I want to go Stocker Racing

LIGOOMBA · 09-16-2013, 01:52 PM

I've been lurking for a bit,and just got the nerve to join and start posting!
I've been hooked on the Stocker Class for a few months now.After walking around Z Max this weekend and watching them ,I'm hooked.
A bit about myself before I get smashed, cause I usually go on YB!!I bracket raced for a bit in the 90s and got out of it.I own. 1972 Chevelle ,back halved with a 565 in it.Due to family life and my career I put it on hold.I just retired and we moved down here last October from L.I. NY.Another reason that I stayed away from racing is the haul to any track took for ever.Im just finishing up a shop at my house.My plan is to finish my car and sell it.As per wife I can only have
one race car !! I don't blame her.
I was leaning towards a mid 12 sec class,J/S or K/S class to start out with.I met some cool/ super smart guys with some great info at the track.I am not gonna build a car from scratch.I most likely will purchase someone's unfinished project I worked in a restoration shop for about 15 years so I know a few things.
I'm leaning towards Nova's 66-70 right now with a small block.
Like I said I'm new to this so don't bash me.Sorry for the long winded story.

cicero819 · 09-16-2013, 03:45 PM

I just want to wish you good luck and to enjoy your retirement with your new project. Did you consider using your 72 Chevelle, just weld in a back floor and voila you're back in business. Big Block with a 4 speed would be nice. Have fun and don't be afraid to ask for help, there is quite of bit of experience on this forum and a lot of qualified racer to aim you in the right direction. Claude Ruel

LIGOOMBA · 09-16-2013, 06:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cicero819

I just want to wish you good luck and to enjoy your retirement with your new project. Did you consider using your 72 Chevelle, just weld in a back floor and voila you're back in business. Big Block with a 4 speed would be nice. Have fun and don't be afraid to ask for help, there is quite of bit of experience on this forum and a lot of qualified racer to aim you in the right direction. Claude Ruel

Thank you appreciate it ! We love it down here !
It's way to far gone!
My bad/ stupidity took over as usual!
It's all fiberglass but the quarters,I had the itch to go 8.50 racing which is a class that they ran up at E-Town is when this brilliant idea to cut it up came to me .
I want to start doing the research before I pull the trigger on it.
The guys I spoke to were real down to earth,cars were immaculate ! They also said to go on this site,lots of good guys and help.
I will be asking questions soon !

Alan Roehrich · 09-16-2013, 07:41 PM

I suggest you buy rather than build. Yes, the 66-67 Chevy II and the 68-72 Nova have good small block combinations. There are a couple of nice cars for sale. Not cheap, mind you, but priced fair, and already fairly well dialed in.

HR9121 · 09-16-2013, 07:50 PM

Welcome to north Carolina first of all. As Allan suggested I would buy one already set up. I guess I am not the best one to give this advice since I went the other direction but you might notice I wasn't on the q sheet at Charlotte. I am 10 months deep in mine and still a few months away. There is some satisfaction to doing your own car though, good luck either way.

09-16-2013, 07:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HR9121

Welcome to north Carolina first of all. As Allan suggested I would buy one already set up. I guess I am not the best one to give this advice since I went the other direction but you might notice I wasn't on the q sheet at Charlotte. I am 10 months deep in mine and still a few months away. There is some satisfaction to doing your own car though, good luck either way.

Another vote for buying one. If you can swing it there are always competitive, well-built, nice cars in the $25K range that couldn't be built for close to that. Of course, as a lot of us do, it's financially easier to pay as you go and build a little here and there over time.

Either way good luck. Before Dan jumps in here IHRA Pure Stock is a nice entry level platform and you could get your feet wet since you're in IHRA country there. Plenty of close races for you. And when you had the funds you could go NHRA racing too.

Keep us updated. You won't find a nicer group of men to women to hang out with.

Richard Grant · 09-16-2013, 08:00 PM

Alan has a good suggestion. You may think that you can build cheaper than buy. That would be wrong. You don't know what you don't know. By the time you build a stocker and make all the mistakes your bound to make and by the time you finally get the stocker just "right" you will realize that it would have been cheaper, easier and quicker to just buy a ready built car. Chose one from a established racer so you can know it was built and sorted right. Chose a car that can win a headsup race and qualify in the top half of the field. Trust me it's no fun to get out run heads up or be in the bottom of the field. Come on in. You'll meet some of the greatest people in the world and have so much fun you'll never regret your decsion.

Lee Valentine · 09-17-2013, 09:03 AM

Contact Rowe Racing in Brigeton, N.C. They will steer you in the right direction, can't find better people to deal with. They might have or know of a good car.

rognelson777 · 09-17-2013, 10:02 AM

questions to ask yourself when Choosing a combo. Keep in mind what is most important to you, Do you want to go to the races and have fun and maybe win a round or two? Do you want to Win class? Do you want to win rounds in eliminations? The reason I say this is to influence your building/buying decision. Eliminations have heads up and dial in racing involved, so if you want to go rounds in eliminations build a fast consistent car, A thru G, as in bracket racing it is easier to chase and 1st redlight looses.

The reason I bring this up, is once you are hooked on class racing, you will have fun from the beginning, but then you will want to win so consider all your options.

A good source of info is Nitro Joes Stats, he is a member on here, contact him thru this website. He has the list for the fastest times for each car and combo per class, this may help your decision. It will also show you which combo dominates a class. Just to give you a idea of what is out there, K/stock had 9 stick shift cars last year nationally and the fastest was a 283 66 nova that ran 1 second under the 12.55 index. only 2 ran .90 under or better

K/stock automatic had 51 cars nationally and 14 ran .90 under or better
The fastest was a 1989 firebird with a 350

Good luck and hope this helps

impstocker · 09-17-2013, 11:06 AM

Personally I enjoy building my own car, lots of self satisfaction when done, then you run under the index! Cool. But the reality is when i built my 68 Impala I spent up to 20K on parts and machine work anyway, this is with a lot of free help from friends who owned machine shop. (Jimi Vignogna and his dad, Pat Hennebery did my heads) I did get all the "good" stuff, probaly overdid some stuff. The reason I am building this 65 Impala now is only because of all the parts I already have.

Just my 2 cents

Will Lamprecht
65 Imp

09-16-2013, 01:52 PM	#1
LIGOOMBA Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2013 Location: Matthews NC Posts: 12 Likes: 0 Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts	I want to go Stocker Racing I've been lurking for a bit,and just got the nerve to join and start posting! I've been hooked on the Stocker Class for a few months now.After walking around Z Max this weekend and watching them ,I'm hooked. A bit about myself before I get smashed, cause I usually go on YB!!I bracket raced for a bit in the 90s and got out of it.I own. 1972 Chevelle ,back halved with a 565 in it.Due to family life and my career I put it on hold.I just retired and we moved down here last October from L.I. NY.Another reason that I stayed away from racing is the haul to any track took for ever.Im just finishing up a shop at my house.My plan is to finish my car and sell it.As per wife I can only have one race car !! I don't blame her. I was leaning towards a mid 12 sec class,J/S or K/S class to start out with.I met some cool/ super smart guys with some great info at the track.I am not gonna build a car from scratch.I most likely will purchase someone's unfinished project I worked in a restoration shop for about 15 years so I know a few things. I'm leaning towards Nova's 66-70 right now with a small block. Like I said I'm new to this so don't bash me.Sorry for the long winded story.

09-16-2013, 03:45 PM	#2
cicero819 VIP Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Aylmer Quebec, Canada Posts: 1,086 Likes: 31 Liked 69 Times in 30 Posts	Re: I want to go Stocker Racing I just want to wish you good luck and to enjoy your retirement with your new project. Did you consider using your 72 Chevelle, just weld in a back floor and voila you're back in business. Big Block with a 4 speed would be nice. Have fun and don't be afraid to ask for help, there is quite of bit of experience on this forum and a lot of qualified racer to aim you in the right direction. Claude Ruel

09-16-2013, 07:41 PM	#4
Alan Roehrich Veteran Member Join Date: May 2006 Location: Murfreesboro TN Posts: 5,105 Likes: 1,564 Liked 1,789 Times in 408 Posts	Re: I want to go Stocker Racing I suggest you buy rather than build. Yes, the 66-67 Chevy II and the 68-72 Nova have good small block combinations. There are a couple of nice cars for sale. Not cheap, mind you, but priced fair, and already fairly well dialed in. __________________ Alan Roehrich 212A G/S

09-16-2013, 07:50 PM	#5
HR9121 Live Reporter Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: New Bern, NC Posts: 3,467 Likes: 146 Liked 3,363 Times in 731 Posts	Re: I want to go Stocker Racing Welcome to north Carolina first of all. As Allan suggested I would buy one already set up. I guess I am not the best one to give this advice since I went the other direction but you might notice I wasn't on the q sheet at Charlotte. I am 10 months deep in mine and still a few months away. There is some satisfaction to doing your own car though, good luck either way. __________________ James Williamson W200 J/SA. SS/JA

09-16-2013, 08:00 PM	#7
Richard Grant Member Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: West Monroe, La. Posts: 301 Likes: 9 Liked 13 Times in 7 Posts	Re: I want to go Stocker Racing Alan has a good suggestion. You may think that you can build cheaper than buy. That would be wrong. You don't know what you don't know. By the time you build a stocker and make all the mistakes your bound to make and by the time you finally get the stocker just "right" you will realize that it would have been cheaper, easier and quicker to just buy a ready built car. Chose one from a established racer so you can know it was built and sorted right. Chose a car that can win a headsup race and qualify in the top half of the field. Trust me it's no fun to get out run heads up or be in the bottom of the field. Come on in. You'll meet some of the greatest people in the world and have so much fun you'll never regret your decsion. __________________ Richard Grant 4988 STK

09-17-2013, 09:03 AM	#8
Lee Valentine Senior Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Brookfield, CT Posts: 708 Likes: 13 Liked 319 Times in 68 Posts	Re: I want to go Stocker Racing Contact Rowe Racing in Brigeton, N.C. They will steer you in the right direction, can't find better people to deal with. They might have or know of a good car. __________________ Lee Valentine 1661 STK

09-17-2013, 10:02 AM	#9
rognelson777 Member Join Date: Dec 2010 Posts: 376 Likes: 20 Liked 135 Times in 74 Posts	Re: I want to go Stocker Racing questions to ask yourself when Choosing a combo. Keep in mind what is most important to you, Do you want to go to the races and have fun and maybe win a round or two? Do you want to Win class? Do you want to win rounds in eliminations? The reason I say this is to influence your building/buying decision. Eliminations have heads up and dial in racing involved, so if you want to go rounds in eliminations build a fast consistent car, A thru G, as in bracket racing it is easier to chase and 1st redlight looses. The reason I bring this up, is once you are hooked on class racing, you will have fun from the beginning, but then you will want to win so consider all your options. A good source of info is Nitro Joes Stats, he is a member on here, contact him thru this website. He has the list for the fastest times for each car and combo per class, this may help your decision. It will also show you which combo dominates a class. Just to give you a idea of what is out there, K/stock had 9 stick shift cars last year nationally and the fastest was a 283 66 nova that ran 1 second under the 12.55 index. only 2 ran .90 under or better K/stock automatic had 51 cars nationally and 14 ran .90 under or better The fastest was a 1989 firebird with a 350 Good luck and hope this helps

09-17-2013, 11:06 AM	#10
impstocker Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Wingdale, NY Posts: 302 Likes: 27 Liked 53 Times in 16 Posts	Re: I want to go Stocker Racing Personally I enjoy building my own car, lots of self satisfaction when done, then you run under the index! Cool. But the reality is when i built my 68 Impala I spent up to 20K on parts and machine work anyway, this is with a lot of free help from friends who owned machine shop. (Jimi Vignogna and his dad, Pat Hennebery did my heads) I did get all the "good" stuff, probaly overdid some stuff. The reason I am building this 65 Impala now is only because of all the parts I already have. Just my 2 cents Will Lamprecht 65 Imp