I just placed an order today for a 37" 1080p LCd from Westinghouse. $699! Sorry to those outside of NA.

It's on special from newegg untill the end of the year (today).

They have another 1080p screen for $799, also. I haven't been able to find known brands for prices like these.

Quote from The General Lee :

I have just one question...

What is Skeet?

Shooting sport using clay pigeons?

Should I know a different meaning?

I just wanted to post an update on my search. I've placed an order through newegg.com for a couple goodies.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ ... aspx?Item=N82E16883229003

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ ... aspx?Item=N82E16889234025

Needless to say, I can't wait. I should go check the front door.

Stang70Fastback, and Dennisjr13, thanks for your help and input.

Mike

Quote from PLAYLIFE :

DUDE, you need a cooler looking helmet !! :P I wouldn't be caught dead in an LFS server wearing that

Open face helmets are cool! I use one, and so should you. Dale Earnhardt is my hero. If I didn't wear glasses, I would also have the bubble goggles. Though, I would rather have a full face and HANs for safety's sake.

I have used the speedo before to gauge corner exit speed. I just look at the angle of the needle and compare to the lap before. The tach is just as easy to use, but the speedo is right in front of me.

Using the speedo to check top speed is ludicrous. That's usually about the time you ought to be trying to push the brake pedal through the floor boards.

22/7 is the new pi.



Oh, and the last number of pi is 'a'. Aparently, it jumps into a base '11' system after a while.

Quote from ajp71 :

Do we actually have a track with aggressive (if any) rumble strips though?

There are a few places in the game where my Momo shakes while hitting strips on track out.

I could think of a few places that could use more agressive curbs. Aston, Fern Bay, and Blackwood could use them, for example.

Quote from =C.R= Boomshanka :

urmmm

1)Clutch
2)Brake
3)blip
4)Shift down
5)Clutch out

thats how we do it anyhooo

Switch 1 and 2.

Leave it in gear while slowing. This is engine braking.

Even in a unmuffled race car, hitting rumble strips are frighteningly loud (and tingly on the back side).

To me, LFS sounds alright, but there are many more noises that occure on track that add to the experience. For instance, have a look and listen to this video: http://media.putfile.com/couple-of-laps-around-Summit-Point This video comes from my father's track videos. He has a few more from last season in his Putfile account. Listen for the kinds of things that LFS misses. Things like little stones and rubber bits hitting the underside of the car, curbs, and bumps. For reference, the mic is behind the driver's seat, tied to the roll bar. By the way, we do all wear a helmet and SFI rated gloves while racing online, right?

Mike

I love it!

Was hoping to hear the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies, though. The Benny Hill theme was spot on.

What part of this great nation might you hail from?

Quote from The General Lee :

Not unless it's a dutch oven

I'm aware of several definitions for "dutch oven". Half of me is LOL. The other is completely disgusted.

Thanks. That's what I'm looking for. The G25 is on my short list of future upgrades. My audio situation is being taken care of by my trusty home theater system. Here I thought I was going to be spending a huge chunk of change. I guess computers have really come down in price over the years. All my memories recall entry level packages of at least $1800. What a time we live in. lol

So your saying I could get a really nice monitor. ;-) I've had good luck with my Dell notebook circa 2003. I'm thinking I might try one of their XPS series desktops.

What do you think of this setup? Am I lacking in any department, or going overboard?
PROCESSOR........... Intel® Core™2 Q6600 Quad-Core (8MB L2 cache,2.4GHz,1066FSB)
OPERATING SYSTEM Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium with Digital Cable Support
MEMORY............... 3GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 800MHz - 4 DIMMs
HARD DRIVE.......... 320GB - 7200RPM, SATA 3.0Gb/s, 16MB Cache
OPTICAL DRIVE..... Single Drive: 16X CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) w/double layer write capability
MONITORS............ 24 inch E248WFP Entry Widescreen Digital Flat Panel Monitor
VIDEO CARD......... 512MB Nvidia GeForce 8800 GT
SOUND CARD......... Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio
TV TUNER & VIDEO. XCELERATOR ATI Theater 650 PRO Combo Analog/Digital TV Tuner with Remote Control
BLUETOOTH AND MEDIA READER Dell Bluetooth Wireless Media Hub + Bluetooth Keyboard/Mouse
KEYBOARD............ Keyboard included in Dell Bluetooth Package
MOUSE................ Mouse included in Dell Bluetooth Package
FLOPPY & MEDIA READER Dell Media Card Reader included in Dell Bluetooth Package
WI-FI AND MODEM. No Modem Requested


Looks like I might be able to start a G25 fund for when my Momo kicks the bucket.

Thany!

Hey guys!

I received some good news this morning that I will be starting a new job next month. This has given me the luxury of being able to purchase a new computer for personal and LFS use.

I am looking for a desktop and monitor that will give me a few years of use before needing any upgrades. As far a budget, I would like to spend less than $3k. I would pay a bit more for the ability to use the monitor to replace my television. Coming in under budget is also good. There are other places to spend my money. I have no real interest in putting my own computer together, so I would prefer an assembled PC.

All I would use the PC for is LFS, internet, office programs, a few DVDs or CDs. Obviously, my priority is LFS performance.

For the moment, I have been looking at Dell, Alienware, WidowPC, and a couple others. What should I be looking for, if it's possible at my price point. If there are other builders to be aware of, please post away.

Thanks,
Mike

For all the North Americans out there. You should be able to find cheap aluminum spacers through Mcmaster.com . I'm sure they will ship internationally, but who wants to spend more on shipping than the actual parts.

Have you tried switching keys around? When I was using a keyboard, I had:
gas: a
brake: z
shift up:s
shift down: x
steer: arrows

Are you able to use a different sprocket set? If one is available, you can use this method to trade low end torque for top speed.

Take the check to your bank and talk to a manager. Explain the situation and see what they can do for you. It sounds like you just got yourself some 'free' cash. I'm hoping that I have a check waiting for me when I get back home next week.

Take a look at the air filtration setup on the bike. I'm not even sure what type of filter or pre card ducting was used back then. You might be able to find a K&N replacement, or velocity stack and oiled foam.

Have you been able to do a compression test? Both dry and wet. If either fails to supply near stock numbers, your engine is never going to be what it could be. You can pick up a Craftsman kit that includes a guage and adapters for various sspark plug designs.

Any exhaust leaks, or intake leaks (moreso intake) can cause resitation on throttle tip in.

Does the engine still have its original ignition system? That could be a problem right there. We've got an old Snapper lawnmower that would die if you put too much load on it. A complete new ignition fixed her right up.

Quote from wheel4hummer :

That cost's more then $200, though. And, it doesn't alter the power band at all. Also the fact that it adds unnecessary weight.

I don't know why you bother saying that, because the part where you suggest the leaf blower removes all possible credibility (or lack thereof) from you're post. Suggesting nitrous doesn't exactly make you sound knowledgeable either.

And thank you Captain Bringdown. Honestly, unless you try something radical, or "stupid", like I have suggeested, you will likely not even notice a difference. $200 just isn't a reasonable budget for a performance build.

By the way. I'm curious to know just why you think I'm so full of crap.

Quote from DragonCommando :

As I've been reading and responding, I've been realizing how little anything free is going to do for power, I figured combining the spark timing adjustments and the modifications to the muffler I was going to do would be enough to change the torque curve, I don't want more power over all, I want to change where the power is.

Those bikes are usually pretty well optimized from the factory.

What you "could" do with a little money is nitrous. Pick up a small bottle and line from Ebay and plumb it into the air filter like a dry nitrous system. Tape the bottle to the handlebars, plumbed directly to the carb. Back off the timing and richen the mixture. Just be very careful to not melt a piston or burn up a valve.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors ... 92QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVW this is the real kit. All you really need is the tank, a few feet of braided line, a few zip ties and a roll of duct tape.

By the way. You could also attempt a leaf blower turbo. On small engines, it really does work. http://videos.streetfire.net/v ... 16d-9cfd-a1ad23ca9564.htm

Please don't come after me if you blow up the motor or warp into a parallel universe.

Quote from Niels Heusinkveld :

On powerfull cars and certain corners it can pay off to short shift; not for fuel use reasons.

Exiting a long corner can be benificial to do 'one gear too high' to avoid having to shift up halfway in the corner exit. The same situation can happen when there is a crest you go over or in general things are downhill. Often, the increased smoothness this gives you during acceleration gives you a speed advantage, even though you might have a bit more power at your disposal if you used a lower gear.

Short shifting can be an important tool for learning smooth driving; you'd be surprised how quick one can be even when half the time you think you should drop a gear. Short shifting calms the car down, and you don't want too many attitude changes.

It is actually one of the areas where often a simracer differs from a real driver; the overdriving we can get away with in a sim isn't so easy in real life, physically and wear/tear wise.

Exactly. I do this all the time. Before the uphill esses at the Glen or VIR, I will upshift so that I can run through the turns in one gear. Otherwise I have a choice. Shift at an apex, or in transition:twirl:. Neither too attractive.

I run HPDE events in a street legal Taurus SHO. Track events like the ones that I attend are the main income source for most tracks. Most track have at least one event scheduled per week. http://www.screaminsho.com/What_is_ScreaminSHO.html It drives a lot like an FXO with slicks. Pretty much point and shoot.


I welcome the influx of foreign talent. Everyone should expect at least a couple years of training before having a realistic chance of championship.

Speaking of one-off Nascar appearances. Remember back in the early nineties when Little Al ran Daytona. All was going fine untill he got in front of Dale Earnhardt. That was a good day.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0UXn5lJYsw0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zuuxe4Wnk_w (the races in this one spawned the concept of roof flaps)

Another reason to short shift is mechanical issues. I had a clutch going bad this past summer at Watkins Glen. I was trying to push too many revs through a stock clutch. After a couple laps, enough heat had built up so that it would slip over 6500 rpm. That's not so good when my engine setup makes power past 7500. Upon tearing the thing apart, I found that the clutch fingers were twisted and at different heights. I can't wait to go back next summer.

As far as how short shifting saves fuel. Consider two Nascar stock cars. One shifted at 9000 rpms, another at 8000. Each engine has 4 explosions per crankshaft revolution (4 cycle process, each cylinder fires every other up stroke). First car, by way of running fewer average rpms, will have fewer power strokes over the course of a lap.

JPM will learn stuff like this over time. He IS a world class driver. He's doing a good job of proving the legitimacy of Nascar, though. I'd like to see Schumi come over and prove that he is just as good as the legendary drives of the old days that would run all the big races. Hell, I'll even accept a run in the 24hr Daytona race.

M. Schumacher, B. Said, S. Bourdais, T. Stewart Four skilled racers, four unique characters. Hey, it could happen!

A while ago, someone posted a package of sets that were designed to be easy to drive. Perhaps they still show up here on the forum.