Shift... Air or Electric???

[Freddie]

I am setting up our first Dragster and wandering what everyone is running. Air or electric for shifter, and why..

I will also be adding a throttle stop eventually for S/C racing...

And one last question... is a SLE needed for a small block dragster? should run low 8's

car is a 235 Mullis double slip with a small block(for now)...

Thanks..

[Floyd Staggs]

I sure like air. I've seen electric selenoids go up in smoke.
Just have to remember to turn on the bottle.

[astikhossw]

also if you use a co2 throttle stop you may need to get two bottles, because the stop solonoid bleeds a little air continous so in case you forget to shut off the bottle it will be empty pretty quick.I am going back to electric throttle stop and keep the air shifter.

[Carl Juliano]

Been shifting both my cars by electric..... Top Sportsman, and our S/G car. No problems with the solonoid "burning up", have the same Biondo 'Noid in the S/G car for at least 10yrs. Its one less thing to rely on the CO2 bottle. And you MUST shut the bottle off after every pass, I dont care how good you think your connections are, better safe than sorry.

[Carl Juliano]

Originally Posted by astikhossw

also if you use a co2 throttle stop you may need to get two bottles, because the stop solonoid bleeds a little air continous so in case you forget to shut off the bottle it will be empty pretty quick.I am going back to electric throttle stop and keep the air shifter.

Big mistake, imo.......you have it backwards, you want an air TS, for more precise control of the car coming on and off the stop. You have limited or no adjustment with an electric stop. If the car starts spinning the tire coming off the stop,you'll be sorry you have an electric stop. Just my .02

[63corvette]

Originally Posted by astikhossw

also if you use a co2 throttle stop you may need to get two bottles, because the stop solonoid bleeds a little air continous so in case you forget to shut off the bottle it will be empty pretty quick.I am going back to electric throttle stop and keep the air shifter.

If your system bleeds down you have a hardware issue.
I have used both Electric and CO2 over the years and the CO2 is less maintenance and you do not have to worry about burning yourself on the electric solenoid when it is energized.
I use a CO2 stop and shifter currently and leave my bottle on all day with no issues. I have left it on for a week or so before and did not empty the bottle.
I use a 2 lb bottle and fill it once a year and I race a lot plus each time you back up it triggers the system and it operates.
I also agree the CO2 allows you to adjust how quickly the stop comes on and then comes back to full power which is a must if you have a high horsepower operation.
Just My 2 Cents

[Bob Verwold]

I agree with 63 vette completely...........The only thing I would recommend is the auto-shutoff solenoid that is wired into the ignition. When the ignition is off the bottle is off, kinda hard to mess that up............

[Chris Williams]

CO2 all the way. It's the only way to insure that you come off the stop smoothly, a lot of tracks we race at couldn't handle it if we "slammed it wide open". And who needs yet another drain on the battery?

If you have a leak, you have a problem (buy one of those bottles of suds and find it). We also use the Dedenbear switch tied into the ignition, that stops it for good. We turn the bottle on in the morning, off at night.