F*$% It - THE BIGGEST MADDEST MEANEST PIPE, TORCH AND FLAMING LUBRICANT! Or, just cut it out.
While you already know this to be true, making it somewhat like an alliteration helps one remember when too exhausted for life and limb in the paddock.
Label your tool box drawers with what's inside them. This has saved our garage owner / best wrench & driver a ton of "where's the...?" questions when folks come over to work on the car, and makes for much easier clean up.
One other thing with stuck bolts. Sudden shocks work better than constant high pressure. Get an impact gun. It's less likely to strip the bolt and the constant hitting does a good job breaking up stuck fasteners.
You also don't want to just sit with your finger on the trigger for really stuck bolts. Grab the socket with one hand, and twist in the direction you're trying to turn. For really really stuck bolts do a couple seconds counter clockwise, then a couple clockwise and repeat. The back and forth helps to break up corrosion. (Thanks to TEO for demonstrating that last December when I was out that way).
We're starting a new build on a 40-yr old chassis; I suspect many stuck fasteners in our future. Kroil ordered.
Kroil is also marketed to gun owners for cleaning (Works ok on carbon; won't get copper out. Good rust protection.), so if you need some and can't find it, check a gun shop.
We're starting a new build on a 40-yr old chassis; I suspect many stuck fasteners in our future. Kroil ordered.
I wonder if it can be had in a small-car sized vat?
<bloop> Just toss the whole #@$% thing in there on Monday, remember to yank it out next Friday, WIN!
BTW, if you are building a car and don't already own a plasma cutter, get one. I just got one delivered today, already made use of it and can't believe I've gone this long without one...
My tips to make live easier in Lemons
A) Brakes
1) good brake pads I use porterfield sand got close to 150 hrs $200 but worth it
2) high temp expensive I use Motul 600 helps calipers from melting
B) keep it stock as much as possible easier to diagnose problem and locate parts
1) buy spare parts and leave in box til you use and return after race if not used
2) crucial spares
a) cv joints
b) radiator with new hoses on it for quick change out
c) wheels and tires at least 2 if not 4
C) buy a parts car that way you don't have to go to wrecker to get parts when needed
D) To do list paint pen or Sharpee on windshield or body panel
E) Tools I spray painted a harbor freight set pink to find when needed
F) Storage bins get the big stackable ones and spray paint what parts are in box and what car
G)MONEY get PayPal account and use PayPal credit card to buy everything easy to keep track of
1) big envelope put all receipts in there to keep warranty
H) DRIVERS
1) if they Flat spot a tire ,they buy a tire
2) they get a Blackflag they miss a turn in rotation
3) MONEY if it cost them seat time or money they don't drive like total Arses
I) Surf the forums look for what is most common issues/failures of car and fix before race
j) Ez-Up buy the warranty if they break get another
1) Use spare wheels with tie-down to hold down or spend $20 for leg weights for holding down
That's all I can think of now
A simple four step method for fastener removal - or removal of anything - once we determine it's stuck.
1. Finesse - Use a proper wrench, a little lubricant, a long lever and some patience.
2. Force - Bigger lever, breaker bar, hammer...whatever...GET AFTER IT. No rounding though.
3. Fire - Set fire to it, then set fire to it again.
4 F*$% It - THE BIGGEST MADDEST MEANEST PIPE, TORCH AND FLAMING LUBRICANT! Or, just cut it out.
.
On rusted bolts/nuts a six point socket works better than a twelve point because there is less chance of rounding off the hex. If you have the budget you can also get six point box wrenches from Snap-On.
To make ratchets and drill chuck keys easier to use take a piece of rubber fuel line and slide it over the handle. Most drills have gone to hand chucks but a bench drill press or a lathe chuck key can have this rubber hose padding on the chuck key to make it easier on the hand when tightening. You can get more force when it's not hurting your hand.
Also some of the more expensive ratchets like Snap-On come with a rubber handle. But why pay the extra money when you can add a piece of rubber tubing, like heater hose, to a Craftsman ratchet handle to make it easier on the hands.
Another good place for rubber tubing is on needle nose Vise-Grip jaws. Slide some rubber fuel line over the jaws and now you have a multi-purpose tool that can be used to pinch off any rubber line, like fuel lines and heater hoses, without damaging them.
So next time you have a scrap of rubber tubing, when you cut a fuel line or heater hose to fit, save it for future use.
My tips to make live easier in Lemons
A) Brakes
1) good brake pads I use porterfield sand got close to 150 hrs $200 but worth it
2) high temp expensive I use Motul 600 helps calipers from melting
B) keep it stock as much as possible easier to diagnose problem and locate parts
1) buy spare parts and leave in box til you use and return after race if not used
2) crucial spares
a) cv joints
b) radiator with new hoses on it for quick change out
c) wheels and tires at least 2 if not 4
C) buy a parts car that way you don't have to go to wrecker to get parts when needed
D) To do list paint pen or Sharpee on windshield or body panel
E) Tools I spray painted a harbor freight set pink to find when needed
F) Storage bins get the big stackable ones and spray paint what parts are in box and what car
G)MONEY get PayPal account and use PayPal credit card to buy everything easy to keep track of
1) big envelope put all receipts in there to keep warranty
H) DRIVERS
1) if they Flat spot a tire ,they buy a tire
2) they get a Blackflag they miss a turn in rotation
3) MONEY if it cost them seat time or money they don't drive like total Arses
I) Surf the forums look for what is most common issues/failures of car and fix before race
j) Ez-Up buy the warranty if they break get another
1) Use spare wheels with tie-down to hold down or spend $20 for leg weights for holding downThat's all I can think of now
This forum software needs a "LIKE" feature. This post deserves a LIKE.
Good stuff!!!
A) Brakes
1) good brake pads I use porterfield sand got close to 150 hrs $200 but worth it
2) high temp expensive I use Motul 600 helps calipers from melting
Good Pads +10. Have many races on Carbotechs at $240 an axle
Motul.
B) keep it stock as much as possible easier to diagnose problem and locate parts
1) buy spare parts and leave in box til you use and return after race if not used
2) crucial spares
a) cv joints
b) radiator with new hoses on it for quick change out
c) wheels and tires at least 2 if not 4
4 Wheels
C) buy a parts car that way you don't have to go to wrecker to get parts when needed
Don't have room for the parts car. Need more space!
D) To do list paint pen or Sharpee on windshield or body panel
Sharpe the firing order on the inner fender. Valve clearances too, with adjustment order. Anything else that is adjustment related.
F) Storage bins get the big stack-able ones and spray paint what parts are in box and what car
Not too big on the bins. Big ones get heavy and then break. Get the thicker gray/blue ones with the flat lids. Not the flip top boxes as they break to easily. OR, get lots of Milk Crates. They stack, don't hold too much so they don't get too heavy, and fit more places in the trailer/truck.
G)MONEY
1) big envelope put all receipts in there to keep warranty
A binder with the rule book and the tech sheets and all the info on the car.
H) DRIVERS
1) if they Flat spot a tire ,they buy a tire
Hm, maybe I'll have to adopt this one. But have to have good balance brakes to allow them not to screw up.
2) they get a Black flag they miss a turn in rotation
3) MONEY if it cost them seat time or money they don't drive like total Arses
Black flag is automatic out of the car and to the end of the days' rotation (we run 4x 2hours).
L) Surf the forums look for what is most common issues/failures of car and fix before race
Forums are the way to buy a car you know nothing about and become an overnight expert. All those girls and guys wrenching on their beloved cars regularly, learning all the problems and sometimes the fixes. But they don't always know the hack fixes.
J) Ez-Up buy the warranty if they break get another
1) Use spare wheels with tie-down to hold down or spend $20 for leg weights for holding down
Used or busted Brake rotors are heavy, kind of small and flat and available, although they are extra space. But you don't have to untie the Pop-up when you need the tires for the car.
Second the motion regarding Porterfields and RBF 600. Six races in a 3900 lb car- still have plenty of pad left. I'd say the numbers work, ditto the RBF 600 is pricey but it costs about as much as a bottle of whiskey, and makes the car actually STOP rather than fade... You spent $5000 on a $500 car, what's another ...$20? get the good stuff!
Learned this the hard way:
When driving the slowest car on track and coming up to a low speed turn at the end of a straight, if faster traffic will catch you at the turn, take the inside before they catch up. This way, when an idiot forgets to apply brakes, he doesn't stuff the left rear of your car in about 6". Theyll miss you on the wide side.
OK, one of those "duh" comments for most but I continue to learn the hard way:
It is often, almost always, faster to remove more stuff than to struggle with trying to remove something inaccessible except with a wobble adapter, two extensions and a 12-point socket that a can only be turned 1 degree at a time.
A corollary to this is: drillholes, cut access panels, or "clearance" a panel/transmission tunnel...to get to that bolt, nut, fuel pump. It is a friggin LeMon's car and neatness does not count.
Second corollary: Bushings can be burned out faster that the bolt frozen to the sleeve can be loosened. Your neighbors will love you for keeping the mosquitos away as well.
Here's one the fine folks running the JewWope taught us a couple races ago:
If you don't know if something is leaking or not, zip tie a paper towel around it and go drive around the paddock. We ran a race at CMP with a front brake hose made by attaching two rear hoses together. We needed to be sure that it wasn't leaking, so we wrapped a paper towel around it and went to the edge of the paddock to do panic stops. We then took the paper towel off and put rescue tape over it to prevent it torquing out. Help up all weekend.
When driving the slowest car on track and coming up to a low speed turn at the end of a straight, if faster traffic will catch you at the turn, take the inside before they catch up. This way, when an idiot forgets to apply brakes, he doesn't stuff the left rear of your car in about 6". Theyll miss you on the wide side.
I know this, but for some reason I can't seem to put it into practice. And when it happens on-track, I think to myself "don't do it that way next time!". But it still happens...
Learned this the hard way:
When driving the slowest car on track and coming up to a low speed turn at the end of a straight, if faster traffic will catch you at the turn, take the inside before they catch up. This way, when an idiot forgets to apply brakes, he doesn't stuff the left rear of your car in about 6". Theyll miss you on the wide side.
I would say on a slow car that it is imperative to try and set the line for the next corner as soon as possible. If you want the inside line stick your car on the inside early on the straight, that way all the other cars can choose what they want to do early on, however while in the slow car always be prepared for a dive bomber if you are on the inside, or a car that will slide up into at the end of the turn if you are on the outside.
Always assume everyone is trying to hit you.
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