DYNOmite shines in SnowTech Magazine Product Evaluation!

SnowTech is arguably the best magazine source of technically oriented performance snowmobile data. In its September 2001 issue’s “Product Evaluation” section, SnowTech reviewed the DYNOmite Snowmobile Dynamometer. This article focused not only on the functionality of the DYNOmite, but also on the ability of our technical support team to help new dyno operators get the best results from their system. Their results should make most sleders take notice.

“We found the Land & Sea technical reps to be very helpful with our questions, leading us down the path of proper testing procedures.” [Snow Tech, Sept 2001]

As hundreds of DYNOmite owners know, that quote applies to the level of service we deliver to all of our customers... for free, every working day. Unlike too many other technology companies, we promise never to hide behind obnoxious voice mail systems. We enjoy helping our customers learn more and, in turn, we learn a great deal from them!

So how did the folks at SnowTech feel about the DYNOmite after using it for awhile? We’ll let these excerpts from their article speak for themselves:

“All said and done, we can now recommend the basic DYNOmite system, water pump, DYNO-MAX software, Auto Servo Valve, a full function cable (allows connection of weather station, automatic servo valve and DYNO-MAX software and future upgrades), Weather Station, and an RPM pickup that allows us to track engine RPM on the dyno instead of using a pick-up on the ignition system. The DYNOmite RPM pick-up is more consistent and doesn’t have any data ‘drop-out’ like what can happen with ignition pick-ups. The Full Function cable allows the addition of fuel-flow tracking (BSFC), exhaust gas temperatures, water temperatures, and a host of other variables to fully expand your system into whatever you want it to be. The possibilities are near endless.

There is so much more to understanding and performing accurate dyno tests that it can’t possibly be covered in one short product review. In reality, it has taken us several years to get to this level of proficiency, but then again we’re magazine editors seeking the truth. Suffice it to say that we have found the DYNOmite to be a valuable tool that can provide the information many shops and dealerships so desperately need, at a cost much lower than other dyno equipment. Whether it will fulfill your individual shop’s needs is something that you will have to determine, but you don’t have to

2001 -PO Box 96 North Salem, NH 03073 (603) 329-5645 www.land-and-sea.com

EGT Thermocouple Latency!

Many racers, engine builders, and even some dyno operators have misconceptions about interpreting Exhaust Gas Temperature readings (from either drag strip or dyno runs). This often leads tuners to leave horsepower “on the bench,” or worse, leave a hole in a piston!

First, forget about finding “magic” absolute EGT numbers for different combinations and test durations. There are far too many variables for that to work. Instead, focus on seeing the relationship between your EGT, BSFC, RPM, Torque and test duration data. The more you do this, the sooner you will realize that interpreting EGT numbers is more like reading a sparkplug than reading a tachometer.

One of the principal reasons beginners have trouble with EGT readings is the thermocouple’s latency. Meaning, it takes time for the gauge to register the temperature changes its probe is exposed to. How much time? Although the fine bead, exposed junction thermocouples used for dynamometer testing are much faster than a long life sheathed thermocouple, they are still slooooow in terms of a 12 second dyno pull (or drag race). This means that transient test readings do not reflect the true temperature of the exhaust gas! Rather, there is always some varying percentage of its actual temperature.

How close any reading will be (to the true temperature at the point of insertion) is a function of the velocity of the exhaust gas, the thermocouple’s “response time,” and (most importantly) how many seconds have elapsed at that temperature exposure. It is much like taking a thermometer from your house and running outside with it on a freezing day. The thermometer drops gradually over the next several seconds from room temperature to zero. However, this certainly does not mean that the outside air’s temperature is following that curve, it was below 0 degrees the whole time! Even when moving air over the thermometer (by waving it around), it still takes time.

Now consider a typical “drag racing grade” thermocouple, a compromise probe that survives beyond a single 12 second lab test but is fast enough to show some change during short pulls. We’ll

2001 -PO Box 96 North Salem, NH 03073 (603) 329-5645 www.land-and-sea.com

Gagne Lessard Sports

Ever since Gilles Gange and Yvan Lessard purchased their Sport Shop in 1990, they have been looking for ways to deliver better products and service to their customers. One thing they went in search of was a snowmobile dynamometer. This sent them to the Internet which led them to Land & Sea’s Hampstead plant. When asked why Gagne Lessard chose the DYNOmite, they stated, “...our visit to your shop showed us you had the machines and were a real manufacturer, not just an office”. They also found that Land & Sea was more in tune with the type of testing that they needed to do compared to other dyno companies.

Gagne Lessard Sports is even using DYNO-MAX 2000’s advanced inertial Formula features to build specialty dynos (like their neat R/C model car dyno shown below). They have rally capitalized on the fact that the software and DYNOmite Data Acquisition System can be so readily adapted to testing everything from sleds to motorcycles to 4-wheelers, and yes, even chain saws and model race cars!

sales@land-and-sea.com

The Monday Morning Customer!

^� 2001 -PO Box 96 North Salem, NH 03073 (603) 329-5645 www.land-and-sea.com