[Sam Strano]

I was just pondering what things I've done that were the same old, same old in terms of my business and car setup stuff. I'm tired of hearing that I'm out only sell parts, and will do so by any means necessary. I'm tired of having quotes laid at my feet that are taken completely out of context. And I've been called a liar (just recently in a thread about the A-Sedan cars at the Runoffs).

So I've thought about it, and I'm posting a response.

First let me address the notion that I think in this little tiny box and don't try things. Here's a breif list of things I've tried and have WORKED with regards to the f-body, particularly the 4th gen:

1. The T2R. How many ran the T2R before I showed up? Very few. How many even realized how important a LSD that works is to the handling as well as the traction of the car? Next to none.

2. Large front swaybars as well as "intermediate" rear bars in combination. Before me everyone used a 32mm front bar. Some stayed 19, some went 21 rear. A very few who were never fast went to big bars at both ends. I ran a 35/21 combo first (and did it before SLP did, starting in late '99).

3. Started the education on shock valving... Before me you had HD's and SLP's and Koni's. Only the Koni's capable of damping the spring most of us run, but most folks were cheap, didn't know any better, or fell for a sales pitch that HD's are just fine. Even some folks who are now selling "trick" shocks were on the phone with me as little as 2 years ago wanting to know why HD's weren't up to the job.

4. Showed that removal of the rear bumpstops can cause shock failure, and proved it more than once. And I stuck with it despite being shouted down a few times....

5. Showed that the evil bumpstop is really more of a bump rubber that does eventually act as a stop, but that with proper shock tuning it works simply as supplemental spring, but one that does NOT return energy like a spring does. You might disagree, but there are plenty of points proving the STOP doesn't spike you spring rate, and even a cool video Rushman took that showed that rear axle never bangs into them (of course he has good shocks, a decent ride height and good spring rates).


These are some of what I've done that worked. I've tired a number of things that have not worked, and because they aren't made very public it's assumed I haven't tried them. That's simply ignorant, and sadly ignorance can be contagious. :stupid:

Here's an example.... I made drop PHB brackets way back in '99-2000. In an effort to calm the tail of the cars (and folks on this board have seen them, they aren't vaporware). While messing with designs to get the strength I wanted/need from the, I stumbled across a few things that were at the time outside the box ideas that did the job I was seeking. So the re-engineering of the wheel I was going to do, wasn't necessary IMHO. Some think it is, and that's fine. But if you don't know me, and haven't been privy to conversations with me, you really should not assume you know all the details of my life and business. And when I say the Tom Aquilante Racing A-Sedan cars at the Runoffs, *I* was the one who checked them out. Not anyone else here, and when I found what I found what I did, I was abused for it because it happend to pretty closely resemble that tact I take. You can bet if it had been the "other" ideas I'd have been driving into the ground about that. Damned if I do, damned if I don't with some people here. (IMG:http://www.frrax.com/rrforum/style_emoticons/default/banghead.gif)

I just wanted to take the time to clear my head of some of this stuff. There are somethings going on in my life right now that make me wonder why I pour my heart into my work and my hobby like I do when I'm attacked for giving my opinion and have the gall to try and back up my claims. And it sucks.

The other thing that makes me differnet, and I've think I've been kind of a pioneer of is the way I recommend parts. I look around at the different boards and never, NEVER see anyone else saying "I don't feel you need this part" or some such example. I call a spade a spade, often to the extent of making smaller and sometimes NO SALE. And I'm that turns me into the slick used car salesman type. That's truly sad, and very dis-heartening.

Unless this thread is deleted, I'm going to bookmark it. That way the next time I hear about how selfish I am, or how I just push a prepackaged setup with the inference that it wasn't worked on and worked on very hard, etc. I can just put in the link... Much like I've had to do with the link to the Bilstein catalog into to dispell some of the rampant misinformation some folks spread about Bilstein HD's being so great for lowering springs.

EDIT: I want to add this in no way is to say that other opinions are not valid. Much like I thought out of the box, others are now doing. The point is simply there are very few truly new ideas in the world, and a number of the ideas out there now are not only not new, but have been tried many times before. This is not a statement on what works or doesn't in theory, or even what can be made to work, well or otherwise.

This post has been edited by Sam Strano: Nov 14 2005, 03:42 PM

[Sam Strano]

And I've been called a liar (just recently in a thread about the A-Sedan cars at the Runoffs).

Even some folks who are now selling "trick" shocks were on the phone with me as little as 2 years ago wanting to know why HD's weren't up to the job.

When you reference two people so well (might as well say their names) it's hard not to expect them to jump in here. And that's all I have to say about that. You have the fastest ESP 4th gen and you've changed a lot about SP F-bodies in recent years. Some of us believe it can be taken even further, but this is not the time or the place.


In the other thread I didn't receive a response to this:

QUOTE (Sam Strano @ Oct 28 2005, 13:48)
I've not driven *EVERY* setup out there, but about 99% of them.  And have enough experience that I can tell what's good (to my liking) or bad. 

Wanna drive mine next year? How does Columbus, OH or that test and tune Lonnie tells me about sound? I'll let you run 315's from your car on mine at the event so you can do a back to back comparison. Then you can say whatever you want about it and I'll shutup. I could even arrive with extra springs and tools to tune the car. Unfortunately I may not have money for an Evo school next year, but that remains to be seen. A nice test and tune would work out well and be a good comparison. Personally I'd love to have your input after driving my car.  I'd just hate for that to be at an Evo school where I'm usually on dead tires.

My offer still stands.
robmeadway@gmail.com if you'd prefer to reach me via email.

And if I reference them by name, I get blasted for starting something. I was citing some examples of incidents that upset me (there are many more). Was there a better way of doing it?

Meanwhile in a thread about Jason (that Mitch started) Jon couldn't resist dragging me in (by name) and making a bunch of claims that were false. I had responded earlier in the thread and simply said that I'm glad Mitch finally found out what some good shocks can do and now has some kind of data to back his talking up. Nothing wrong or inaccurate about that, and it's all I said. Didn't blast anyone. Call anyone stupid, or a liar, etc.

As for your offer.... I didn't see it because that was another thread that made me so ill I just quit reading it.

I will drive your car if presented with the opprotunity. I'm not going to waste my tires doing so when I have a perfectly good car of my own. I'll drive the car as it's setup, and in the form it's normally run. If you are worried about me getting a false impression on bad tires, I suggest you don't have bad tires on the car. All part of testing a package. Everything has to be in order.

I'm afraid if you want to see what 315's can do on your car, you'll have to hit up someone else, or buy some of your own.

You can bring springs and so on, but it's useless at a normal event. I'd suggest the Peru T&T if you really want to test something. I might be convinced to help you all anyway despite some of the crap that's gone down here. Nobody else here goes out of their way to travel to compete, or test. I'm not going to either. If you happen to be at an event I'm at, then great. I'm not going to upset my schedule to suit anyone but myself. I don't have to, I have a proven car. I hope you can understand where I'm coming from.


My job as an Evolution instructor is to help. And at a school, I will do that for anyone as far as driving. And if it's a Challenge school AND they are driving well, I'll help with tuning advice. If you come to any other phase and/or aren't driving well, the car is secondary to me. I'll make mental notes for myself, and would share them after the day is over if asked. But that's not what I'm there for.

My job in real life is selling parts and setting up cars. I've always been very very free with my time and advice. But I've learned, as have others, that folks will often ask you something and when you tell them what you think they like to argue. Others will pick your brain and then go spend money for what you told them elsewhere. I'm always more inclined to help than not. But I have to pick and choose who I'm going to help first and how much, and I'm not going to tune (for free) cars that go completey against what I feel. Those folks will always be the people who support my business. They don't have to agree with me, but if they are buying parts I want the first opprotunity to do the job, and the opprotunity is all I ask. I haven't been getting that lately.

In short. You get to an Evo school I happen to be teaching for, and do it on good tires. I'll help you as best I can with the driving and if that's good we'll talk about the car a bit. You get to a Test and tune where I happen to be and I'll drive the car and make some comments (and my car would also likely be there as a comparison). But I'll only do what I can without cutting into what I'm there for (myself and customer support). And I'm not going to help your car go faster by putting any of my parts on it for fun. Your car, your test and tune, you are wanting my opinion. You set me up with the best stuff you have. I have to get myself my own parts, nobody lends me anything that can be used up like tires.