Set Up Shops and Tire Suppliers in NER

[PFarmer]

Hello,
I am making the transition from Skippy to SCCA. I have bought a 96 VanDemien and intend to race in the NER. I could use some help in finding a set up shop in the CT area as well as a tire supplier / balancer.

I have been looking at this site for some time and have appreciated the info and guidence that the members have offered. I hope that i can return the favor at soime point.

Thanks

Paul Farmer

[Bob Wright]

Welcome to FC

The easy one first...tires. You have about three
choices for tires; Goodyear, Hoosier, and Avon. In most cases one or more suppliers are at the track on race weekends and they are in the "links" section of this site. (I could give you a great deal on some Yokohamas...ah, thats another story) Which brand to choose is a whole 'nother story-read some of the archived threads on the site.

Set up shops...first question is, do you want help at the track or just to get the car ready? If you haven't done it before, I would suggest hiring a prep shop (or at least a person sufficiently skilled to get you on the track) until you're comfortable doing it yourself.

Suffice to say there are a number around...Talk to Glen Phillips at GTP Autosport(NH), Tom Sabiel(NJ), and the boys at Hotshoe Racing(PA) for starters.

And one other thing...find out who did your shocks, and when- then send them to Joe Stimola at SRP Engineering; it will make a difference.

[Matt M.]

Welcome Paul,

Like Bob said - if you read some of the old notes you may find what tires ran best on the '96's - There were a couple of very fast '96's in the region and some setup info from them would probably be easy to get a racetrack.

Glen Phillips (603-483-8213) preps/hauls my Pro Zetec and has half a dozen FC customers that run regionals/nationals. I started with a '94 running regionals a few years ago - and only used Glenn to scale/align the car prior to races etc. Prep shop service is very scaleable so call around - ask questions. Maybe try a few different shops to see what clicks for you. I'm a little biased (I guess) - but all the shops that Bob mention are all competent (I only have Glenn's #).

[RobLav]

Welcome to NER - I also ran an RF96 for 2 years in NER, but the car will now be an FS with Hayabusa engine next season.
I preferred the car on Hoosiers rather than Goodyears - found it more comfortable, hence faster lap times. I also measured the Hoosiers and found them to be somewhat larger in diameter - which probably changed the roll centers. The car also liked to be very low, especially in the rear... ended up running with less rake than normal putting some preload turns on the rear springs. Could prob have used stiffer rear springs. Rear anti-roll on full soft. Add droop limiting to the front. Monoshock is actually simpler to setup once you understand the principles, so don't be intimidated. I forget how many washers I had in each side of the monoshock, but I found what I liked and never changed after that, except in the wet. Again - good luck.

[PFarmer]

Thanks for all the info. One follow up question, who do I use to mount and balance the tires?

Thanks again for the response, It is just what i needed.

Thanks

Paul Farmer