My 427 SOHC Build..... Finally the time has come!

[cobracammer]

Called Strange (US Gear) this morning just to touch base.  The last photos he said are way off (0.032" shims).  He said def do not run that pattern.

He took a look at my first photos (the one exactly to the CD of 1.016" pinion depth) and said its REALLY close.  He would consider adding a 0.005" shim and adjusting backlash again.  I explained that I had done so all the way up to a 0.040" shim (trying backlashes from 0.008" all the way to 0.015" (which is out of spec)......just to see what effect it would have.  Nothing looked as "solid" as the first photos (even though they looked a bit to low on the tooth on the drive side).

He said to take it for a drive, only a few miles and listen for any noise.  As the gear set does not need a break in (Lightning series gears are manufactured so they do not need break in), if its going to make noise, it will do it right away.  if it does, then add 0.005" shim, adjust backlash and try again.  He said they way it looks now (0.015" shim), is the way competitive racers set them up for a mechanical advantage (low on the gear tooth). 

Either way, running it at this point is the only way to test. 

[cobracammer]

Took the car out and was able to get all the way up through 6th Gear (not thrashing it, just slowly working my way up in speed)....  Whine/ howl is gone!  Awesome!  Thank you all for your help with this!!

[BattlestarGalactic]

Good news!!

[Drew Pojedinec]

Awesome.

I wasn’t trying to brush you off with the “close enough is good enough” words.
It is true tho, use five different manufacturers parts and you get what ya get.

[cobracammer]

Thanks guys!  yea even Strange Tech people said its different for everyone based on your case and its machined surfaces.

Also, and I prob should have done this first ....  I wanted to make sure that my starrett depth micrometer was correct, and it turns out it was 0.003" off!  at 1 inch, it read 1.003".  So, when I measured from the parting line of the case to the lowest point in the bearing journal. and the measurement from the parting line to the pinion to get my pinion depth....... both were 0.003" off.

O well.  I have since calibrated the micrometer, and its dead nuts on the money (for the next time I use it!) .