New toys that make your racing experience better?

colin_koehler

Great SCOTT!
So over the off-season I got some new items that I have to blubber about as they made my addiction to racing... well, more addicting. I encourage you share with the group your new toys.

Let me start with Brakes:

Speed Bleeders!

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I love these little buggers. I had to change my MC and a front caliper so I was going to be introducing air into the system against my will. With the speed bleeders I was able to bleed each corner 14 times by myself all in under 1 hour. How badass is that?! Brake pedal?... Rock hard.

Caveat: Most people complain that these leak over time. Yes they do, eventually they need to be removed, cleaned and have the magic goo reapplied to their threads and baked in the oven for 10 minutes (or what I did, buy a spare set). I also bought the stainless steel ones for the front calipers.

Two problems though!
1: They do not need to be tightened down by the incredible hulk, it can ruin them. Tell whomever is helping you work on your car about this.
2: THEY ARE NOT METRIC! WTF right?! Anywho, I had to get 1 American sized tool, not the end of the world.

Brake Pads!

I am trying a new compound from Raybestos (well, it's actually old but new to me). Many of you are familiar with the famous ST43 (aka: Miracle Pad) but I couldn't make that work on the CRX so I bought the ST42. Perfect pad. Still wears like iron but never a single jutter and they bedded quickly and easily.

At The Ridge, with us getting 5 x 30 minutes sessions it gave me some really good insight into how my brake pads would function in a race. They worked brilliantly. I will be buying and competing on this compound again, even though it's a small fortune.


Driver Toys

1: Sliding tethers on my HANS. I did not know what I missing. Definitely worth the $40.

2: New Helmet: HJC Si-12. Under 3lbs, fits great and the HJC smoke/mirrored visor is just tinted 'enough'.
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3: GPS lap timer: AIM SOLO ($399). It does some data acquisition, GPS lap timing, best laps, track overlays etc. They also have a new model called the DL that plugs into an OBD2 computer and gets RPM, MPH and other data and works with the AIM Smarty Cams, allowing the user to overlay their data on their video. The DL I think is $699 (I do not have that model, just the base one)
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And of course, VIDEO!

More camera's Colin?! Aw Hell yeah! :)

Drift Innovation HD170 Stealth

It records in 1080p (like the GoPro) but it has a built in LCD screen, rotatable lens, remote microphone and an RF remote control, PLUS it's only $160. For a few dollars more you can get the extended battery, Microphone and a Panavise suction cup mount.

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What cool new toys did you get over the winter?
 
Nice write up, Colin!

No new toys for me, but I've been using the stainless steel Speed Bleeders on my CRX for a year now with good results.
 
Colin...

Your enthusiasm is...well....addicting. Picked up the Aim Solo at the end of last year. Works great, but we need a workshop on how to use the Race Studio software. Haven't quite figured it out yet....maybe another tutorial coming??

Loved your Ridge video...I think you have a great shot at winning the video competition. Seems like you did leave a little time out there on your 2:02 lap...but not much IMO....

Bill-
 
Colin,

I would like to know the $160 source for the Drift HD. Lowest I could find was $259.

Tyler
 
Picked up the Aim Solo at the end of last year. Works great, but we need a workshop on how to use the Race Studio software. Haven't quite figured it out yet....maybe another tutorial coming??

Bill,

Ask around the PRO3 group or ST - a lot of the guys are running AIM, and are fair to decent at using it. Someone will likely let you look over their shoulder when they're going over their session data. Feel free to grab me if I'm around.

If you want a more formal education, give Carlo Sparacio a call at TC Moto. Carlo sells AIM, and does training. Also, look up Roger Caddell, who is a trainer for AIM. Roger has Northwest roots, even though he's living in TX now, and occasionally comes up to train. Carlo works with him quite a bit for training on the AIM devices.

Dan
PRO3 #102
 
Camera: I picked up a Contour Roam camcorder a couple of weeks ago. Don't remember the exact price, but it was under $200. It doesn't come with a micro SD card though - that's a separate purchase. I got to use it a little bit at The Ridge last weekend and the quality is fantastic at 1080p. But it replaces a mini DV-based camera, so I was bound to be impressed. It's waterproof (submersible to 1 meter) and it has a 170 degree wide angle lens. There's a bit of fish eye distortion but it's not too bad.

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Cool thread! I got some new stuff myself.. Biggest change is a shiny sticker on my old school hans device! And some sliding tethers.. Lots of tweaks to the car, but as far as toys, only some data logging related changes. I'm finally wiring oil temps and pressures to the logger and planning to add brake pressures and front shock movement. Got some fancy ideas on how to do it cheaply without using suspension pots. Who would've though the FV beam suspension would make anything easier!

Bill, I recommend taking a look at John Block's "webinar" here: http://www.auto-ware.com/

Pretty good value! There's also quite a few books, from the cheap:

http://www.amazon.com/Making-Sense-Squiggly-Lines-Christopher/dp/0983259313 - Written by a MoTec guy, definitely the more driver friendly of the bunch.. Some great stuff, but feel free to gloss over the "MoTec rules, everything else sorta works, but not as well" commentary.

To the expensive:

http://www.amazon.com/Data-Power-Acquisition-Practical-Interpretation/dp/1881096017 - Almost impossible to find, but still my favorite.. Seems like every time I pick it up, I notice something new. I'll sell you my copy for $200, too! lol..

Anyway, John Block's class is more software specific and will set you up with profiles and stuff you can use right away. With the books, you might get a better understanding of data analysis, but you'll still be left to figure out the software on your own :)

Cheers,
Tiago Santos
 
Speaking of goodies, does anyone use the Longacre lap timers anymore? I have two of them and found they didn't work a couple of times at Pacific.

Tyler
FIP 117 VW Jetta
 
Speaking of goodies, does anyone use the Longacre lap timers anymore? I have two of them and found they didn't work a couple of times at Pacific.

Tyler
FIP 117 VW Jetta

Not sure how many folks using anything requiring a beacon...my recommendation is the Aim Solo....399 plus maybe 10% off and free delivery through Saferacer with the discount code..assuming they sell it.
A very neat item...it told me today I was exiting Turn 2 at Pacific at 80mph in a Miata...don't know if that is good or not, but pretty neat that the GPS tells me so.

Bill-
 
Love that the AiM Sports Solo is on your list! No kidding that it is quickly becoming one of the most popular data loggers / Lap timers at the track! If we want to hold another AiM Data seminar in the PNW, lets find a host and do it. I can even focus it a bit more on the Solo if we want.
 
Love that the AiM Sports Solo is on your list! No kidding that it is quickly becoming one of the most popular data loggers / Lap timers at the track! If we want to hold another AiM Data seminar in the PNW, lets find a host and do it. I can even focus it a bit more on the Solo if we want.

Great idea, these things are everywhere.
 
Definitely would like the seminar on the SOLO. I picked one up recently and will be testing it out this coming weekend.
 
Evo4 plus dash. Will log steering, throttle position on a carb, brake pressure ($$) as well as water temp (with alert), oil temp and pressure (with alerts).
The dash is an added plus. Bought used for a great price.
If your car can run the SOLO DL (must have a CAN bus) that will be the bargain of the decade.
With EVOs and the older cars you need to buy a bunch of sensors which can easily cost as much as the Evo. Ask me how I know ...

Hints from Heloise: Get a standalone TPS (with small arm) used on electronic transmission/carb conversions and lengthen the arm.
Use this as a shock sensor. This is almost identical to electronic ride height sensors used on luxury SUVS. Unsure as to how long they can handle that many duty cycles as it's a simple rheostat-type wiper arm inside.
 
Here's to making sense of some of my squiggly lines from The Ridge Motorsports Park:

Click on attachment:

CRX.RIDGE.SOLO.png

The SLOPE line gives you a great perception of the overall elevation change while the SPEED line shows you braking/acceleration.
 
Here's to making sense of some of my squiggly lines from The Ridge Motorsports Park:

Click on attachment:

View attachment 933

The SLOPE line gives you a great perception of the overall elevation change while the SPEED line shows you braking/acceleration.

How'd you do that? Can you overlay several laps and compare times or speed in sections?? Really want to learn how to use the Race Studio software even though I don't have the DL, just the Aim Solo GPS...

Bill-
 
Good stuff guys!

We are working on another AiM seminar as we speak. The one we had in November was a great success. I think it would be worthwhile to do it before the first ICSCC race in May. How does that sound to everyone? Sometime in April, maybe the weekend of the 21st or 28th? Your feedback is greatly appreciated!
 
Good stuff guys!

We are working on another AiM seminar as we speak. The one we had in November was a great success. I think it would be worthwhile to do it before the first ICSCC race in May. How does that sound to everyone? Sometime in April, maybe the weekend of the 21st or 28th? Your feedback is greatly appreciated!

April 21st works great for me.
 
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