On Mon, Jun 02, 2003 at 12:54:40PM -0700, Dodd, Kelvin wrote:
> Larry:
>
> I've been following your supercharger developments with real
> interest, and am amazed at the energy you have put into development.
I
I think of it as an "art project". The sort of art project that an
engineer/autogeek would make. The art is in trying to maximize
performance and retain balance and "vintage charm" without totally
blowing my budget. I also figured that others who would want to do the
same would appreciate the chance to learn from my mistakes.
> don't think we would be comparing apples and apples between the two systems
> until someone decides to do more development with the Moss
> Supercharger
Of course not. Besides there are so many other factors that enter into
it. What has been done to the car, who is driving it, what tires are
on it. I just thought that it would be a fun excuse to go head to head
with you at the track.
> package. Out of the box, the unit is designed to be safe on a good
> condition, stock engine, so there is a lot of room for tweaking for a
> specially modified engine. We are going to have to leave the maximum
> performance tuning to someone with a lot more time and energy to spend in
> development, as we have to pursue new projects.
I understand that entirely. There are so many other things that enter
into it, that you can't safely optimize for performance without
knowing the exact cylinder head, cam grind, distributor, pistons. If
you push too hard it WILL blow up someone's motor. Even knowing a lot
of this stuff, I'm showing just how hard it can be to optimize
performance given certain parameters (i.e. street gas).
> We designed a nice compact
> durable package that fits with the minimum of agravation into the 68-80 B.
> Now we are going to make packages that fit the earlier B and MGAs, then
> perhaps the A series. I'm going to monitor feedback, so a FAQ list can
> created for those that want to wring maximum potential out of the kit, and
> if someone comes up with anything we overlooked or could do better we will
> incorporate the changes, with due credit given.
I'm also very happy to answer any questions you might have about my
experiences.
> This is the same way that
> we have marketed the Jackson racing Superchargers for Honda, Ford Focus and
> Miata. We offer different sized pulleys, so boost can be adjusted and some
> knock detector and water injection hardware but do not offer technical
> advise, as each engine is going to be different and one persons safety
> margin is antother's "dare" zone. For the B we will offer different
> pulleys, a boost gauge kit, fuel/air ratio guage kits and we are also
> looking into the possibility of different carburetion.
I've firmly convinced myself that closed loop fuel injection is the
only way to do it. Ideally, mixture could be dependent upon throttle
position and RPM as well, for extra cooling in "danger ranges".
>
> Don't look to me for tweaking, as I'm going to be lucky to get my 80 MGB on
> the road sometime in the next decade. I'm currently chasing header leaks
> and a host of other problems in my SD1 and have to get that car back
> together before getting back onto the B. With no garage I can only have one
> car in bits at a time.
I understand that issue all too well also. This is why I'm trying to
put together the shop-coop with some friends.
Anyways, even though they aren't exact apples to apples comparisons, I
think that it would be great fun to compare the installations side by
side. For that matter, if anyone up my direction is installing a kit,
I'd be very interested in meeting them and comparing the installation
process with what I went through. When you were writing your
instructions, did you by any chance have someone watch over the
shoulder of someone not involved in the process of designing the kit
as they installed it to find out where any ambiguities were? I sort of
proved that if it's possible to misunderstand something, it will be
misunderstood.
Larry
>
> all the best
>
> Kelvin.
> >
> > Kelvin,
> >
> > I really think that we need to have a supercharger showdown. Perhaps
> > we can figure out how to have an autocross at one of the NASA
> > (http://www.nasaproracing.com) open track events. People could compete
> > in either/both an autocross style Solo II, and/or an open track
> > challenge style Solo I. To get enough people, we could open it up to
> > all MGs and have clases for blown/naturally aspirated.
> >
> > Or, I could just "call you out", you versus me, moss blower versus
> > hi-flow blower, on the track, door to door at the TC race at
> > Thunderhill next Labor Day:
> > http://www265.pair.com/tcscca/TC/tc03race.htm
> >
> > Their "vintage" group is pretty mellow in what they'll let people run.
> >
> > Do you think you could have your car together in time? That's my nomex
> > gauntlet lying at your feet.
> >
> > Larry
> >
--
I've found something worse than oldies station that play the music I used to
listen to. Oldies stations that play the "new" music I used to complain about.
lrc@red4est.com http://www.red4est.com/lrc
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