Well, first track outing with the T56 was interesting. I didn't know how much grip the track had so I tried a small burnout and staged. I softly let the clutch out at 2500 RPM, the tires dead hooked, it rolled out 10 feet and nearly shut the engine off. I managed to keep it running, threw it back into gear and ran out a 13.0 @ 118. After another short burnout to clean up the tires I staged again. This time I dumped the clutch at 4500 and the car didn't move. It made a hell of a racket out back and rolled a foot. Turns out the bearing support in my stock 9 inch case snapped off sending the pinion walking up the ring gear and ripped the housing apart. After disassembly, I found a broken case, chipped ring gear, bent splines on the axles (Currie 31 spline) , and all of the studs bent (Strange 1/2-20s). The housing, locker, and yoke were all fine.
So...I ordered all new Moser 35 spline axles, new locker, Strange Pro-G case, new 4.33s, 5/8 studs, and billet pinion support. It might be overkill, but I also braced the hell out of the housing yesterday so it'll be ready for the next bullet I put in the engine bay. Lesson learned- stock 9 inch Ford third members don't like big launches on big drag radials. Pics:
Calm before the carnage
broken case
new vs old
braced rear ready for hell
Should be back on the road next week.