Questions from an FVee newbie

[Comanche15]

Hey guys! I've done a ton of reading on here, but my goodness the world of Formula Vee is so different than my experience of vintage British cars. With that, I've got a handful of long winded questions, so please be patient.

I'm building an old Caracal that I hope to do a long-term loan to a veteran race team that I volunteer with. The beneficiaries are constantly at the track and bust their ass as pit crews, but rarely (and understandably) get any time behind the wheel due to the sheer cost of the cars involved. With the cost of the car, and the fact that I did 90% of the work myself, I figured this was the most affordable way to get them some well deserved wheel time with something bigger than a kart. So, to the questions.

OILS:
- I'm not looking to set the world on fire, and I'm not looking for that last 1hp in oil technology with super thin oils. I'm looking for longevity and durability. I know everyone debates on what is "best", but what are some good, off the shelf, synthetic oils that I can use in this car. Something that will give me the best lifespan and forgivability of both the engine and gearbox. I ran Lucas Synthetic High-Zinc 20w50 in my old MGB, and Redline MT-90 in the gearbox, but I've never done anything with an aircooled engine outside of Honda dirt bikes. Are these safe choices that won't attack Synchros or any various internals?

PARTS:
- I powdercoated the entire suspension and am in the process of piecing it all back together. I need to source a swingaxle boot/seal kit, but what else would you replace? The bearings and wheel cylinders seem to be in decent shape, but I'm always weary of reusing them. Upon pulling the I-Beam from the oven, I apparently missed the internal bushings, and those need to be replaced as well. Lastly, I've tried my best to tighten up the shift-shaft joints, but they're just too far gone. Are there any sources for used apex/helicopter joints online?

SUSPENSION:
- I know everyone runs super trick front suspensions, but what's a good budget front shock that I can run on here? I've seen everything between cheap Monroe shocks, KYB shocks, and all sorts of stuff. Adjustability would be cool, but definitely not needed. I'm self financing this whole thing, so more affordable = more better.

I'm sure there I'll have a million more questions as time goes on, but I very much appreciate you guys!!

[DannyPip]

I am a newbie myself, but I think I can help a little.

You are doing a really great thing for the race crew! I am going to the Summit school in a month for race school.

I think guys use 10w30(in warm weather) to 20w50. Synthetic or regular oil, but with the extra ZDDP we need for our flat-tappet lifters. I've seen Redline, Swepco, Lucas, and Joe Gibbs(who bought Brad Penn, I think). I like Amsoil Synthetic 75w90 for the trans.

If you haven't seen it, the formulavee.org site is a treasure trove of information. I've done a fair amount of reading there.

Axle boots: I am a BIG fan of the solid boots, but they replacement requires removing the axle tube from the transmission. The boots WILL stretch over the bell end, so separating the tube from the bearing housing is unnecessary. When you install the boots, you do it inside out, and I masking tape a couple prybars so I don't damage the boots. I have found these are the only ones that don't leak. The boots with the seam are great to have at the track, just in case, as is an extra axle tube and axle.

If you go solid one-piece, you don't need to remove the trans from the car, you can just pull the tube. I can give you info on doing that if you'd like. You'll need some axle flange gaskets, a couple oil seal kits for the wheel bearings by the drums, the boots, and some gear oil. And an afternoon.

Apex joints: How many do you have? My car has two, and although a bit expensive I'd just buy new ones.

Front shocks: THE cheapest option is VW Bus steering stabilizers. From what I've read, they work pretty well, and they're CHEAP.

[BLS]

Front shocks - VW transporter steering dampers work well for dirt cheap. They used to be on many cars before the high end shock stuff took over.

Oil - Mobil 1 racing is my favorite, Valvoline is also fine.

Apex joints - sometimes you will see a used one come up for sale but that is pretty seldom in my experience. New seems to be the only option and they are not cheap. I've seen universals used from tool sets, but I don't think it's worth the effort.

[sabre1fv]

Since it hasn't been mentioned (yet), Pegasus is a great place to purchase the APEX universal joints: https://www.pegasusautoracing.com/

Agree that they are not cheap, but they will probably last far longer than any other component on a race car if not abused. I once tried going directly to the manufacturer to get a better price, but found that Pegasus was significantly less expensive...

APEX (here) and the formulavee.org site are great sources of information and allow you to connect with other FV drivers/crew who can offer valuable advice.

Thank you for offering you car to the Vets, we owe them a lot!

-Jim

[Dave33]

As a newbie I would recommend contacting Dietmar at Quixote Racing. He's been in the business for many years and is a wealth of information and advice. He has a large inventory of Vee parts at reasonable prices. He will guide you through any question you may have about your car. My son has been racing for 10+ years and he has helped us in countless ways and still does. I'm sure many others on here will agree.

He's located in CA so keep in mind he's 3 hours behind us.

https://www.quixoteracing.com/

[Comanche15]

Thank you to all of the replies!! I've placed an order for some fresh engine/trans oil and some 5.1 fluid to replace my old stock.

Sent a few PM's about parts, and am slowly making a shopping list for junk that needs to be replaced.

Upside, found out why my tach was reading erratic RPM's... sure would have been neat to have the spark lead secured correctly haha

[BLS]

Wheel cylinders - unless you are certain, I'd just replace them. They are relatively cheap and not worth rebuilding IMO. Dietmar has them.

Inner beam bushings. I think the heat of powder coating will destroy them. Here is a link to a thread about replacing them and how to make a tool to get the old ones out. I found that I needed to ream the new ones to get them properly sized after installation:
https://www.formulavee.org/viewtopic...bushing#p29151

Just about everything you want to know tech wise about a FV can be found somewhere on the formulavee_org website. Steve Davis has spent his time, and $$$, to keep that one going for the wealth of info it provides. You can easily spend hours reading through those threads.