Any other CSX 4000 owners on SAAC?

[mickmate]

I have 4772 rebuilt and rebodied after the first owner took an exciting ride. He wasn't wearing shoulder straps luckily for him as he managed to get inside the car as it flattened the roll bar and screen. That certainly saved his life as wearing them would have held him up in harms way. I won't let a passenger, with no roll bar on their side, wear shoulder straps for that reason. Check your battery tray mounting if it's behind the passenger seat. I have seen them screwed to fiberglass floors without even a fender washer behind them never mind a plate or frame mount. The batteries came loose and knocked him out. While we are talking about roll bars the originals had the rear brace mount attached with six 1/4" screws in to nut serts. That meant the trunk tube was a lot stronger as it wasn't drilled all the way through with large by huge fasteners. The oversized through bolts then get over tightened crushing the tube making it even weaker. As for chroming a welded fabricated roll bar look up hydrogen embrittlement. Another thing original comp cars used was the bracket that ties the long unsupported leg of the roll bar hoop in to the frame. That makes them a lot stronger. http://actoncobra.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=53&products_id=186 Shoulder straps are relative to shoulder height and also angle to your spine. I have found a good height for us guys that have shorter legs and longer bodies than the other half can install a belt bar just under the rear cowl and it is a good height and angle. On the 4000/6000 cars with the rear hoop that can be a good height for wrapping shoulder straps. PSA over for the night, take a look at your cars and see if they suffer any of these issues.

[CSX 4133]

Thanks Nick for these mentions, I know already I have the Roll Bar supports, but I will check the underside of my battery tray for the added reinforcement.

[CSX 4133]

I have CSX 4322, the body is by Kirkham, engine is opened up to 510. The Billboards have been replaced with Avons, they're not as dramatic looking, but I was concerned about driving on the Billboards with over 600 HP.

I'm curious, have you found the Avon's to be stickier. It has been mentioned that Avon's might flick more road debris and I'm curious what your experience might be. My clear bra spats don't need additional testing.

[Shelbylover]

I like the ride of the Avons much better.  They don't flat spot, and they don't loose air after a few weeks of sitting. I found the Billboards picked up lots more debris, not much with the Avons.  When the Avons warm up, they stick real well, too.

[CSX 4133]

Ok, thanks for the feedback Shelbylover.   

[mickmate]

I agree with Shelbylover the Avons perform proportionately to their price. They are a soft compound radial tire that handles grips and works well on a Cobra. I would advise you to have a good wheel alignment on the car as because they are soft they will wear really fast if they're not pointing in the right direction. I have collected some info and added my own notes and experience on wheel alignment specs if anyone needs it. I like the Billboards too but they are a light weight bias ply old school race tire. I recommend a lot of caster with them to help with the hunting and darting they tend to do. I have also found the Billboards are more inclined to flat spot if they are older. An easy way to deal with that is roll the car back a foot one week roll it forward two the next so it doesn't sit on one spot. Of course even better is drive it a couple of times a week 

[CSX 4133]

My alignment spec's with the Goodyears. Tire pressure, Front: 32#, rear 30#.

Front:
Toe: 1/8"

Camber: 1/2 degree negative

Castor: 4 degrees positive

Rear
Toe: 1/4" in

Camber:  1/2"  degree negative

Castor:  6 degrees positive


For long term flat stop prevention I use Race Ramps "Flatstoppers",  rigid foam ramps underneath the tires.

[CSX 4133]

A cheaper alternative to "Flatstoppers" is to buy some two inch thick styrofoam squares and put them underneath your tires.
I've used this method on several cars and it works well and saves some $'s.

[cobramike]

Back to the original question, I own CSX4836, I bought it used in 2010 with 250 miles (I posted pictures in an earlier thread in the same section), and CSX7080 which I ordered new and had delivered last year. It was finished by Jim Cowles and Jesse Bordeaux at Shelby Parts and Restoration. It was at the SAAC convention last year at Indy. . I have the Goodyear billboards on both, but I really like the look of the Avons made to look like Goodyear Blue Streak (I think that's what they are called) tires. Who is the supplier for those tires as seen in the picture in the gallery? I looked at both Sasco Motorsports and the Roger Krause sites and didn't see those specific tires. Thanks in advance for your help.

Mike McGinley

[CSX 4133]

Cobramike are these the tires?

http://vintagewheelsus.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=357

[cobramike]

Thanks Steven for the link, and those are the Blue Streak tires, something I might want. What I was actually referring to are the tires in this picture
http://www.saacforum.com/index.php?action=gallery;sa=view;id=991
Posted by CSX2259. I saw a car like this at the SAAC convention in Indy (it may have been the same car). I asked where he got them and he said he had them made. I'll reach out to him via PM and see what I can find out. Thanks for taking all the time to share info on the CSX Continuation cars.

Mike McGinley

[CSX 4133]

Ok Mike. There are places you can order the appropriate font in rubber or stickers to put whatever branding you wish on tires.
The rubber type are permanent, while the stickers are temporary. I've given some thought to doing something similar with a set of Avon tires myself.

https://www.tirestickers.com

http://www.tredwear.com

[2112]

http://www.saacforum.com/index.php?topic=744.msg5106#msg5106

[cobramike]

Thank you. I know I'd seen the thread previously, but couldn't recall where. I appreciate the help.

Mike McGinley

[CSX2259]

The tires in the link above are made by our shop. We can use most any tire brand as our starting point and can change the appearance to simulate the Goodyear Blue Streaks or most other brands from the period.
We also reproduce Cobra specific restoration parts as well as complete restorations.
The 427 Cobra in the link above was recently completed for a client in Monterey / Palm Springs, Ca. It has not been to a SAAC event yet.
Unfortunately this forum does not have a user friendly photo uploaded or I would post more photos.