On the scales

Gunner · #1 (**permalink**) 10-21-2009, 04:59 PM

Where's the best place to get a car weighed, preferably accurately (+/- 5 pounds) and with F/R distribution, within a decent radius of Roseville?

patrickt · #2 (**permalink**) 10-21-2009, 05:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gunner

Where's the best place to get a car weighed, preferably accurately (+/- 5 pounds) and with F/R distribution, within a decent radius of Roseville?

There is bound to be a speed shop in Sacramento that will rent you corner weight scales for the day. Unless it comes up 50/50 for the crossweights with you behind the wheel you're going to want to tweak your coil-overs. It's very easy to do, it just takes a little patience.

Gunner · #3 (**permalink**) 10-21-2009, 05:44 PM

I'll get to corner-balancing sometime this winter. Right now I just want a curb weight and (just for curiosity's sake) an F/R distribution.

JJCobra · #4 (**permalink**) 10-21-2009, 05:52 PM

Tom Lucas at FE Specialties in Sacramento performed a full alignment and corner balancing. The difference in how it drives was like night and day and I would recommend him.

Jason

dcdoug · #5 (**permalink**) 10-21-2009, 06:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by patrickt

There is bound to be a speed shop in Sacramento that will rent you corner weight scales for the day. Unless it comes up 50/50 for the crossweights with you behind the wheel you're going to want to tweak your coil-overs. It's very easy to do, it just takes a little patience.

Where would you recommend doing that around here?

patrickt · #6 (**permalink**) 10-21-2009, 08:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dcdoug

Where would you recommend doing that around here?

It was either last year, no maybe the year before, we all met over at Elder's house and he had some beautiful electronic scales. I bet they're still in the Cobra, Inc. tool borrowing library. I know somebody in the CACC has them.

Bill Bess · #7 (**permalink**) 10-21-2009, 08:26 PM

Hey, just find a good independent truck Stop with a truck scale...just drive on ,$5.00. They weigh trucks all day long, you can get the total weight of your car fast .

patrickt · #8 (**permalink**) 10-21-2009, 08:26 PM

This is the scale that we used. Somebody in the local club has it.

*13* · #9 (**permalink**) 10-21-2009, 08:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bill Bess

Hey, just find a good independent truck Stop with a truck scale...just drive on ,$5.00. They weigh trucks all day long, you can get the total weight of your car fast .

You beat me to it

RICK LAKE · #10 (**permalink**) 10-22-2009, 04:11 AM

DcDoug Doug most dirttrack guys have a setup for weighting the car. Check around with the locals. A case of beer and $50.00 will even get them to help you. If you have a $1K floating around, you can buy a set off e-bay. The other thing is you want the car to be about 48/52 front to back bias with your weight in the drivers seat. BIG handling differents after this is done with a good alignment. Rick L.

dcdoug · #11 (**permalink**) 10-22-2009, 07:15 AM

I am not looking to find just the weight of the car (there is a local company that sells landscaping stone and they have a scale that I could use), although that will be interesting to find out. I want to have the alignment/suspension on my car better dialed in. I find the car darts around more than I would like, the steering seems to pull erratically from time to time and the car feels less settled than I would expect. I am running GY Billboards which I know may be exacerbating the problem, but I really love the look and would hate to give them up. I am hoping I can solve the problem without doing that and am willing to put up with a bit of hunting to keep them.

But this is my first cobra and it's the only one I have ever driven, so I don't know exactly how one of these cars should feel when it's set up perfectly.

patrickt · #12 (**permalink**) 10-22-2009, 08:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dcdoug

But this is my first cobra and it's the only one I have ever driven, so I don't know exactly how one of these cars should feel when it's set up perfectly.

There should be no darting and the steering should be smooth. The car should corner equally well going to the left and to the right. If you find the car corners better one way or the other, that's a tip-off that your corner weights are not set properly. Adjusting your corner weights is easy, it just takes a little patience. The only tools you need are a socket wrench to loosen up your sway bars and a set of spanner wrenches to adjust your coil overs. I think there's even a couple of YouTube videos on it. It's absolutely, positively the second step in getting your car set up (the first step is to adjust your ride height and make sure your wheels are aligned).

dcdoug · #13 (**permalink**) 10-22-2009, 08:21 AM

Maybe I can get some of the CACC guys to give me some help since I haven't done this before.

patrickt · #14 (**permalink**) 10-22-2009, 08:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dcdoug

Maybe I can get some of the CACC guys to give me some help since I haven't done this before.

Somebody has those scales, I know because I was on them along with a dozen other CACC members. If for some reason those scales are gone, I plugged in "Race Car Scales Rental" on Google and it came up with a couple of places that will rent them to you, presumably over the internet. Have you had your alignment checked? I don't know how CSX cars do their rear alignment but I would hope it's adjustable.

dcdoug · #15 (**permalink**) 10-22-2009, 08:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by patrickt

Somebody has those scales, I know because I was on them along with a dozen other CACC members. If for some reason those scales are gone, I plugged in "Race Car Scales Rental" on Google and it came up with a couple of places that will rent them to you, presumably over the internet. Have you had your alignment checked? I don't know how CSX cars do their rear alignment but I would hope it's adjustable.

The alignment was done by a Ford dealer in Atlanta that Stephen Becker (Shelby dealer I bought the car from) has used a bunch of times before and is supposed to know that he is doing. The car does track straight and doesn't pull in any direction steadily, but it just seems to get unsettled and darty on roads that are pretty decent. It is strong one-hand driving or two hand driving and is a bit unnerving/stressful on the highway.

I am not sure about the read alignment, but would assume it is adjustable.

CHANMADD · #16 (**permalink**) 10-22-2009, 08:46 AM

The biggest mistake new Coba drivers make is to thinkthat the car is going to drive like a BmW. Do not grip the sateering so tight! These frames do bend a little,,,,so hold the steering wheel lightly and let it "Dance in your hands a little!! Try it !
And those huge B/Boards are a lot of weight that the shocks are trying to control!

patrickt · #17 (**permalink**) 10-22-2009, 08:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dcdoug

I am not sure about the read alignment, but would assume it is adjustable.

Maybe someone here will post the toe and camber numbers for your series car -- both front and back -- and any tips they know on adjusting them, or at least tell you that it's just the same old tie rods/shims up front and shims in the back? Obviously I don't know, but maybe your CSX rear has adjustable trailing arms & tie rods?

dcdoug · #18 (**permalink**) 10-22-2009, 09:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CHANMADD

The biggest mistake new Coba drivers make is to thinkthat the car is going to drive like a BmW. Do not grip the sateering so tight! These frames do bend a little,,,,so hold the steering wheel lightly and let it "Dance in your hands a little!! Try it !
And those huge B/Boards are a lot of weight that the shocks are trying to control!

Don't worry, not expecting it to be my daily driver. I expect it to be a raw experience and I thought my current experience was just normal (and maybe it is), but after reading a number of posts, I think it can be improved. Given that this is the only cobra I have driven, I don't have any basis for comparison.

elmariachi · #19 (**permalink**) 10-22-2009, 09:14 AM

Doug,

As you say the Billboards alone will contribute to what you consider "darty." I was running the Yoko Avids and then mounted the BB's and couldn't believe how much they degraded the steering and overall sense of control. Granted, they stick, but they do alter the handling, especially on rough and uneven pavement.

Jim

289fia_cobra · #20 (**permalink**) 10-22-2009, 08:40 PM

I had the same issue too... off throttle it's pull a little, hit the gas, it'd do the same thing.

I took mine to Custom Alignment in Mountain View, CA (a bit too far for you) and funny thing was, where I had adjusted my coil overs was pretty damn close to what they finalized it at. And then they said: "the dartyness was from your tire pressures; none of the tires were the same psi. they ranged from 19psi to 27psi." They put them all at 28psi and the car was fine all around!

Recently, I started feeling that dartyness again; refilled the tires to equal pressures... bingo!

Check your tire pressure before and after alignment and weight balance.