xcarguy Posted December 10, 2014 Author Share Posted December 10, 2014 Well, I called the Whiffle Ball folks in Connecticut and the 4x4 folks at Alltech Motorsports. The Whiffle balls are made of low-density polyethylene (LDPE) and the Alltech hollow cylindrical baffles are made of high-density polyethylene (HDPE). Chinese Whiffle balls are mostly ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene) plastic and should not be used. Further research ‘suggests’ that HPDE would be the preferred baffling material, when compared with using LDPE, due to its superior resistance to gasoline. However, Whiffle is sending me some balls for testing. I’ve included a couple of photo excerpts from a chemical resistance chart regarding LDPE’s resistance to gasoline. Other sources are: http://www.calpaclab.com/chemical-chart-containers/ http://www.thermoscientific.com/content/dam/tfs/LPG/LCD/LCD%20Documents/Product%20Manuals%20%26%20Specifications/Filtration%20Products/Filter%20Units%20and%20Bottletop%20Filters/Filter%20Units/D20480~.pdf http://www.newpig.com/wcsstore/NewPigUSCatalogAssetStore/Attachment/documents/ccg/LDPE.pdf http://www.professionalplastics.com/professionalplastics/HDPE-LDPEChemicalResistanceChart.pdf http://www.nationalscientific.com/support/pdf/NS-ChemicalResistanceReferenceCharts.pdf http://www.dynalabcorp.com/files/Physical%20Properties.pdf http://www.premierplastics.com/Adobe/Chemical%20Resistance%20of%20Polyethylene.pdf http://www.tedpella.com/company_html/chem-resistance.htm http://sevierlab.vet.cornell.edu/resources/Chemical-Resistance-Chart-Detail.pdf My conclusion is that I'll end up giving the Whiffle balls to the kids. If I do anything other than foam, it'll be the Alltech baffles. I'll leave the 'wife' ball jokes for Croc. :cheers: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Croc Posted December 10, 2014 Share Posted December 10, 2014 Whiffle is sending me some balls for testing. I must resist. I must resist. I must resist. I must.... :jester: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xcarguy Posted December 10, 2014 Author Share Posted December 10, 2014 (edited) I knew when I referenced 'ball testing' that . . . . :banghead: Edited December 11, 2014 by xcarguy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MightyMike Posted December 11, 2014 Share Posted December 11, 2014 wife balls - classic! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestTexasS2K Posted December 11, 2014 Share Posted December 11, 2014 Good find on the Alltech I hadn't seen those before. I will have to save that for future reference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wemtd Posted December 12, 2014 Share Posted December 12, 2014 This doesn't involve balls but as it relates to fuel what do people think of this? http://bangshift.com/general-news/new-products/must-see-holley-just-changed-fuel-system-game-big-way/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xcarguy Posted December 12, 2014 Author Share Posted December 12, 2014 This doesn't involve balls but as it relates to fuel what do people think of this? http://bangshift.com/general-news/new-products/must-see-holley-just-changed-fuel-system-game-big-way/ Fascinating! Thanks for sharing. Leaves me with a couple of questions regarding long-term exposure to fuel and continued fuel migration toward the pickup during sustained low-fuel, high-g load situations; example, the bowl at NJMP Lightning. :cheers: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mondo Posted December 13, 2014 Share Posted December 13, 2014 That looks great! I've had a fuel starvation problem on a big bend at Buttonwillow . Put one of those little boxes with ball type trap doors in the tank but I don't let my tank get too low either. This might just be the ticket Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powderbrake Posted December 13, 2014 Share Posted December 13, 2014 A solution may be to buy HDPE containers that do not "nest" (like a tapered cup or glass) and fill the tank with them. You can calculate the size of the tank, and determine how many containers you need to use. I googled HDPE Containers to find these. I would recommend cutting a large hole in the bottom of each container so it cannot capture fuel if it is vertical or near vertical. 1 ounce = 1.8 cubic inches 1 gallon =231 cubic inches 1 gallon = 128 ounces So you need 128 ounces of containers for each gallon in your tank. A 15 gallon tank would then need 15 X 128 = 1920 ounces of bottles So for an 8 oz container, you would need 240 containers. Now you would not need that many, because the containers will not stack in there perfectly, and a sphere only takes up 78% of volume of a cube. So likely it would take about 0.78 X 240 = 187 . Actually probably less than that, but 187 8 oz containers is $109 from this link. http://www.containerandpackaging.com/item/J102 or $114 from this link http://www.uline.com/BL_8185/Natural-Round-Wide-Mouth-Jars?keywords=hdpe containers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powderbrake Posted December 13, 2014 Share Posted December 13, 2014 That looks great! I've had a fuel starvation problem on a big bend at Buttonwillow . Put one of those little boxes with ball type trap doors in the tank but I don't let my tank get too low either. This might just be the ticket I have a foam filled tank, and I have had fuel starvation issues on long banked turns. My solution was to always keep between 1/4 and 1/2 full on the tank, which solved the problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ropaSeven Posted December 15, 2014 Share Posted December 15, 2014 One stalker owner used gutter down spout pieces cut to length. I think he used 15 pieces. Price is low. I don't know if he still has them in his tank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xcarguy Posted December 18, 2014 Author Share Posted December 18, 2014 The Whiffle ball folks in CT backed their play and sent me eight very nice balls of various sizes for testing. I currently have my four smallest balls undergoing a winter soaking in a container of gasoline (92 octane with a ‘possible’ 10% ethanol blend). Upfront report; my balls do not float. I'll provide a follow-up report on this thread sometime next year regarding the condition of my balls. As for my other four balls, they are being shared among household members for their entertainment value. Okay, Mike, surely that’s enough ammunition for a good ball joke or two……I know you’re chomping at the bit to let loose. :jester: . . . . . . :cheers: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Croc Posted December 18, 2014 Share Posted December 18, 2014 Soaking in gasoline? Great balls of fire! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xcarguy Posted July 27, 2015 Author Share Posted July 27, 2015 The Whiffle ball folks in CT backed their play and sent me eight very nice balls of various sizes for testing. I currently have my four smallest balls undergoing a winter soaking in a container of gasoline (92 octane with a ‘possible’ 10% ethanol blend). Upfront report; my balls do not float. I'll provide a follow-up report on this thread sometime next year regarding the condition of my balls . . . . Okay, as promised, I'm reporting back regarding using Whiffle balls as a possible baffle in your fuel tank. After soaking in gasoline for an excess of seven months, I took one of the Whiffle balls out today and compared it to another identical Whiffle ball that had not been soaking in petrol. I was quite surprised at what I discovered. The fuel-soaked Whiffle ball had grown approximately 1/16” in diameter beyond its original size. In addition, the ball was much softer than the non-soaked ball and had become somewhat brittle (see the squeeze test photos). My consensus; no Whiffle ball baffle recommendation from me or Suave. :cheers: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MightyMike Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 That's a bummer. What's next? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slomove Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 I don't know...I have a Fuel Safe cell now for 11 years with the same foam. Recently I replaced the first filter between the tank and the (external) pump and cut it open because I was curious. And... nothing inside. The filter medium was a bit discolored but no particles, no clogging. Maybe I should not have said that to avoid jinxing but I don't know how you get the foam to disintegrate. Maybe it is the expensive California gas that protects my tank :jester: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
super7guy Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 Has anybody tried a Hydramat by Holley for their fuel pickup. The claims are impressive. Wayne Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MightyMike Posted July 28, 2015 Share Posted July 28, 2015 Has anybody tried a Hydramat by Holley for their fuel pickup. The claims are impressive. Wayne Sounds interesting. It may be a winter project. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xcarguy Posted August 18, 2017 Author Share Posted August 18, 2017 (edited) Well, after a two-year hiatus for this thread, I thought I’d bring it back to the table. With the rebuild of the Storker currently under way, it came time to address fuel. After a fair amount of research and consideration, I decided on two tank mods to hopefully ward off fuel starvation during sustained high-G cornering. The mods selected were the HolleyHydramat combined with the fuel cell baffles offered by no2foam. ‘Nuff said…I’ve loaded a few photos on my build thread for review by interested parties: http://www.usa7s.net/vb/showthread.php?7852-Stalker-85-headed-back-to-Arkansas&p=104664#post104664. :troll: Edited August 18, 2017 by xcarguy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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