[Chevy454]

I stayed away from this one as long as I could...

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P.S. The only reason you guys have your dog dish skinny bias ply Copo's/Zl-1's etc running so fast in the Pure Stock drags is that every mechanical part on the car has been massaged to death. A stock Zl-1 pulled off the line in '69 would run 1 to 1 1/2 seconds slower than what these cars are running today.... even with Harrell driving.

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The Phase III car should slaughter a stock Yenko/COPO car...Joel had the advantage of learning from every car he built what each combo liked and what did/didn't work, and could transfer that info to whatever car he was building that day. His combos HAD to work (and they did), or else his 11.50 guarantee wouldn't hold water. This guarantee was with an approved driver, so the driver is semi-important.

BUT, assuming that because someone can grab their credit card and a Summit catalog, and give their car the "Ricky Racer" treatment (headers/cam/slicks) doesn't guarantee that particular car will even get out of it's own way...that's as true today as it was back then. I know a V-8 Vega and a V-8 S-10, both with the slick/header/cam treatment, that are still wondering why a certain yellow car with skinny tires out ran them.

And assuming "every mechanical part" on a Pure Stock car "has been massaged to death" sounds like the battle cry of the "header-dependant" crowd. These aren't NHRA super stock cars we're talking about. Massaged? No. Have the owners paid attention to the details (jetting, timing, etc.)? You're DARN RIGHT they have. But unfortunately, a LOT of so called "racers" skip the simple and most basic stuff (timing, jetting, etc.) in favor or the more glamorous things (big cam, hood scoop, headers, etc.). Yet those simpler, less glamorous details are the basis for every powerplant on the face of the earth.

Now, about the times the "stock" cars ran back in the day...ever read any old SS&DI magazines?