142 replies to this topic

[Eddie Fleming]

2b. Bodies cannot be trimmed above the lower door lines. The area to the rear of the rear wheel well shall be trimmed in a single straight line extending from the lower rear edge of the rear wheel opening rearward to the lower rear edge of the body (I.e. rear bumper). The lower rear edge of the body shall be horizontally even with the centerline of the rear axle.

The conversation we had yesterday made no sense to me. Why would you be required to trim the bumper off the body. I can see a rule for you can not trim the rear above the axle height, but It all just made no sense. 

 

So I looked at what the clarification above said for a long time and i now read it as saying

 

The lower rear edge of the body (the bumper) shall be horizontally even with the rear axle. that means it can not be higher on the left than the right. It does not say it must be at axle height vertically (distance off the block) So the body I trimmed in post 124 is probably not legal any longer because I cut the bumper off. The rear of the body is not required to be .405  high it is required to be level left to right.

 

This reading of the rule also makes Noose's statement about following the trim line make sense. 

[Clyde Romero]

Wow this has gotten a lot more press lately.

Here is my take on this, everyone knows what body manufacturers are making the suspect stock  car bodies.

Just eliminate that manufacturer. 
This would cut down on a lot of this body thickness issue. 
If this doesn’t fix itself guys will stop racing stock cars ! 
 

Clyde 

[Hot Slots]

Wow this has gotten a lot more press lately.
Here is my take on this, everyone knows what body manufacturers are making the suspect stock  car bodies.
Just eliminate that manufacturer. 
This would cut down on a lot of this body thickness issue. 
If this doesnt fix itself guys will stop racing stock cars ! 
 
Clyde 

What manufacturers?

[Danny Zona]

What manufacturers?

[Noose]

The manufacturer make anything they want as long as they don’t say IRRA approved and use a different part number.

I teched 21 today and all but one passed.

[Jay Guard]

The conversation we had yesterday made no sense to me. Why would you be required to trim the bumper off the body. I can see a rule for you can not trim the rear above the axle height, but It all just made no sense. 
 
So I looked at what the clarification above said for a long time and i now read it as saying
 
The lower rear edge of the body (the bumper) shall be horizontally even with the rear axle. that means it can not be higher on the left than the right. It does not say it must be at axle height vertically (distance off the block) So the body I trimmed in post 124 is probably not legal any longer because I cut the bumper off. The rear of the body is not required to be .405  high it is required to be level left to right.
 
This reading of the rule also makes Noose's statement about following the trim line make sense.

Eddie:

I think you are trying too hard to read something into this that is not intended. Horizontally even means to me it must be at the same height left to right AND at the same height as the axle centerline. The fact that I mentioned that rear section of the body as the "bumper" was again trying to indicate the lower rear portion of the body. If you had mounted your body a bit higher there might still be some actual bumper remaining when following the new rule but we are not saying that you need an actual bumper.  In fact some of the Stock Car bodies don't even have defined rear bumpers.  What we were trying to preclude is to have the rear of the body nearly scraping the ground or to be cut out entirely.
 
In your case the body is just fine if the rear is level left to right and at the same height as the axle centerline, which it appears to be, bumper or no bumper.

[JBProducts]

I find it funny that RTR was pointed out as a suspect manufacturer while producing some of the highest quality and most consistent bodies out their. Have you seen anyone get bounced from tech with a RTR Stockcar body?  

[Danny Zona]

I doubt any .010" bodies did.

We both know that a couple RF thin bodies passed tech at the 2021 Fall Brawl.

I'm just pointing out to Clyde that all types of thin Stock Car bodies are out there.

The updated rule change has ended it.

[JBProducts]

That was back in 2021, the bodies in 2022-24 have been more consistent as far as legality is concerned. When bodies are being modified in a different fashion other then just being to thin all around, then that is a problem.

[Danny Zona]

That was back in 2021, the bodies in 2022-2024 have been more consistent as far as legality is concerned. When bodies are being modified in a different fashion other then just being to thin all around then that is a problem.

 

I assume it won't be a problem with the updated rule.

[Alan Draht]

Thanks to Jay Guard and to everyone else on this forum who posted photos of their IRRA stock car bodies and provided detailed explanations of their interpretations of and approaches to implementing the current rules governing how the bodies should be trimmed and mounted on the chassis.

[Alan Draht]

I've only attended and participated in one "Premier" IRRA race series in my life:  the November 2023 Fall Brawl at Speedzone in Mt. Holly, NJ.

 

I was the slowest racer in attendance, but the experience was thoroughly enjoyable and I learned a lot.

 

*********************************************************************************************************************************

 

Only after carefully reading Noose's race reports and talking to a few of the more experienced racers after the event did I come to realize that I was handicapped in a number of important ways.

 

For starters, I was using the wrong resistor network in my DiFalco controller (way too fast), and in all the excitement of racing, I forgot that I actually had a slower network in my box which would have made driving smoother and easier. 

 

I have since ordered a selection of slower resistor networks for my controller, but haven't used any of them yet, nor have I practiced at all since the Fall Brawl to experiment with and learn how to adjust and calibrate my Difalco controller properly for Retro racing.

 

So under the heading of "You don't know what you don't know", lack of experience and practice was my most significant handicap at the Fall Brawl.

 

My controller issues came in second in importance.

[Alan Draht]

Handicap no. 3:   After reading Noose's Fall Brawl race reports I came to realize that all of my cars were undergeared compared with the event's podium finishers.

[Alan Draht]

Tech went fine through the Fall Brawl race series until I took my GT coupe to be inspected.

 

It weighed 113 grams at home and at the track using my cheap Amazon no-name pocket scale.  But to my surprise, on Noose's scale it only weighed 109 grams.

 

I added weight to the car and after two more tries it finally passed tech.

 

What I learned from this incident is that doesn't matter what your pocket scale reads.  What matters is what the IRRA tech inspector's pocket scale reads.  I asked Noose what brand/ model pocket scale he uses.  It's a Cen-Tech brand digital pocket scale.

 

When I got home I ordered the same Cen-Tech pocket scale.  I compared the two scales, the Amazon no-name scale with the Cen-Tech scale.

 

I discovered that on my Amazon scale a 1.00 gram lead weight weighs 1.03 grams.  On the Cen-Tech scale a 1.00 gram weight weighs 1.00 gram.

 

That is why my 113.4 gram GT coupe car weighed only 109 grams on Noose's scale.  1.03 X 110 grams = 113.3 grams.  My no-name scale is off by 3%.

 

After that discovery I gave my inaccurate Amazon pocket scale to my 2 year old grandson to play with.

[Alan Draht]

There are no "Premier" IRRA Retro races in the Chicagoland area. In fact, there are precious few, if any, Retro races whatsoever at Chicago's local tracks.

 

So for me, strict adherence to IRRA Retro tech rules only applies to the single Premier IRRA Retro race I hope to attend again this year, the 2024 Fall Brawl, which I'm totally fine with.

 

Maybe I'll try to attend a couple of other Premier Retro East races on the East coast later this year, too.  It depends, but whether or not I do, my cars will comply fully with IRRA rules.

 

That said, when it comes to IRRA Stock Car body rules, I have mixed feelings.

[Alan Draht]

When the thin Stock Car body controversy erupted this year, I read everything I could about it.

 

I purchased the IRRA-approved caliper jaw extension tool set sold on Amazon for $20 and a cheapish $20 digital caliper on which to mount the extensions. In other words, I replicated the special tech tool IRRA inspectors will be using to check Stock Car bodies (and other Retro class bodies as well, I suppose) for thickness rules compliance at Premier events.

 

So I spent $40 to create a dedicated "Retro body thickness checking tool" that I'll only use a few times the rest of my life.

 

Out of curiosity I tried checking roof thicknesses on a few uncut, unpainted Red Fox stock car bodies in my stash. In my opinion the Amazon caliper jaw extenders need to be lengthened to get accurate, consistent readings. More work.

 

At that point I said "smack it," this is silly.  

 

So I returned the caliper jaw-extender tool set and the extra set of digital calipers to Amazon for a refund.

 

I'll skip knowing things beforehand and take my chances at the race track with passing Stock Car body thickness tech inspections.

[slotcarone]

Alan, just wanted to correct something in your post.

 

The IRRA does not sanction any races. There are Premier races run using the IRRA rules. And other racing series run using IRRA rules, such as Retro East.

[Mark Onofri]

Seems pretty cut and dry. Excellent job by the bOdy on clarifying some grey areas.
I'm sorry if I can't completely comprehend the amount of time spent on the roof/body thickness. Is it REALLY going to make that much of a difference? Personally, IDGAF! With the amount of paint I use, I wouldn't be surprised if they have a maximum!!!
Thanks everyone for taking the time to start a new (great) series.