Hat's off to Jerry Gollnick

[George J.]

This post is a week late, but it's been a busy week back from California. I was at the Monterey Historic races (or whatever they're called, now) and ran into Jerry prepping his car for the upcoming race. We had a nice conversation and he couldn't have been more hospitable to a fellow NCRS member. Not only that, but he finished in the top ten of the race for his class. Thanks for adding to the day, and being a part of what makes the NCRS fun. Fun, like it should be.

George

[Jerry G.]

Re: Hat's off to Jerry Gollnick

This post is a week late, but it's been a busy week back from California. I was at the Monterey Historic races (or whatever they're called, now) and ran into Jerry prepping his car for the upcoming race. We had a nice conversation and he couldn't have been more hospitable to a fellow NCRS member. Not only that, but he finished in the top ten of the race for his class. Thanks for adding to the day, and being a part of what makes the NCRS fun. Fun, like it should be.

George

George Your very welcome. I really enjoy talking Corvettes with members. I straddle both worlds of NCRS. I have a Top flight 65 FI car and a 61 FI Big Brake car but the one I have the most fun with is the 64 FI road racer. Racing really tests every component of the car and the driver. My greatest fun this year has been figuring out how to get the performance/reliability ( cables are still breaking) out of the FI unit needed for vintage racing. I am a Corvette nerd that loves racing. Guys like Jim Lockwood, FI genius, have really helped make this a fun sport for me. Next year at Monterey is a celebration of 60 years of Corvette road racing. i'd like to see all you NCRS folks stop by and talk about our favorite subject. hope to see you there. Jerry

[George J.]

Re: Hat's off to Jerry Gollnick

Jerry,
I'm planning on being there. The 2002 event was incredible. It's just too bad that the NCRS couldn't schedule the National to coincide like last time. That was one great week.

George

[Clem Z.]

Re: Hat's off to Jerry Gollnick

George Your very welcome. I really enjoy talking Corvettes with members. I straddle both worlds of NCRS. I have a Top flight 65 FI car and a 61 FI Big Brake car but the one I have the most fun with is the 64 FI road racer. Racing really tests every component of the car and the driver. My greatest fun this year has been figuring out how to get the performance/reliability ( cables are still breaking) out of the FI unit needed for vintage racing. I am a Corvette nerd that loves racing. Guys like Jim Lockwood, FI genius, have really helped make this a fun sport for me. Next year at Monterey is a celebration of 60 years of Corvette road racing. i'd like to see all you NCRS folks stop by and talk about our favorite subject. hope to see you there. Jerry

jerry i would still look for a way to run that FI cable completely in rear gear oil to lube and cool it. since gasoline is not a good lube i would make sure that something in the pump is not causing a problem as it heats up like clearances tightening up

[John N.]

Re: Hat's off to Jerry Gollnick

Clem- Was the cable a problem when they ran the cars at Sebring for 12 hours? Are the increased revs that Jerry uses the problem?
Regards

[Rick G.]

Re: Hat's off to Jerry Gollnick

George,

I also had the pleasure of visiting with Jerry and his lovely wife on Friday at the track. Jerry was adjusting his valves at the time and we had a nice conversation about cars and friends in the NCRS. I could tell from the smile on Jerry that he was thoroughly enjoying the weekend. People like him and his wife are what has kept me around the NCRS for the last 30 years.


Rick Gower

This post is a week late, but it's been a busy week back from California. I was at the Monterey Historic races (or whatever they're called, now) and ran into Jerry prepping his car for the upcoming race. We had a nice conversation and he couldn't have been more hospitable to a fellow NCRS member. Not only that, but he finished in the top ten of the race for his class. Thanks for adding to the day, and being a part of what makes the NCRS fun. Fun, like it should be.

George

[Jerry G.]

Re: Hat's off to Jerry Gollnick

A couple of things, I am taking all bend out of the cable. I'm repining the distributor to allow a straight shot. It means I have to adjust the tack drive cable but I'm not worried about that one.Second, I had an engineering firm that specializes in friction reducing systems for gears look it over. It was within specs but since this is racing I had them treat the gears to further reduce friction and create a tiny bit more clearance to allow for thermal expansion. This would not have been a problem on a street car. Third, I don't think the cables we get today are as good as what was made in the day. I have no proof other than the damn things don't even last one track session and no one has found a problem with any component of the system. I am having cables made for me that will withstand the torque and have higher life cycles. Third an engineering firm that makes cable drive systems today said "do not run without the housing". It is an integral part of the support system for the cable drive and acts to dampen harmonics. I know street cars can run without housing and be fine. Racing tests everything to its limit, including my patience. I am happy to get into a deeper technical discussion on this if anyone is interested. Jerry

[Clem Z.]

Re: Hat's off to Jerry Gollnick

A couple of things, I am taking all bend out of the cable. I'm repining the distributor to allow a straight shot. It means I have to adjust the tack drive cable but I'm not worried about that one.Second, I had an engineering firm that specializes in friction reducing systems for gears look it over. It was within specs but since this is racing I had them treat the gears to further reduce friction and create a tiny bit more clearance to allow for thermal expansion. This would not have been a problem on a street car. Third, I don't think the cables we get today are as good as what was made in the day. I have no proof other than the damn things don't even last one track session and no one has found a problem with any component of the system. I am having cables made for me that will withstand the torque and have higher life cycles. Third an engineering firm that makes cable drive systems today said "do not run without the housing". It is an integral part of the support system for the cable drive and acts to dampen harmonics. I know street cars can run without housing and be fine. Racing tests everything to its limit, including my patience. I am happy to get into a deeper technical discussion on this if anyone is interested. Jerry

back in the day racers ran without the outer housing because the drive cables were breaking with the outer housing in place and it was a PIA to change it out on the race track. i do not know if any one ever determined the cables broke more often with or without the outer housing. the fact was the cable broke and the outer housing made them impossible to change during a race. i do not know if the cable are weaker now but they did break back in the day at the track

[Clem Z.]

Re: Hat's off to Jerry Gollnick

Clem- Was the cable a problem when they ran the cars at Sebring for 12 hours? Are the increased revs that Jerry uses the problem?
Regards

john i don't remember for sure if there was a problem at sebring but remember they don't run the cars hard,high RPMs in those endurance races.

[Clem Z.]

Re: Hat's off to Jerry Gollnick

A couple of things, I am taking all bend out of the cable. I'm repining the distributor to allow a straight shot. It means I have to adjust the tack drive cable but I'm not worried about that one.Second, I had an engineering firm that specializes in friction reducing systems for gears look it over. It was within specs but since this is racing I had them treat the gears to further reduce friction and create a tiny bit more clearance to allow for thermal expansion. This would not have been a problem on a street car. Third, I don't think the cables we get today are as good as what was made in the day. I have no proof other than the damn things don't even last one track session and no one has found a problem with any component of the system. I am having cables made for me that will withstand the torque and have higher life cycles. Third an engineering firm that makes cable drive systems today said "do not run without the housing". It is an integral part of the support system for the cable drive and acts to dampen harmonics. I know street cars can run without housing and be fine. Racing tests everything to its limit, including my patience. I am happy to get into a deeper technical discussion on this if anyone is interested. Jerry

jerry i would also make sure there is a very good fuel filter in place because any small piece of debris would cause the gears to bind and strain the drive cable.

[Jerry G.]

Re: Hat's off to Jerry Gollnick

I'm using a large 10 micron filter. Do you think thats adequate?

[Clem Z.]

Re: Hat's off to Jerry Gollnick

I'm using a large 10 micron filter. Do you think thats adequate?

jerry i am no filter expert so i can't answer that question. i would just make sure that no debris is getting into the pump. is the float bowl clean when you check it??

[John D.]

Re: Hat's off to Jerry Gollnick

Jerry, Last week at Corvette Carlisle a race car owner came to buy some cables and said he has drastically cut down on cable breakage on his 65 just buy adding Marvel Mystery Oil to his fuel. We only talked for two minutes because of the busy crowd. I told this fellow about your problem Jerry and he said he was eating up cables like crazy until an old retired racer told him of the MMO.
If a fellow was not a racer and just an everyday driver going the speed limit and broke cables all the time one would think he has hi-pressure pump issues.
I used to drive an FI car as a daily driver and ran the crap out of a fake 63 FI car for many years when I was in the restaurant business. In all those years I never once broke a cable. I use Dow Corning #44 grease but since it's difficult to buy I tell people "Any brand of disc brake wheel bearing grease" on the cables.
I always ran a drive cable housing as it gave the cable some strength-some guts.
When I was a kid on a pit crew old Doc Blatchley started his racing career with FI cars using the cable without the housing. But one day at the Connelsville Airport race his drive cable fell out and Doc was not too happy. So then we used just the short stub that goes into the distributor along with a 57 or 58 hex nut and that keep the cables from falling out and also permitted changing them quickly. I only remember the Grady Davis car breaking one cable.

For all your FI car owners not racing.
The Best drive cables to use are the ones that are the most flexible. If your cable is rigid right close to the stop then it's life is limited. And please carry one or two in the car. Grease it up like above and you should not have any problems. If your drive cable housing is kinked or your pump has issues expect the cable to break in short order. JD

[Clem Z.]

Re: Hat's off to Jerry Gollnick

Jerry, Last week at Corvette Carlisle a race car owner came to buy some cables and said he has drastically cut down on cable breakage on his 65 just buy adding Marvel Mystery Oil to his fuel. We only talked for two minutes because of the busy crowd. I told this fellow about your problem Jerry and he said he was eating up cables like crazy until an old retired racer told him of the MMO.
If a fellow was not a racer and just an everyday driver going the speed limit and broke cables all the time one would think he has hi-pressure pump issues.
I used to drive an FI car as a daily driver and ran the crap out of a fake 63 FI car for many years when I was in the restaurant business. In all those years I never once broke a cable. I use Dow Corning #44 grease but since it's difficult to buy I tell people "Any brand of disc brake wheel bearing grease" on the cables.
I always ran a drive cable housing as it gave the cable some strength-some guts.
When I was a kid on a pit crew old Doc Blatchley started his racing career with FI cars using the cable without the housing. But one day at the Connelsville Airport race his drive cable fell out and Doc was not too happy. So then we used just the short stub that goes into the distributor along with a 57 or 58 hex nut and that keep the cables from falling out and also permitted changing them quickly. I only remember the Grady Davis car breaking one cable.

For all your FI car owners not racing.
The Best drive cables to use are the ones that are the most flexible. If your cable is rigid right close to the stop then it's life is limited. And please carry one or two in the car. Grease it up like above and you should not have any problems. If your drive cable housing is kinked or your pump has issues expect the cable to break in short order. JD

the MMO to lube the pump might be a answer if it does not lower the octane of the racing gas. i would check with your race gas supplier to see what they say. jerry says he has his pump gears coated for friction reduction. when you run without the outer housing you have to use the part that threads onto the distributor to keep the cable in place. i would still check to see if the outer housing will hold rear end lube so the cable get lots of lube. you could do this by install the housing on a distributor,install a drive cable and with the outer housing pointing upward pour in some rear gear lube and see if it leaks out

[Jerry G.]

Re: Hat's off to Jerry Gollnick

I used Marvel mystery oil, no change. I soaked the cables in synthetic gear oil, no change. i used the dow grease, no change. I used the stub housing, no change. I used a more flexible cable, no change. THe pump was built by someone I consider the best in the business and it tested well within spec. I think it's either a cable quality/specification problem or an internal problem to the fuel meter that causes cavitation.( not likely). I am open to ALL ideas and i appreciate the old pros experience on this. I suspect there is something that is obvious that i am missing. Jerry