<rss version="2.0" xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/" xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/"><channel><title>proformance</title><description>proformance</description><link>https://www.proformance.com.au/technical-talk</link><item><title>ULTRA NARROW DIFFERENTIALS - TECHNICAL VIDEO</title><description><![CDATA[The video below explains the concept behind our Narrow Differentials and the benefits including longer axles and more wheel travel. Using Large Diameter Bearings and a Hollow Diff Centre allows the CV Joints to be mounted up inside the Ring Gear.<img src="http://img.youtube.com/vi/-UGXwmIhshk/0.jpg"/>]]></description><link>https://www.proformance.com.au/single-post/2014/10/21/ULTRA-NARROW-DIFFERENTIALS-TECHNICAL-VIDEO</link><guid>https://www.proformance.com.au/single-post/2014/10/21/ULTRA-NARROW-DIFFERENTIALS-TECHNICAL-VIDEO</guid><pubDate>Tue, 21 Oct 2014 12:56:15 +0000</pubDate><content:encoded><![CDATA[<div><div>The video below explains the concept behind our Narrow Differentials and the benefits including longer axles and more wheel travel. Using Large Diameter Bearings and a Hollow Diff Centre allows the CV Joints to be mounted up inside the Ring Gear.</div><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-UGXwmIhshk"/></div>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Reverse Drive Quick Change Transfer Case with Under Drive for 4WD Trophy Trucks</title><description><![CDATA[We have created a technical video explaining some of the benefits of using our reverse direction quick change transfer case in a Mid or Rear Engined 4WD Trophy Truck.This video discusses the advantages of Reverse Rotation and Under Drive to allow the use of Stronger Low Ratio Diffs and reduce tailshaft speeds when running large off road tyres.No need to FLIP diffs upside down - our quick change transfer case provides reverse rotation. Fitted with quick change gears, our transfer case allow the<img src="http://img.youtube.com/vi/YVFWbS1C-PI/0.jpg"/>]]></description><link>https://www.proformance.com.au/single-post/2014/10/05/Reverse-Drive-Quick-Change-Transfer-Case-with-Under-Drive-for-4WD-Trophy-Trucks</link><guid>https://www.proformance.com.au/single-post/2014/10/05/Reverse-Drive-Quick-Change-Transfer-Case-with-Under-Drive-for-4WD-Trophy-Trucks</guid><pubDate>Sun, 05 Oct 2014 09:29:32 +0000</pubDate><content:encoded><![CDATA[<div><div>We have created a technical video explaining some of the benefits of using our reverse direction quick change transfer case in a Mid or Rear Engined 4WD Trophy Truck.</div><div>This video discusses the advantages of Reverse Rotation and Under Drive to allow the use of Stronger Low Ratio Diffs and reduce tailshaft speeds when running large off road tyres.</div><div>No need to FLIP diffs upside down - our quick change transfer case provides reverse rotation. Fitted with quick change gears, our transfer case allow the FINAL DRIVE ratio to be altered WIHTOUT the need to strip the differentials and fit different Ring/Pinion Gears.</div><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/YVFWbS1C-PI"/></div>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>TurboWerx Exa Oil Pump Review - Should you buy one?</title><description><![CDATA[Do you need an electric oil pump? Engine Oil? Gearbox Oil Cooler? Diff Cooler? What flow rate do you need? 0.25GPM? 2 GPM? 3 GPM? Before you buy one, read this... We have tested most pump brands and most are complete GARBAGE - be warned.... After years of trying all sorts of oil pumps to provide lubrication and cooling for our Differentials and Transfer Cases (with terrible results), we decided to try a new pump on the market, the TurboWerx Mini EXA Pump. The pump looks a bit nicer than most of<img src="http://static.wixstatic.com/media/851d52_9bf2e0075ad94a5c9e80f60801f5e6b2.jpg"/>]]></description><link>https://www.proformance.com.au/single-post/2014/08/23/TurboWerx-Exa-Oil-Pump-Review-Should-you-buy-one</link><guid>https://www.proformance.com.au/single-post/2014/08/23/TurboWerx-Exa-Oil-Pump-Review-Should-you-buy-one</guid><pubDate>Sat, 23 Aug 2014 01:00:52 +0000</pubDate><content:encoded><![CDATA[<div><div>Do you need an electric oil pump?Engine Oil? Gearbox Oil Cooler? Diff Cooler?What flow rate do you need?0.25GPM? 2 GPM? 3 GPM?Before you buy one, read this...We have tested most pump brands and most are complete GARBAGE - be warned....</div><div>After years of trying all sorts of oil pumps to provide lubrication and cooling for our Differentials and Transfer Cases (with terrible results), we decided to try a new pump on the market, the TurboWerx Mini EXA Pump. The pump looks a bit nicer than most of the others on the market and is fitted with an awesome heat sink.</div><div>There are hundreds of 12V oil pumps on the market, sold and promoted by various brands. Many are the exactly the same pump, sold with a different sticker, or the same pump head driven by a slightly different motor, but in principle most are the same concept, flow rate and design.</div><div>Some examples are shown below:</div><div>Most of the 12V oil pumps are using most basic of pump principles, two gears in mesh.</div><div>Look closely and you may see many similarities between all the different brands, but be aware, many have the same components, concepts, and flow rates.</div><div>We unpacked our brand new TurboWerx Mini Exa pump and connected it to a test circuit, with a tub of 60 weight motor oil and some short Dash 6 lines and the supplied 140 uM fine mesh filter fitted to the pump inlet.</div><div>When we powered up the Exa Mini Oil Pump we noticed immediately the pump was running backwards - Hmmm.... Upon closer inspection the pump was wired by the manufacturer (turboWerx) in REVERSE (Black to Red, Red to Black) - not a good start. :(</div><div>After reversing the wires, with the correct polarity power applied the pump, the pump simply created a HUGE FOAMY mess and failed to pump any oil at all. The pump gears were screaming and it was obvious that the pump gears were cavitating (Air in the gears)</div><div>With an oil tub full of FOAM now, we started looking for a problem with the pump. We thought that the pump was not actually a self priming pump after all or perhaps it had been damaged running backwards for a few minutes?</div><div>We tried funnels filled with oil held up aboge the inlet, we tried filling the suction lines, priming the pump, priming the lines, positively feeding the pump, but NOTHING worked, the pump SIMPLY did not pump any oil - it just made a big foamy mess and pumped a foamy micture of brown oil and bubbles into our oil pan.</div><div>After removing the Turbowerx &quot;supplied&quot; 140uM filter, we pulled the filter apart and found the filter mesh media to be so fine that 60 weight motor oil simply CANNOT pass through the mesh, even under pressure, let alone when fitted to the pump suction side.</div><div>We then removed the supplied filter from the inlet side of the pump and connected the inlet line directly in to the oil pan and for the first time in 2 hours, the Mini Exa pump started to finally &quot;move&quot; some oil. (the pan looked like a childs bath full of bubbles, but the pump was now starting to dribble a few drops of oil into the pan and starting to circulate oil.)</div><div>When we finally got the pump working in the correct direction and no longer blowing bubbles, we noticed once the oil thickened up (All the foam had settled after 30 minutes), the Mini Exa Oil Pump stopped cavitating and was now pulling much much more current than TurboWerx representative and website had stated. We were seeing currents between 8 and 12 amps when pumping at 5 PSI though 12 inch long lines. The motor was getting very very hot, just sitting on the bench, pumping oil around some short lines. The motor quickly reached 75 Deg C (176 F) in a matter of minutes - wow. The test was not looking good.</div><div>The TurboWerx EXA and Mini Exa Oil Pumps use a &quot;direct drive&quot; gear, which means the gears are driven at the speed of the motor. Turbowerx state that the EXA pump provides between 2-3 Gallons per minute and the Mini Exa provides 2 GPM - This all sounds ok until we actually tested the pump.</div><div>During our bench test the pump got really hot and used a LOT of current and when we connected the pump into our vehicle with the oil flowing through our cooling circuit, things just got worse - really quickly.</div><div>When we then connected the Exa Mini pump to our Diff Cooler via our 4 Foot (1.5 metre) oil lines the TurboWerx Mini Exa the pump started to pull more than 18 amps and sounded like it was going to stall completely. The pump started to slow down second by second and sounded like it as running at 10-20 normal speed and we quickly disconnected the power when the motor started to get so hot that we could not touch the motor casing.</div><div>We assumed the high pressure was being caused by the oil cooler so we disconnected the oil cooler feed line. Running the Turbowerx Mini Exa Oil Pump through an open Dash 6, 4 foot (1.5 metre) oil line simply created a few drips out of the end of the oil line and the pump still pulled more than 12-13 amps and sounded like it was running at 50% speed, It kept getting slower and slower and HOTTER AND HOTTER.</div><div>Whilst the Turbowerx Oil Pumps are indeed designed and promoted to provide a MASSIVE 2-3 GPM flow, we began to wonder - is it even possible to suck 2-3 GPM of oil through a sensibly sized oil liine and then push it through an oil cooler and back to your gearbox, motor or turbo?</div><div>Well lets find out:</div><div>Using the calculator below (basic Hydraulic Engineering Data Sheet) draw a line from the &quot;flowrate&quot; (LHS) to the flow &quot;flow velocity&quot; (RHS) for each of your oil line types (Suction, or Pressure).</div><div>Looking at the chart above, it is CLEAR that any pump needing to suck (pull) 3 GPM will need a Dash 12 or Dash 16 Suction Line and Dash 8 or Dash 10 return lines - FACT</div><div>Now remember, this chart is based on &quot;Thin&quot; Hydraulic Oil, so you try to imagine how big your suction line diameter must be to suck/pull 3GPM of Engine Oil, or even thicker gearbox or diff oils through a line at 3 GPM.</div><div>We have seen many sites selling pumps for Turbos, Gearboxes and Diffs that have flow rates of 2-3 GPM, but what the hell would a turbo need 3GPM of oil for? We did some investigations and if you read the &quot;fine print&quot;, you will see that it is recommended that the user BYPASS most of the pumps 3GPM flow back to the sump (using a Tee Piece/Bypass) and only let perhaps 10% of the flow up to the turbo.</div><div>I think most racers would agree that if you ACTUALLY managed to pump 3GPM into your turbo, then your vehicle would have lot of white smoke pouring out of the exhaust because the turbo would simply be overfilled and flooded with oil.</div><div>In fact, most power steering pumps only provide 1-3 GPM, and they are driven by your HUGE petrol or diesel engine, using a large rubber belt. Asking a 3GPM pump to be driven by a small direct drive 12V DC motor is a very big demand.</div><div>Back to our pump testing:</div><div>With the chart above showing flow velocities and recommended line diameters, we then added a pressure gauge to the pump outlet to confirm what was going on and if the recommendations in the chart are correct and or we were experiencing high pressures and low flows due to back pressure.</div><div>The TurboWerx Mini Exa Pump created around 40 PSI back pressure, in our free flowing 4 Foot Oil line, BEFORE we even connected the line to our oil cooler. When we connected the oil cooler and a return line into the hydraulic circuit , &quot;BOOM&quot; we saw 55 PSI of pressure at the pump outlet and the pump pretty much stalls out and gets red hot really fast.</div><div>In our opinion, the &quot;only&quot; way the Turbowerx EXA or MINI EXA oil pump could suck and then pump 2-3 GPM would be using massive Dash 12-16 suction lines and perhaps Dash 10 pressure and return lines. This is just plain silly, Our NASCAR 6 Stage Dry Sump uses Dash 12 suction lines and a Dash 10 Pressure line.</div><div>Most gear pumps advertised to pump &quot;Oil&quot; look very similar to the pump below, keeping in mind the pump below was designed to pump Water, Diesel and Low Viscosity Fuels/Oils. The gear in the Turbowerx Pumps are very large in comparison to the motor size and the maths simply do not add up.</div><div>Asking any electric pump to push 3GPM of engine oil is insanity and should be avoided - SIMPLE</div><div>Circlips In Your Turbo?</div><div>In addition to the high flows, we noticed that when the pump is running the circlip flies around at high speed on the shaft. Have a look at the circlip holding the gear in place in this video we tool. Notice the circlip spinning against the shaft - not ideal at all. The circlip could wear through the shaft, come loose, damage the pump gears and push parts of the gear and/or circlip into your turbo bearings - ouch.</div><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8iNHJTWUA5s"/><div>In summary, trying to push 2 or 3 Gallons Per minute of oil through dash 6 or 8 lines, up to a cooler, back to your diff, gearbox or Turbo using a 12V 2-3 GPM Gear Type Pumps (Like the TurboWerx Min Exa or EXA) Oil pump is madness - do not try it. Sure they will push 2-3 GPM through short lines on a bench test, but in reality, when you have long lines, oil coolers and a filters in your circuit, be warned.</div><div>You are wasting your time AND MONEY if you want a TurboWerx EXA or Turbowerx Exa Mini pump or any other gear type pump on the market today to push any oil thicker than 5-10 weight viscosity oil reliably anywhere around your vehicle.</div><div>Are all the pumps the same?</div><div>Looking at the gear design, dimensions and components, it seems that many of the Oil Pumps on the market today, including the TurboWerx Units are pumps that have been maunfactured using components that are commonly found in pumps that were originally designed to pump Kerosine, Diesel, and other low viscosity fuels and oils. Most pumps for sale have similarly high flow rates (Excessive for turbos and diffs) perhaps because they were oringially intended to move Diesel from one tank to another and were NEVER designed from day one for motorsport applications pumping oils around your engine bay or driveline.</div><div>The Good News:</div><div>We recently have found a hiqh quality positive displacement oil pump that provides around 0.5 GPM and is suitable for our heavy weight Diff Oils and Dash 6-8 lines. We are very happy with the results of our testing of this unit to date and are looking forward to many seasons of racing without stupid oil pump failires.</div><div>If you would like to know more about the pump we are now using to pump our gearbox and diff oils into our diff coolers, please contact us.</div><div>Again - Follow the Flock, or make an Informed Decision and fix the problem.</div><div>Contact us | Subscribe | Tech Talk</div></div>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>WILL IFS DOMINATE ULTRA4 EUROPE?</title><description><![CDATA[ULTRA4 Expands into Europe Wales Scotland Portugal Italy Will IFS Vehicles Dominate the European Series? The ULTRA 4 series (USA) has expanded into Europe and competitors from all over europe compete in ULTRA 4 racing on the same basis as the King Of the Hammers USA rules and regulations. In August 2014, Proformance Motorsport have secured our first ULTRA4 Europe competitor that will use our unique drivetrain components in a brand new Rock Racer for the 2015 Season. The European team is<img src="http://static.wixstatic.com/media/851d52_8a4816fa92ca41999a0228a3a63f639d.png"/>]]></description><link>https://www.proformance.com.au/single-post/2014/08/17/WILL-IFS-DOMINATE-ULTRA4-EUROPE</link><guid>https://www.proformance.com.au/single-post/2014/08/17/WILL-IFS-DOMINATE-ULTRA4-EUROPE</guid><pubDate>Sun, 17 Aug 2014 22:04:10 +0000</pubDate><content:encoded><![CDATA[<div><div>ULTRA4 Expands into Europe</div><div>WalesScotlandPortugalItaly</div><div>Will IFS Vehicles Dominate the European Series?</div><div>The ULTRA 4 series (USA) has expanded into Europe and competitors from all over europe compete in ULTRA 4 racing on the same basis as the King Of the Hammers USA rules and regulations.</div><div> In August 2014, Proformance Motorsport have secured our first ULTRA4 Europe competitor that will use our unique drivetrain components in a brand new Rock Racer for the 2015 Season. The European team is currently working with our Imagineers to develop Europes Most Awesome Long Travel IFS Rock Racer to date. </div><div>As per many other forms of Rock Crawling and Rock Racing, most of the vehicles competing in the ULTRA4 Europe Series are using traditional Live Axles. IFS or IRS on vehicles competing in Europe is much less common than in the USA ULTRA4 Rock Racing Series. </div><div>When IFS first hit Rock Racing in the USA the sport changed for ever and IFS cars are oten on the podium and in teh Top 10 Positions. teh majority of the IFS ULTRA4 Vehicles Competing around the world today all use a traditional live axle Differential fitted into a custom housing. The result is a differential where the distance between the faces of the CV Drive Flanges is around 14 inches (350mm)</div><div>Lets see what happens when the Europeans see their first Long Travel IFS Rock Racer, fitted with our DANA 80 Ultra Narrow Differential, Custom Series 30 CV Joints and the Extra Long Wheel Travel.</div><div>Our Ultra Narrow Differentials have larger than normal Differential Carrier Bearings allowing the CV Joints to be fitted up inside the carrier, which provides longer axles and therefore much more wheel travel.</div><div>Available in Spool or Locker, with either DANA 60 or DANA 80 Gears and 934 or Series 30 CV Joints, our ULTRA4 Narrow IFS and IRS differentials are the narrowest and strongest in the world.</div><div>The ULTRA4 Europe series also brings a a coule of challenge to Rock Racing that are not often seen in the USA - Water and Mud.</div><div>At Proformance Motorsport, all our components are made to be 100% fully sealed and vented to atmosphere to prevent the ingress of Water, Dirt Mud and Debris and are perfectly suited to teh wet and muddy conditions of the European ULTRA4 Series.</div><div>Proformance Motorsport are looking forward to seeing an IFS be on the ULTRA4 Eurpoean podium in 2015.</div><div>To learn more information about Rock Racing in Europe or ULTRA4 Europe, simply click below:</div><div>Ultra 4 Eurpoe: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/ULTRA4EUROPE">Facebook</a> | <a href="http://www.kingofthevalleys.co.uk">Website</a></div><div>For more information on how Proformance Motorsport can assist you to achieve more wheel travel and a stronger IFS or IRS setup on your vehiclce, contact us today.</div><div>Contact us | Subscribe | Tech Talk</div></div>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>ULTIMATE IFS WHEEL TRAVEL - THE SEARCH IS OVER</title><description><![CDATA[How Much More Wheel Travel Can I achieve? Calculate Additional Wheel Travel Based on Axle Length Proformance Ultra Narrow IFS and IRS DIfferentials More wheel travel - Less CV Joint Angle - Less CV Failures There are plenty of IFS (Independent Front Suspension) and IRS (Independent Rear Suspension) diffs on the market today, most of which use a conventional differential centre. Instead of an axle and some wheel bearings at the diff ends, the traditional live axle diff has been slightly modified<img src="http://static.wixstatic.com/media/851d52_5018fe011d0a450f966e4878df11bbf1.jpg"/>]]></description><link>https://www.proformance.com.au/single-post/2014/08/17/ULTIMATE-IFS-WHEEL-TRAVEL-THE-SEARCH-IS-OVER</link><guid>https://www.proformance.com.au/single-post/2014/08/17/ULTIMATE-IFS-WHEEL-TRAVEL-THE-SEARCH-IS-OVER</guid><pubDate>Sun, 17 Aug 2014 12:07:03 +0000</pubDate><content:encoded><![CDATA[<div><div>How Much More Wheel Travel Can I achieve?</div><div>Calculate Additional Wheel Travel Based on Axle LengthProformance Ultra Narrow IFS and IRS DIfferentialsMore wheel travel - Less CV Joint Angle - Less CV Failures</div><div>There are plenty of IFS (Independent Front Suspension) and IRS (Independent Rear Suspension) diffs on the market today, most of which use a conventional differential centre. Instead of an axle and some wheel bearings at the diff ends, the traditional live axle diff has been slightly modified by OEM's to accommodate Two (2) Male CV Flanges with Stub Shafts that slip into a female spline in the diff where the axles wold typically be located.</div><div>IFS differtials are typically sitting under an engine, and have the diff centred just a bit left or right of the engine sump to allow the tailshaft to pass by the motor.</div><div>The distance between the Flanges where the CV Joints are bolted is typically very wide and the Half Shaft Lengths are therefore very Short.</div><div>This picture says it all - Short Axles (Half Shafts) do not provide much wheel travel at all...</div><div>The main restriction is that for 60 or more years the traditional Differntial has remained unchanged in it's basic design. 99.9% of all differentials in vehicles today, including motorsport use a traditional carrier that tapers down in shape to accommodate small diameter tapered roller bearings.</div><div>Most IFS Differential Housings are either too wide to accommodate long half shafts or the internal comonents are not strong enough for motorsport applications.</div><div>Competitors are often forced to take a traditional Live Truck Axle and cut it up to convert ot to an IFS Diff. For years now, competitors have taken a traditional live axle and cut down the housings, machined some stub axles with CV Flanges and created their own narrow IFS Differential chasing longer half Shafts and more wheel travel.</div><div>In the past few years, companies have actually started to manufacture IFS cases that take traditional Truck Differential Components (Carriers, Bearings, Lockers) to provide strong competition IFS Differentials to Motorsport Competitors, but the distance between the CV Faces is still very long.</div><div>Some examples are shown below:</div><div>Using the Diff Centre from a Live Axle Truck Differential in a motorsport application by fitting it into a cut down or custom made housing or case still results in a very wide differential and short axles or half shafts.</div><div>Typically the distance between the CV Faces of an ULTRA4 IFS or IRS Diferential (Sipdertrax IFS/IRS, Currie IRS/IFS) is around 14-15 Inches (350mm)</div><div>Whether the Diff Centre is an Air Locker, Open Centre, No Spin, or Competition Spool No matter how much you cut and shorten the housing, the diff can never be narrower than the distance between the small carrier tapered bearings - period.</div><div>Front CV Joints can only travel up and down safely around 22 degrees whilst allowng for the required 25-35 degrees of steering angle. Short CV Half shafts do not provide a lot of wheel travel and in Off Road and Military Applicaitons, wheel travel is critical. Even a narow, custom made, cut down Spider Trac or Currie 9 inch or 10 Inch 14.5&quot; Wide Differential does not allow for much wheel travel.</div><div>A lot of competitors go to great extremes to install additional slip joints, change the CV Joints to higher travel joints, but these modications only typically achieve an additional 1-2 inches (25-50mm) of wheel travel.</div><div>Competitors can at times end up with a driveshaft solution that is not correctly manufactured, with parts from different cars cut and modified with angle grinders and then welded together (See the welding in the above example) in an effort to acheve a bit more wheel travel, but only achieving more DNF's.</div><div>At Proformance, we have created a revolutionary new Differential that has Extra Large Tapered Roller Bearings that allow the CV Joints to be fitted up inside the Differential Ring Gear (Crown Wheel)</div><div>With the CV Joints mounted inside the Differential, the Faces of the CV Joints are only 40mm apart. That is 300-450mm (12 - 18 inches) narrower than the typical hand made IFS Differentials hand manufactured by competitors or professinaly manufactured units that are sold by both Spider Trax and Currie.</div><div>With the CV joints closer together, the axles are longer which provides more wheel travel. not a little bit, A LOT MORE WHEEL TRAVEL.</div><div>Lets to the maths:</div><div>Due to fitting the cv joints inside the diff carrier, we achieve an additional 6 inches of axle length &quot;per Side&quot; therefore we can assume &quot;a&quot; is 150mm (6 Inches) </div><div>To calculate additional wheel travel, we simply find &quot;b&quot; and multiple by 2 (travel both Up and Down)</div><div>Tan 22 x a = b (Tan 22 x 150 = 60.6)</div><div>Total Additional Wheel travel (2 x b) = 2 x 60.6mm = 121mm ( 4.75&quot; )</div><div>When you consider that some vehicles only have 8 inches (200mm) travel out of the factory, an additional 4.75 inches wheel travel PER WHEEL is incredible.</div><div>Adding another 4.75&quot; of wheel travel to an off road competition vehicle that already has 18 inches of travel would achieve 22.75 inches of travel using our Ultra Narrow Differentials.</div><div>Our Narrow Diffs can be used in IFS (Independent Front Suspesion) and IRS (Independent Rear Suspension) and are used in all forms of motorsport including Off Road Racing, ULTRA4 Rock Racing Rock Bouncing. The image below shows 33 inches of wheel travel whilst only applying 22 degrees of angle to the cv joints.</div><div>In addition to more wheel travel, longer axles allow competitors to run more ground clearance with less CV joint Angle. Asking the CV Jonts to work through less angle reduces the heat and stress on the CV Joints and axles, dramatically increasing reliability.</div><div>You may notice that the 4WD Trophy Truck pictured above has more wheel travel than available ground clearance, but the race team only uses a small percentage of the wheel travel, providing more wheel travel as other vehicles, whilst maintaining a very modest CV joint Working Angles and Heat Buildup.</div><div>For more information on how we can assist you to achieve more wheel travel and a stronger IFS or IRS setup on your vehiclce, contact us today.</div><div>Contact us | Subscribe | Tech Talk</div></div>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>SOME THREAD LOCKERS CAN AFFECT BOLT TORQUE - BE CAREFUL</title><description><![CDATA[Can Thread Lockers SNAP your bolts in Half? During the 6 Month final assembly of our brand new $300,000 Off Road Race Truck, I noticed a few of my very expensive, 12 point, Military Spec Bolts were broken (snapped in half), after being torque up using our new “Digital” Torque Wrench, before we had EVEN DRIVEN THE TRUCK. The search for the cause of our broken bolts was immediately underway! Based in Western Australia, Proformance Motorsport design, manufacture and build Off Road Race Trucks and<img src="http://static.wixstatic.com/media/851d52_5779d6cb40b54544b6fc4f1bc53be855.png"/>]]></description><link>https://www.proformance.com.au/single-post/2014/08/17/SOME-THREAD-LOCKERS-CAN-AFFECT-BOLT-TORQUE-BE-CAREFUL</link><guid>https://www.proformance.com.au/single-post/2014/08/17/SOME-THREAD-LOCKERS-CAN-AFFECT-BOLT-TORQUE-BE-CAREFUL</guid><pubDate>Sun, 17 Aug 2014 08:05:31 +0000</pubDate><content:encoded><![CDATA[<div><div>Can Thread Lockers SNAP your bolts in Half?</div><div>During the 6 Month final assembly of our brand new $300,000 Off Road Race Truck, I noticed a few of my very expensive, 12 point, Military Spec Bolts were broken (snapped in half), after being torque up using our new “Digital” Torque Wrench, before we had EVEN DRIVEN THE TRUCK.</div><div>The search for the cause of our broken bolts was immediately underway!</div><div>Based in Western Australia, Proformance Motorsport design, manufacture and build Off Road Race Trucks and components. We CAD design and CNC machine our own Differentials, Gearboxes, Wheel Hubs, Axles and even manufacture the entire chassis and fibreglass bodies - all in house.</div><div>Running a business that charges money to take customers for rides in our race trucks, we lose money every time a component fails or we have a truck that is disabled. We pride ourselves on only using the best materials and components available to ensure our vehicles are the most reliable they possibly can be. We all try to use the best bolts we can and 12 point bolts when we can get hold of them. As many of us know, a bolt is held in place by the preload caused when torque is applied to the head.</div><div>The best bolt manufacturers in the world will provide race car engineers with the recommended amount of “stretch” recommended for their bolts to achieve the correct amount of preload. Professional engine builders will always use a micrometer to measure the physical stretch of a con rod bolt when it is tightened.</div><div>In 99% of circumstances, it is simply not possible to use a micrometer to measure the length of the bolt when it is being tightened and therefore bolt manufacturers will supply us with Bolt Torque Charts to guide us how much to tighten the bolt. Any one that has ever rebuilt an engine will be familiar with the need to use a torque wrench to tighten the Head Bolts.</div><div>Most of us are aware that amount of resulted bolt stretch (preload) for a particular applied torque varies greatly due to the following:</div><div>Dirty/Rusty Threads – The Torque Wrench clicks (Beeps, or similar) at the preset torque setting, but the bolt is not stretched to the desired preload and the parts are not clamped sufficiently and the bolt can easily come loose.Oily Threads – The oil lubricates the threads and the bolt can be over-tightened when the recommended torque is applied and the bolt may fail prematurely.</div><div>Most High End bolt manufacturers will provide torque settings, showing the required torque for a Dry Bolt, and a lubricated bolt. See the example below.</div><div>The type of lubricant used can significantly alter the resulting preload created by the torque applied when tightening the bolt. See the data below, again from ARP:</div><div>Plated Bolts vs. Black Bolts:</div><div>Something many of us are not aware of is that plated bolts (Silver or Gold appearance) require different tightening torques than plain, Black Bolts. If this is news to you, then take a look at the fine print in the Unbrako table below (look for the asterisk).</div><div>Looking the fine print above (after the asterisk) you will clearly see:</div><div>Zinc plated bolts require 40% more torque than Black (Unplated) boltsCad Plated bolts require 25% less torque than a Black (Unplated) bolt.</div><div>The Silver or Gold “Zinc Plating” causes the threads to bind just like a dirty or rusty bolt and the bolt stretch (preload) is often not achieved after the required torque is applied and the Cad Plating acts a thread lubricant, increasing bolt stretch per applied torque. Now you know why High End ARP bolts for race engines are always BLACK!!</div><div>Proformance Motorsport only use Unbrako Cap Screws (Allen Bolts) or Military Spec 12 Point Bolts when (we can get hold of them) and due to the mud and dirt associated with off road racing, Proformance Motorsport always use Pacified Zinc Plated bolts to prevent corrosion. Our crew uses high end “digital” torque wrenches on every bolt we tighten and we always use thread locker!!</div><div>The question was “Why are we starting to see broken bolts even before we have driven the new race truck?”</div><div>We had some of the bolts removed and tested for hardness and tensile strength and found no problems. We checked and double-checked the manufacturers recommended torque settings and found nothing that would cause the breakages that were occurring.</div><div>Like many race shops, we had lots of different brands of and many different grades thread-lockers and all different colours and viscosities. They all seemed to hold the bolts in place ok and we never really problems with bolts that came loose, but we found that not all brands provided the same preload to the bolt. We found that some brands of thread- lockers were lubricating the bolt so well that the bolt would simply snap in half if the manufacturer’s recommended torque was applied.</div><div>After many hours of testing, and chewing through few sets of batteries in my very cool digital torque wrench I put together the results of my testing in a nice spreadsheet of my findings PROVING that various thread-lockers acted as lubricants and the lubricating properties were very unpredictable. After my bench and vice were completely covered in patches of red, green, purple and blue thread locker, I contacted Loctite Australia for some advice to make some sense of all my testing and results.</div><div>Chris Manger of Loctite Western Australia visited our premises and after a few minutes explaining our problems to him, Chris presented a test case where Loctite had previously performed similar tests in a controlled laboratory. The results of the Loctite testing clearly confirmed my findings that different brands and types of thread-lockers provide very very different amounts of preload/stretch when the bolt is tightened to the recommended torque. Some (Many) thread-lockers simply act as an unreliable and non-predictable lubricant and most provide unpredictable, non-constant preloads.</div><div>It seems that some thread-locker manufacturers have simply “forgotten” to advise the user of their products on the product label that the lubricating action completely can and will result in excessive preload resulting in broken bolts if you actually tighten them to the required torque using your bright and shiny torque wrench.</div><div>After more discussions with Chris from Loctite, we were advised that the Loctite range of Thread-Lockers are designed to simulate as close as possible to a dry bolt torque condition. After seeing the data we are now able to torque our bolts to the recommended torque settings without fear of snapping the bolt in half or having the bolt snap in half when we drive our vehicles.</div><div>In summary:</div><div>Check with the manufacturer of your bolts to obtain the required torque settingApply the torque “correction factor” if your bolt is Cad or Zinc plated<div>If using a thread-locking compound, use a product from a manufacturer that can provide you with data sheetshowing how the thread locking product will affect your bolt tightening torque and the resulting bolt preload.</div><div>If in doubt – Only Use Loctite Products like all the major race teams (designed to replicate dry assemblytorques/preloads)</div></div><div>I hope someone out there in race car land learns from our findings.</div><div>Happy engineering</div><div>Scott Bryce - Owner Proformance Motorsport</div><div>Contact us | Subscribe | Tech Talk</div></div>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>ARE &quot;LOW RESISTANCE&quot; SPARK PLUG LEADS ALL THE SAME?</title><description><![CDATA[What are your Spark Plug Lead Conductors made of? Engine Misfires? After many months of annoying black spark plugs, Proformance Motorsport recently changed our Spark Plug Leads to the Awesome MSD 8.5mm Super Conductor Leads. AN INCREDIBLE IMPROVEMENT!! When our new small block Chev engine was screaming between 5000 and 8000 RPM on the engine Dyno our new race engine showed absolutely no signs of poor spark or poor performance. The motor sounded awesome, our crew was excited and we all thought<img src="http://static.wixstatic.com/media/851d52_d43e56bff55548ab8159bc65b60f155e.png"/>]]></description><link>https://www.proformance.com.au/single-post/2014/08/17/ARE-LOW-RESISTANCE-SPARK-PLUG-LEADS-ALL-THE-SAME</link><guid>https://www.proformance.com.au/single-post/2014/08/17/ARE-LOW-RESISTANCE-SPARK-PLUG-LEADS-ALL-THE-SAME</guid><pubDate>Sun, 17 Aug 2014 07:15:00 +0000</pubDate><content:encoded><![CDATA[<div><div>What are your Spark Plug Lead Conductors made of?</div><div>Engine Misfires?</div><div>After many months of annoying black spark plugs, Proformance Motorsport recently changed our Spark Plug Leads to the Awesome MSD 8.5mm Super Conductor Leads.</div><div>AN INCREDIBLE IMPROVEMENT!!</div><div>When our new small block Chev engine was screaming between 5000 and 8000 RPM on the engine Dyno our new race engine showed absolutely no signs of poor spark or poor performance. The motor sounded awesome, our crew was excited and we all thought “Job Done”, lets get it bolted into the race truck!</div><div>Our problems started after our new engine was bolted in our truck and the engine was run at idle a few times to manoeuvre our race truck inside our race shop or when the beast was loaded on or off our race car transporter.</div><div>When driven at slow speeds, or when running at idle for a few minutes, the motor would start to backfire and run badly (Very Badly). Our Digital Dash quickly pointed out the problem - the front four engine cylinders were burning at lower temps than the rear cylinders.</div><div>Further investigation showed that the front two front spark plugs (Cylinders 1 and 3) were completely fouled with thick black carbon, resulting in absolutely “No Spark”. The next two spark plugs (2 and 3) were removed and found to be black with carbon, (not quite as bad as 1 and 2) and the rear most plugs (5-8) were a nice Tan colour as we saw on the Dyno.</div><div>A quick change of the front four spark plugs (Cylinders 1-4) saw the engine come to back life and BOOM, our race truck engine was again the fire-breathing beast we all saw on the engine Dyno. We took the Truck out Testing and the engine screamed at high revs, ran for hours of testing and everyone was again happy.</div><div>After loading the truck up on the trailer and moving it around the workshop (dozens of times) to make way for other vehicles, our crew began to notice the bad idle and backfiring had returned!</div><div>Without even looking at the data logger or exhaust temps, we quickly removed the first four plugs and sure enough they were again covered in black soot and carbon, resulting in NO SPARK. We checked the ECU parameters, Air Fuel Ratio, Computer Settings, we changed coils, checked our ignition wiring, checked our fuel pressures, checked compression – we checked everything and found nothing. Every time we put in a new set of plugs, the engine was FINE when driven hard, but when driven at low speeds, moving the truck back and forth to car shows and events, and around our property, the front four spark plugs would simply foul up after 10-20 minutes of low speed driving.</div><div>A good friend of mine Kevin happened to be visiting our race shop whilst I was again busy changing my spark plugs (for the 6th time in a few short months) and asked me if the problem could be a spark plug lead. Whilst I appreciate that Kevin is a very smart business person, a race engine builder he is NOT, so I initially shrugged off his “Silly” idea suggesting to Kevin that all four front cylinders are playing up and the chances of me having Four Dead leads in a single batch were pretty low because the plug leads were brand new only 3 months ago.</div><div>Then it hit me! When we had the engine on the Dyno, because of the longer lead lengths needed to fit the engine and computer harness onto the Dyno, our team had used some “old” leads from one of our big block Hummer Engines. The brand new leads I was running on the Small Block were indeed new, but a Brand and Type I had never used before.</div><div>I suggested to Kevin that I thought the longer leads running to the front cylinders could have a much greater resistance than the shorter leads (Half the length) that feed the rear cylinders and that the longer leads are resulting in poor spark at low revs, but could be working ok at higher revs.</div><div>I quickly removed the longest of my now “questionable” (3 Month Old, Brand XXX) spark plug leads and replaced the spark plug lead with an old MSD lead that I had lying around on a shelf. Even with the fouled spark plug, the dead cylinder that was fitted with the MSD Lead fitted came back to life and the exhaust temp of that cylinder came back tonormal. I immediately thought, “Now we were getting somewhere”. I was super excited and Kevin was feeling a bit smug knowing it was he that had suggested the lead or leads in the first place. (Don’t you hate it when one of your mates pops around and solves your 3-month problem in a few seconds)?</div><div>Not satisfied with the test results, I had to know why one lead worked and the other did not. I measured the leads and the resistance was low as suggested by both manufacturers.</div><div>Anybody that knows me will understand my absolute passion to get to the bottom of something and I just “had to know” what was wrong with this questionable lead (And the other three leads that were are causing the my spark plugs to foul up with carbon.</div><div>I then grabbed 3 month old, super duper “low resistance, Brand XXX “racing plug lead” (I have not mentioned the Brand - it makes my blood boil) and cut it in half to look inside. I then stripped the shiny and brightly coloured (Yes they did indeed LOOK like they belong on a race car) silicon outer layer to reveal the “conductor core” of the plug lead (the bit that sends the electrical spark to the plug)</div><div>Much to my surprise (After spending quite a few of my Race $$ on this high quality set of “Race Leads”), the plug lead I was holding in my hand had an “inner core” that I can only describe as a tiny 2.5mm black flexible rubber “o-ring” stretched out straight.</div><div>Being an electronics engineer, I understand that a low resistance lead will result in greater spark at the plug, but I thought how the hell is electricity ever supposed to travel down this black rubber stuff? (We are all told at school that rubber is after all an insulator right?)</div><div>I know that Spark Plug Lead manufacturers advertise graphite core, carbon core, low resistance leads etc, but come on, whilst the material that this core did indeed have a low resistance (As stated by the manufacturer), the inner core was clearly manufactured from was flexible like rubber substance and was OBVIOUSLY the cause of my poor spark, my engine problems and my frustration.</div><div>Now to compare, I then grabbed the old MSD 8.5 Super Conductor Lead, cut it in half and again stripped the Outer Layer off to reveal a much larger conductor core that had a tiny wire strand would tightly around the core. I also noticed that the MSD silicon insulator was manufactured from a few different layers/colours of silicon AND some sort of white fibreglass looking heatproof material between each of the silicon layers. Needless to say, I was very impressed with the MSD Lead, when compared to the “rubbish” lead that I was holding in my other hand.</div><div>Here I was sitting at my bench with a super duper brand XXX Plug lead with nothing inside it but what appeared to be a black rubber band and an old MSD lead with multiple layers of insulation, heat proof fibreglass, large conductor core and some sort of tiny copper wire wound tightly around the core. I investigated further and pulled at the tiny wire strands. As it unravelled it revealed a stiff inner core that felt very different to the rubber feeling core that I found in my “questionable” plug lead.</div><div>After a restless night’s sleep (ask my wife) tossing and turning thinking I have solved one of the world’s greatest mysteries, at the crack of dawn I jumped in the car and headed straight to the nearest speed shop to grab a set of MSD Spark Plug Leads to confirm my findings and get the engine to idle without fouling plugs once and for all. I had a few arguments with one race shop owner who kept asking me “Why do you specifically want an MSD leads when my Brand XXX Super Duper Race Lead are even better?” He wanted to show me chart after chart to explain to me that the resistance per foot of his Brand XXX leads were lower than the Resistance Per Foot if the MSD leads I had asked for.</div><div>I then had a strange sense of Déjà vu – I remember having a similar conversation when I purchased the “questionable” set of leads a few months earlier from another race shop. I then concluded that whilst the leads I had purchased previously were indeed low resistance (I even tested them with a multimeter), the inner core that provided the “low resistance” on paper, looked like rubber, felt like rubber and performed like crap at sending a 40,000 Volt spark to my plugs. I was simply not in the mood for testing another brand of “Super Race Leads”!!</div><div>I stood my ground went somewhere else and purchased a set of MSD 8.5mm Super Conductor Leads and fitted them to the engine. Even with the fouled plugs, the engine ran fine.</div><div>I changed the plugs one more time and when we took the truck for another test session. We immediately noticed a dramatic increase in throttle response, much more low-end power &amp; torque and the engine absolutely screamed at high revs. It simply sounded different - just like it did on the engine Dyno. I would have NEVER believed that a set of plug leads could have caused so much frustration and so many headaches to my team. I have since purchased a 20 Metre length of the MSD 8.5mm wire and the MSD plug lead “crimps” and I keep them all on my race trailer just in case!!</div><div>In summary, don’t get fooled by Brand XXX race lead with “Super Low” ohms per foot or silly comparison charts showing how great one lead is compared to the other. Purchase a brand of ignition components that you know and trust (Not some new brand that comes from china in a shiny box with a comparison chart). Use what has worked for you in the past and if you are new to this sort of thing or if you are ever in doubt, use what millions of racers use worldwide - grab a set of MSD leads and relax knowing that any future engine “misfires or headaches” will NOT be caused by the spark plug leads!</div><div>I hope this has been useful to someone in “race car land” and prevents the hours of frustration we went through to find the cause of our problem.</div><div>I have included some more Info re the MSD Super Conductor leads from the MSD Website below:</div><div>The MSD 8.5mm Super Conductor Wire is &quot;the&quot; performance wire.Engineered from the inside out, the 8.5 offers everything you have ever wanted in a wire; incredibly low resistance without electronic interference! In a single 12 inch length of Super Conductor Wire there is only 40 - 50 ohms of resistance! That is the lowest resistance of any helically wound wire. To accomplish this, we use a copper alloy conductor due to its great voltage carrying capabilities. The low resistance results in less loss in spark energyso more reaches the spark plug. The conductor is wound extremely tight around a special centre core. So tight in fact, that there is over 40 feet of conductor wrapped into a single foot of plug wire. This winding procedure, combined with a Ferro-magnetic impregnated centre core, produces an extremely effective Electro Magnetic Interference (EMI) &quot;choke&quot;. This choke, or suppression capability, keeps the EMI inside the wire where it cannot interfere with other electronics on your vehicle. The outer sleeve that surrounds the conductor assembly is just as impressive. A proprietary blend of silicone and synthetic material produce a sleeve that is highly resistant to high heat as well as abrasion and tears. The MSD 8.5mm Super Conductor Plug Wire is available in Universal Kits and Bulk Lengths. </div><div>Scott Bryce - Owner Proformance Motorsport</div><div>Contact us | Subscribe | Tech Talk</div></div>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>250 WEIGHT OIL - IS IT A BANDAID?</title><description><![CDATA[Do you have to heat your Diff Oil in microwave before you can pour it into your diff casing? Do you have to jack your truck up and run the diff on stands for 10 mins before each race? Ever wondered why your TT or ULTRA 4 Diff blows up when running thinner oils? How many Trophy Trucks and Ultra 4 Cars do you see with Oil Coolers Fitted to the Differentials? Not many? Why is that? The Imagineers at Proformance have often asked why race teams in the USA all seem to run an incredibly thick oil (we<img src="http://static.wixstatic.com/media/851d52_1e7838c960774917b89470670f9556d6.jpg"/>]]></description><link>https://www.proformance.com.au/single-post/2014/08/15/250-WEIGHT-OIL-IS-IT-A-BANDAID</link><guid>https://www.proformance.com.au/single-post/2014/08/15/250-WEIGHT-OIL-IS-IT-A-BANDAID</guid><pubDate>Fri, 15 Aug 2014 22:45:35 +0000</pubDate><content:encoded><![CDATA[<div><div>Do you have to heat your Diff Oil in microwave before you can pour it into your diff casing?Do you have to jack your truck up and run the diff on stands for 10 mins before each race?Ever wondered why your TT or ULTRA 4 Diff blows up when running thinner oils?</div><div>How many Trophy Trucks and Ultra 4 Cars do you see with Oil Coolers Fitted to the Differentials? Not many? Why is that? The Imagineers at Proformance have often asked why race teams in the USA all seem to run an incredibly thick oil (we call it grease) that is so thick they need to heat it up before it can be poured into the diff housing</div><div>The oils used in off road motorsport are SO THICK that competitors are forced to heat the diff cases with a Gas Blow Torch whilst the trucks are elevated on jack stands, with the engine running so that when they start the race the &quot;grease&quot; in the diff will be hot enough that it will actually act like an oil instead of a thick paste.</div><div>If you are running a thick 250 Weight Oil (&quot;Grease&quot;) in your diff, then perhaps you should investigate what temperatures your diff is running at. A diff running 75/90 oil and an oil cooler will result in the oil being &quot;thicker&quot; with a higher viscosity than a vehicle that is running 250 Weight &quot;Grease&quot; at higher temperatures.</div><div>It's simple maths. 250 Weight or Higher oils (Grease) are often being used as a bandaid by many off road competitors because the diffs are simply getting too hot and typical diff oils are becoming too thin to provide adequate lubrication and protection properties.</div><div>It is common industry knowledge that the super strong Ford 9 Inch and 10 Inch Diffs run MUCH MUCH hotter than the DANA Diffs bceause the 9 inch and 10 inch diffs have a MUCH lower Hypoid Offset, resulting in a much lower efficiency and robbing horsepower. Even if you are running a 10&quot; Race Prepared Diff that generated lots of heat, the temperature can be effectively controlled with an oil pump and oil cooler to protect the oil and prevent the need to run silly, thick grease in your $30,000 Tube Works Diff.</div><div>Controlling the temperature of the oil in the Diff will allow the use of higher quality oils and prevent the need for heating the diff up before events.</div><div>If a competitor was to run a temperature sensor on his 10&quot; Diff, and look up the viscosity of the 250 weight oil running without an oil cooler it would be obvious that the viscosity of the 250 Weight oil will be a lot thinner than a 75/90 Diff oil running at a cooler temperature.</div><div>Throwing 250 weight oils in your diff without a cooler and hoping it does not blow up is just bandaid a to the real problem.</div><div>Do yourself a favour, mesure and monitor the temperature of your diff at your next event then look up the viscosity (Centistokes) of your oil at the maximum operating temperature your diff experianced. You will be amazed how thin your oil will be getting at high temperatures. Thick oils, EVEN 250 weight grease,will become thinner than water at extremely high temperatures.</div><div>A better option is to use a tempearture controlled oil pump to send the oil up to an oil cooler (As above) and keep the oil nice and thick ALL THE TIME.</div><div>In summary, a vehicle running a Diff Cooler with 75/90 Diff oil will have THICKER oil viscosity and better diff gear lubrication and protection from failure than a truck running 250 weight oil at high temperatures - simple.</div><div>Again - Follow the Flock, or make an Informed Decision and fix the problem.</div><div>Contact us | Subscribe | Tech Talk</div></div>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>COAST TO COAST - RUNNING DIFFS BACKWARDS OR UPSIDE DOWN</title><description><![CDATA[Do you ever drive your ULTRA 4 Rock Racer In Reverse? Are your Diffs Mounted Upside Down? What happens to your diffs in reverse? Are they as strong in both directions? Are some diffs stronger in reverse? Typical passenger vehicles, 4WDs', Suv's and Trucks all spend 99% of their life running in the forward direction and engineers go to great lengths to ensure the Differential Gears are the strongest, lightest, and most efficient when running in the Forward Direction. Differentials are designed to<img src="http://static.wixstatic.com/media/851d52_c36415ea688047b79cb20ac7ccb655f3.jpg"/>]]></description><link>https://www.proformance.com.au/single-post/2014/08/15/COAST-TO-COAST-RUNNING-DIFFS-BACKWARDS-OR-UPSIDE-DOWN</link><guid>https://www.proformance.com.au/single-post/2014/08/15/COAST-TO-COAST-RUNNING-DIFFS-BACKWARDS-OR-UPSIDE-DOWN</guid><pubDate>Fri, 15 Aug 2014 21:29:12 +0000</pubDate><content:encoded><![CDATA[<div><div>Do you ever drive your ULTRA 4 Rock Racer In Reverse?</div><div>Are your Diffs Mounted Upside Down?</div><div>What happens to your diffs in reverse?Are they as strong in both directions?Are some diffs stronger in reverse?</div><div>Typical passenger vehicles, 4WDs', Suv's and Trucks all spend 99% of their life running in the forward direction and engineers go to great lengths to ensure the Differential Gears are the strongest, lightest, and most efficient when running in the Forward Direction.</div><div>Differentials are designed to be strongest when driven in ONE direction. Differentials gears are typicaly Hypoid (Pinion is lower than the centre of the Ring Gear) or Amboid (Pinion is Higher than the centre of the Ring Gear) and the gears are cut in a direction to allow the pinion to be loaded correctly when the vehicle is driven in the forward.</div><div>For more than 50 years, competitors in all sorts of motorsport disciplines have known that a Ford 9 Inch (9&quot;) Diff gear is much stronger than other Diffs on the market. Much of the strength of the Ford 9&quot; Diff comes from it's unique gear profile where the Driven Side of the Ring Gear is almost &quot;Vertical&quot; compared to other diffs.</div><div>This is fantastic if you ONLY drive your vehilce forward all the time and if you have NOT mounted your diffs upside down. Ultra 4 Rock Racing, Rock Crawling and Rock Bouncing require competitors to drive BOTH forwards and backwards up incredibly difficuly rocky terrain at times in first gear low range under full throttle to be competitive.</div><div>ULTRA 4 Vehicles that have Mid or Rear Engines are forced to run their diffs upside down because the tailshaft is running completely backwards compared to a conventional vehicle. This results in the rear diff running on the WEAKEST, coast side for 99% of the time which is of course not ideal. The whole reason competitors install a $10,000, $20,000 or even $30,000 10 Inch Custom made Tubeworks, Spider Trax, Currie, Strange, or other brand of diff in an Ultra 4 Racer is to increase the reliability, but running them backwards, on the coast side is just silly.</div><div>The super low range transfer cases can place incredibly high loads on differentials, much much higher than can be found in Drag Racing, where the 9&quot; made it's claim to fame so we need to very careful when the vehicle is in reverse or when the diff is mounted upside down.</div><div>if you are looking for new diffs for your new vehicle or project and you will be applying heavy loads in reverse at ANY time, please consider diff gears that have a design and Gear Profile that is more suitable for being driven in Both the Forward and Reverse Direction. While the 9 inch and 10&quot; gears are great in One Direction, they can be much weaker than other diffs when driven in reverse.</div><div>If you are 100% convinced that a Mid Engine is for you, perpaps look into a Custom Transfer Case or Vee Drive that will reverse any tailshaft direction that is running the wrong way to ensure your diff is operaring on the Drive Side as much as possible.</div><div>If you cannot get all your tailshsfts to run in the correct direction to drive the Diff Gears on teh Coast Side all the time, then perhaps the 10&quot; gears are not for you. There are plenty of diff Gears such as DANA that have a more traditional Gear profile that has very similar Drive Side and Coast Side gear profiles, resulting in a diff that is almost as strong in the reverse direction as when it is being operated in the forward direction.</div><div>10&quot; Gears are great for Drag Racing, and Trophy Trucks when they are driven on the Drive Side, In the correct dorection ALL the time, but please be careful when selecting your next Diffs. </div><div>Dont just follow the flock and do what everyone else is doing:</div><div>StopThinkAsk yourself:Is this really correct?Are we creating another problem?Is this a &quot;band aid&quot; and not a real solution?Dont be a SheepDont follow the Flock!!!</div><div>If you need some advice, please contact us at Proformance and one of our Imagineers would be more than happy to talk to you about your concept vehicle, your driveline and concerns you may have.</div><div>Contact us | Subscribe | Tech Talk</div></div>]]></content:encoded></item></channel></rss>