'18 Spec Miata Cahmpionship

[mach1]

I do think this is going to hurt NASA at least with SM

[drecords]

I do think this is going to hurt NASA at least with SM

Agreed. It would be interesting if NASA went and bought 10 remanned axles from brands these guys claim to have bought and tear then down. If they find that some have these huge cages then maybe the guys with them have a leg to stand on... Idk, seems like it would be an interesting study to make everyone happier with the decisions ...

[ShadowBolt]

Okay so if it was an advantage or not does not matter but can you imagine how you would feel if it was a rebuilt unit from RockAuto and you drove your guts out and passed twenty cars to win 70 grand and it was taken away for this...….?
I don't have a dog in the fight but it sucks. I'm guessing this mod was done to get some kind of advantage. ten small mods like this may add up to a tenth a lap.

JJ

[drecords]

Agree Jerry...with remans I just don't know how you police it unless they expect every competitor to tear down his/her new axle and check the cage size before installing. Then again...Im also in the camp that thinks there was a perceived performance advantage to having bigger balls in the cars in question.

Okay so if it was an advantage or not does not matter but can you imagine how you would feel if it was a rebuilt unit from RockAuto and you drove your guts out and passed twenty cars to win 70 grand and it was taken away for this...….?
I don't have a dog in the fight but it sucks. I'm guessing this mod was done to get some kind of advantage. ten small mods like this may add up to a tenth a lap.

JJ

[Suck fumes]

I’ve known Haldeman for 10yrs and I can tell you for a FACT that he would never do anything intentionally to break the rules and I know that car he won with IS 100% legal and I’m sure he will win the SCCA sonoma runoffs coming up with the same car.

[RichardP]

I’ve known Haldeman for 10yrs and I can tell you for a FACT that he would never do anything intentionally to break the rules and I know that car he won with IS 100% legal and I’m sure he will win the SCCA sonoma runoffs coming up with the same car.

OK, I'm a horrible person. I was trying to keep my composure but the elephant in the corner kicked me in the shin and I lost it.


I don't know the players involved and try to keep all of my responses completely on the technical side. I'm not part of that world, I don't know him, and I certainly don't have any information that would bring into question the integrity of Haldeman. That said, I do have the slight feeling that, well... um... this statement might have a bit more veracity if it didn't come from someone who is currently banned from competing in CMC for falsifying a dyno sheet. Am I off base here??? :-)


"Dude, quit trying to help. You're making it worse..."


Richard P.

[Fbody383]

Then again...Im also in the camp that thinks there was a perceived performance advantage to having bigger balls in the cars in question.

You can't put bigger balls in the CV joint without having to remachine the inner and outer races. The question is does a bigger opening in the cage i) provide an advantage, ii) even if there is no advantage, can the cage itself be machined?

To me the real issue is that by not having a spec and allowing remanned axles it doesn't matter - it's trying to prove a negative. Can a competitor prove that no remanufacturer modifies the cages?

[ShadowBolt]

I wish someone would admit why they did the machining on the cages. It was done for some reason and it is either to make assembly easier or to make the car go faster......or maybe both.

I do understand how bigger balls would help you pass 20 cars and get to the front, but I digress.

JJ

[AllZWay]

I wish someone would admit why they did the machining on the cages. It was done for some reason and it is either to make assembly easier or to make the car go faster......or maybe both.

I do understand how bigger balls would help you pass 20 cars and get to the front, but I digress.

JJ

I would agree.. there is some reason the parts were made different. It could be a totally legit reason...but just explain why they differ.

[RichardP]

To me the real issue is that by not having a spec and allowing remanned axles it doesn't matter - it's trying to prove a negative. Can a competitor prove that no remanufacturer modifies the cages?

I do agree with this statement. On the other hand, why would a remanufacturer modify the cage like this? What would be the point of adding this expense to the process? Certainly the part is hot tanked to clean it up. Maybe after that it is bead blasted but I doubt it. If you were a higher end setup, you might dump them in an abrasive tumbler to deburr the part. For other remanufactured parts, there might be a push to change common failure points to reduce returns but I don't see that applying in this case. There is no logic case that I can see to set up a fixture on a mill or a grinder to machine this opening bigger or to have someone hand grind them. I don't see it improving the part for any normal use case. The axle would come pre-assembled and greased so the end user would never see if they made it look better or different. I certainly could be wrong but it fails the smells right test to me...


Richard P.