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  1. #1
    FEP Senior Member
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    Default Strange vs Lakewood front struts

    I have been racing my 78 Fairmont 2 door sedan for 30 years now, always with a 390/428/427 FE engines, but last year I swapped out the 427 FE for a 331 SBF, retaining the Jerico 4 speed. Between installing a tubular K member (but retaining the factory type coil springs), plus going from the iron headed FE to aluminum head small block, over 200 pounds came off the nose. The car has had 90/10 Lakewood struts up front, and I installed new Moog front 4 cyl coils while I did the swap. The nose sat kinda high, but I ran it all last year that way, it was wheelstanding pretty high, but controlable (rear bumper about 1 inch from touching the track, 1.36 60 foot), and with the nose high, it landed nice and smooth.
    Anyhow, over the winter, we cut the front coils almost a full coil, it sits much nicer now, but since I will now have more up travel, plus less down travel, I was concerned about even higher wheelstands, and harder landings. So I just replaced the old Lakewood struts with a pair of Strange single adjustable struts. The Strange struts are about an inch less travel than the Lakewoods, so that may help keep the nose from getting too high, but wondering if any of you guys are using the Strange struts, and how much differance you have found the adjustments make. They have 11 positions, I set them near the middle (#5), hopefully I get enough passes in this weekend to "sneak up" on a good compromise with the struts. Anybody made a direct comparison between the Lakewood 90/10s and the Strange single adjustables? Weather for this weekend is looking terrific!
    This is typical of how the Fairmont left with the heavy FE engine (428 at that time) , the small block carried them out a fair bit higher, much further (past the 60 foot beams a few times), and lands much smoother, but with the nose lower now, time will tell.Name:  PhotoScan011 (3) - Copy.jpg
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    1978 Fairmont 2 door sedan, 428CJ 4speed. 9.972ET@132.54mph. 1.29 60 foot
    Replaced the FE big block with my 331/4 speed in my Fairmont, best 10.24ET @128 MPH.
    1985 Mustang LX hatchback NHRA Stock Eliminator 302 4 speed best in legal trim 12.31@107 mph, but has gone 11.42@115 with aftermarket intake, carb, and iron Windsor Jr. heads.New for 2012! 331 cube SB Ford, AFR 185 heads, solid flat tappet cam, pump gas; 10.296ET@128.71 mph, 1.37 60 foot.
    1979 Zephyr Z7, all original 302 auto, 2nd owner.

  2. #2
    FEP Member never's Avatar
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    Default

    Do you have travel limiters?

  3. #3

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    That thing is KILLER!!!!!
    1985 GT- “Stock-ish” 5.0 motor, AOD/ trans brake. 12.68 @ 10131mph.

  4. #4
    FEP Member brianj's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by never View Post
    Do you have travel limiters?
    This. You might be needing some with that much weight off the nose.
    1983 Mustang G.T. No-option stripper- I like strippers.
    5.0, GT40P heads, Comp Cams XE270HR-12 on 1.6 rockers, TFI spring kit, Weiand 174 blower, Holley 750 mechanical secondarys, Mishimoto radiator, Edelbrock street performer mechanical pump, BBK shortys, T-5 conversion, 8.8 rear, 3.73 gears, carbon fiber clutches, SS Machine lowers, Maximum Motorsport XL subframes, "B" springs.

  5. #5
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    I can't help with the comparison of the struts, but cut coils have less stored energy and with the shorter struts I bet you are going to see the nose stay down a little better than with the setup you had. Always quicker if you can hook and keep the car flat anyway. I'm sure you already know that an engine only makes so much power, better to use it all for forward momentum than lifting the car off the ground if you can hook. Wheelstands sure look cool though!

  6. #6

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    I have the Strange struts on my junk. I always feel like the adjustments are back wards to what I want. finally settled in that I run them 1 click from full loose and have left them there, and went to work on the back end of the car. I hate those struts, lol.
    Bob Myers ©

    84 Capri RS Turbo - Only a 4 banger - 1/8th 6.29@110, 1/4 9.87@137

  7. #7
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    I did run the car this past weekend, track conditions were not great, it was hot (at least for this area, near Vancouver BC Canada), air temps in the low 90s, track temp 125-130F) Being concerned about the launches, I started the Strange struts near the middle (#5 position), and also lowered my 2 step launch RPM from 6800 down to 6400 RPM. First pass was a 1.363 60 foot, about as good as it has gone with the small block, and ran 10.24@128 MPH, which again was pretty good. As the day went on, and got hotter, the 60 foots slipped to a 1.38, a couple of 1.39s, and in the final, went a 1.417. Since most everybody else in my stickshift class was also losing 60 foot numbers in the heat, I was not terribly concerned.
    On the next day, I backed the F. struts down to #3 (2 clicks looser), but the 60 foots were both 1.39s, ran 10.274 & 10.281, both at 128 MPH. I backed off the struts 1 more click (#2) We had 1rst round fairly late, so pretty warm, spun to a 1.44 60 foot, and only ran a flat out 10.34 on my 10.28 dial, so I was done. Again, I belive it was more track conditions than car, as my buddy lost almost 2 tenths in 60 feet in his similar performing 64 Comet, with smaller tires.
    My next race is in Seattle in 1 1/2 weeks, I plan to install a new pair of slicks for that race, will report the results, good or bad.
    1978 Fairmont 2 door sedan, 428CJ 4speed. 9.972ET@132.54mph. 1.29 60 foot
    Replaced the FE big block with my 331/4 speed in my Fairmont, best 10.24ET @128 MPH.
    1985 Mustang LX hatchback NHRA Stock Eliminator 302 4 speed best in legal trim 12.31@107 mph, but has gone 11.42@115 with aftermarket intake, carb, and iron Windsor Jr. heads.New for 2012! 331 cube SB Ford, AFR 185 heads, solid flat tappet cam, pump gas; 10.296ET@128.71 mph, 1.37 60 foot.
    1979 Zephyr Z7, all original 302 auto, 2nd owner.

  8. #8
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    Good info and good luck in Seattle.

  9. #9

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    If you go too loose you will top out the strut and disrupt the weight transfer/ momentum to the rear. You could be unloading the rear. You want them to be loose enough to transfer without going over. 5 was a good starting point, but you should have tightened them IMO if you were still doing wheelies.

    Look at your rear settings as well. You will not want the suspension too loose to take the huge hit, if it is too loose you wont transfer the weigh to the tires. it will be absorbed by the suspension.

    When you settle you want something stiff to take the load. Otherwise the rear is going to take alot of it and unsettle the car again where it shouldnt ie the rear.

    good luck
    1983 Ford Mustang GT | T- Roof | Polar White | Black Sport Interior

  10. #10
    FEP Super Member erratic50's Avatar
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    You could invert caster/camber plates to gain 1/2 of controlled droop then remove a little spring to give a lower starting point.

    Back when we were experimenting with frontends we would put coil compressors through the A arm hole and crank them a bit to hard limit coils.

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