New to racing. What pit equipment should I bring?

[nate-dogg]

Hi guys, I'm planning on competing in a series for the first time next year (probably either the BARC or CSCC Tin Tops Championship) and I wanted a bit of guidance about what pit equipment and spares it's useful to bring with me to a race.

Thanks in advance.

[covboy]

You will get plenty of advice here but one thing I will guarantee is that the first thing that you will need will be something you haven't got with you !!

[nate-dogg]

Haha exactly, sods law will be in full swing next year I'm sure!

Just trying to de-risk it a bit by bringing a sensible amount of equipment in case there's something that's a no-brainer that for some reason didn't occur to me.

[Kraken]

It's a question of working out what you're prepared to do and going from there. Some people are happy to change clutches, gearbox and whole engines at the track. Personally I'd just go home at that point.

[Drumroll]

The basics, which according to half the posts about this on facebook are WD40 and tank tape (and that is it).

The truth is as much as you think you can carry and not be overweight.

When you say pit equipment do you actually mean Tools to have in the pits or do you mean paddock equipment?

[Jerry Can]

a previous poster is correct. There is not much point in bringing tools for parts that you can't fit between qualifying and race. E.g. a clutch alignment tool, if you can't replace the clutch.

However you do need a basic socket set, with all the bolts sizes your car has, covered. Something for around £30 from Halfords would suffice. You need a breaker bar of some sort to help with tightening up wheel nuts, although a rattle gun would be better. You will need a portable trolley jack, cable ties, tank tape, 1x flat blade and 1x Phillips head screw drivers. A tyre pressure gauge. Some spare oil(s), some kind of pouring receptacle, a couple of jerry cans. That would probably do for your first year.

If you are working on the car between races by yourself, you will get to know your car better and start buying some 'specialist tools' which you may then want to bring with you. E.g. 32mm socket to remove hub nuts etc. But all that is down the line.

One thing you must be able to do is be able to get your car through scrutineering, for this you need to be able to improvise a bit, but also have some spares such as spare fire ex cable as they tend to rust and get stuck. this maybe where the wd40 comes in. Other than that you will need to use the various spanners and bulbs and screwdrivers to make a 'field' fix and get you out racing.

Decent prep will help you avoid a lot of the pitfalls, get the car ready to pass scrutineering, check obviously things like wheel bearings, steering, bulbs, any leaks etc and fix em before you get there.


Finally make some friends with your competitors, between you all you will have all the tools and skills you need.

hth.

[Veesix75]

Mostly as above.

If you haven’t got a tool kit already, ask Santa for the Halfords set that has spanner’s, sockets , 100 pieces or there abouts, I’ve had one for 20 years and it’s still complete and perfect. It fits in the boot easily

The Halfords spanner an socket kit above
One off special size spanner’s, Allen keys etc for the car
Lightweight low entry trolley jack
Wheel bar and torque wrench
Hammer and a bar just in case we need to make precision adjustments !
As above tools to do service items, easy fixes etc at the circuit, screw drivers, pliers, big adjustables, mole grips .....once had to take a shock out of the strut....
Spare fluids for top ups for all fluids.
Bulbs
Cables, pull cables and throttle for me
Fan belt
Fuel pump filter
Wheel bearing kit
Spark plugs, dizzy cap and rotor arm
Some spare pipe work, fuel and general (once had a power steering pipe split, fixed at circuit with a joint from an old piece of pipe in the toolbox.
Spare brake pads in case one disintegrates or you forget to check them and they die in qualifying
I take front discs as I had a failure
Tank tape
Tie raps, various sizes
A spare tool bag with some kit / tools from the above for my old man to take to pit lane for quick fixes if needed.
Jumper cables just in case
Funnels ,big syringe for draining stuff
2 Jerry cans
Couple of chocks of wood in case we need to block the car or get up higher.

Sounds a lot but all fits easily in the boot of a 5 series.....however, as above, check everything before you go to the circuit, do the same routine as the scruitineers, lights, cables etc. We also check the brakes, pad wear, and torque all suspension points. Obviously fluids.

[nate-dogg]

Thanks so much everyone, this is super helpful!

[Gc285]

If you need it , you can normally borrow it if you haven't got one!

[rallycross]

cable ties of various sizes and wire for tying things up
tank tape
2 trolley jacks and two axle stands
something for your knees when on the ground
something to lie on when you have to be under the car on your back and protective eye glasses
breaker bar for the wheel nuts
multi meter
jump leads
tow rope
proper tyre pressure gauge and pump
rubber mallet hammer for bending bodywork back and decent sized crow bar
spare head lights and radiator
spare set of plugs and leads always useful if it starts misfiring and you don't know why
spare alternator/alternator belt
plus all the tools listed previously
and
make up a list that you can always refer to when getting ready and add stuff to or else you will forget stuff.
Luckily people will always help you if you find you dont have the right tools on you.

[Veesix75]

Forgot to add the foot pump, pressure guage and of course the trusty rubber mallet. We use the big jigsaw puzzle type black squares for kneeling and lying under the car. I think they were a fiver from Halfords. Rags for wiping oil and other crap up. Make sure your trailer has a decent winch, if it breaks pushing it up the ramps isn’t fun.....but most folks will help you in the paddock.

[AWRacing]

A spare wheel or 2!

I picked up a puncture in the paddock of my first race coming back from scrutineering (a wood screw of all things) and had no spare wheels - thankfully someone lent me a pair so i could race.

[Trev450]

If your car has a throttle cable, a block of electrical connectors can save the day if the cable snaps.

[Pericoloso]

Trev450 said:

If your car has a throttle cable, a block of electrical connectors can save the day if the cable snaps.

If I'd had some of those,I wouldn't have wasted 3 days in Austria in October.
I tried some temporary repairs but had next to bugger all suitable ,gave up and had a cable sent from England,for a FIAT ,and I was only about 50 miles from Italy by road.

[rallycross]

Trev450 said:

If your car has a throttle cable, a block of electrical connectors can save the day if the cable snaps.

very handy tip that one.

[mfmman]

Gloves

Both mechanics type for normal work, you may not have time/facilities to go and wash your hands before you need to get in the car

And rigger type ones in case you need to do any 'delicate' work involving large hammers or heavy components. Be a shame to end your day with a gashed/crushed finger preventing any driving

[Kraken]

Or, as seems to be more and more the case with "club" racing these days, get yourself a deck chair to sit and watch the army of mechanics who run your car for you sort out all the problems from their gigantic artic full of spares and tools.

[shirt]

mfmman said:

Gloves

including ones you can handle hot brake components with, and a pair of kevlar mechanix sleeves.

a friend and I started racing this year, not enough time between sessions to do any meaningful repair work so tool kit is restricted to a top box for the actual tools and a couple of large plastic ikea boxes for the rest, all of which fits in the boot of the disco. if its a 2 day meet we live close enough to be able to nip home if required and its a friendly series so can always borrow tools etc. if required.

head torches
measuring tools [rules, verniers]
paint pens [torque & tyre marking]
full set spanners with additional ratcheting 12,14,17 & 19
full set 3/8" short and deep sockets with additional 12, 14 [jap car] 17 & 19
allen and torx sockets
impact sockets
2 x 3/8 ratchets, extension bars, wobble bars
3/8 torque wrench
1/4 torque wrench for a few light jobs [brake line banjos etc]
wera toolcheck+ [amazingly handy tool set!]
1/2" breaker bar and adaptor for when things are hot/tight
1/2" torque wrench and wheelnut socket
screwdrivers
various blades
trim removal tool [loads of scrivets on the underbody]
Big F****ing Hammer
pry bars
tin snips
pliers
circlip pliers
pipe wrench
18V drill and bits including step drill
18V impact driver
spare 18V batteries and chargers
18V angle grinder and discs
wire wheel
dremel and attachments
multimeter
crimp tools, spare crimps and connectors
self amalgamating tape, foil tape, gaffer tape, double sided foam tape, velcro
hose clips, crush washers and other bits
wd40, copper slip, various greases, loads of brake cleaner
fluids
cleaning products incuding decent glass cleaner [meguiars] and rainx
rags, big roll of heavy duty kitchen roll
dustbin
table
extension reel
2 x 2T low entry jacks
jack stands
camber gauge, poles, string and lead weights for basic setup
12V compressor
decent pressure gauge
heat gun and scraper
spare pads and front discs

most importantly:

car folder - fia passport, cage cert, tank cert etc.
laptop with all the manuals [ex cup car, so handily has a load of good, race focused, info.]
torque tables
set-up sheets including sections for fuel use, brake wear etc. our car eats pads and i had a nasty incident having run out of brakes so we measure after each session against no. of race pace laps now.
credit card and number of the local toyota dealer!
set of road wheels and tyres for going on/off trailer and around the paddock.
cheap clothes rack for hanging & drying racewear
comfy camping chairs
large icebox for water and snacks
good group of mates to race against, help out and have a laugh with. and/or at least one trusted friend who can give a second, unbiased, opinion [trust me its hard to call it a day when you have spent all the money getting there and want to take a chance on something marginal].

lastly, the advice about knowing your car is key. also make sure you prep the car for the next round as close as you can to finishing the previous one. we have had a couple of instances were we thought we only had a bit to do so left it last minute only to have next to no sleep and/or missed a round as we found something we couldn't sort in time and weren't prepared to risk failing.

apologies for the long post.

Edited by shirt on Sunday 16th December 20:32

Edited by shirt on Sunday 16th December 20:34

[ChevronB19]

Kraken said:

Or, as seems to be more and more the case with "club" racing these days, get yourself a deck chair to sit and watch the army of mechanics who run your car for you sort out all the problems from their gigantic artic full of spares and tools.

Sadly true this one. I’ve only ever raced histories and the transformation, especially in the last 10 years or so has been something else. In the 80’s even the guys with 250F’s usually just turned up with a mate and the car on an open trailer behind an estate.

Having said all that, mechanics are usually bribable with beer if you need something you don’t have with you...

[RobM77]

I agree with the above! I seem to be one of the very few guys turning up in a road car full of tools towing a trailer. Everyone else seems to have mechanics with them, new tyres, an awning, big van full of spares etc.

In reply to the OP, I take the following:

• Two sets of dry tyres, one set of wets (check pressures in the wets - mine don't get used much and last time they took 20 minutes to pump up!).
• All the tools required to tighten anything that might come loose or need checking, so allen keys, spanners, sockets.
• Any tools required for setup adjustments (wing angle, camber, tyre pressures etc).
• Anything required to run the car routinely (fuel and spout etc to pour, torque wrench for wheelnuts, quick jacks, slave battery to start it, lap timer beacon etc).
• Basic spares for things that I know tend to wear out (reverse selector cable, throttle cable, spark plugs).
• All fluids in case something leaks or needs topping up (engine oil, gearbox oil, brake fluid, clutch fluid & coolant).
• Items necessary to carry out basic repairs (electrical tools and spade connectors, duct tape, cable ties, WD40).
• Spare bolts, washers and nuts for all common sizes around the car.
• Spare batteries and chargers for anything battery operated, like lap timers, transponder etc.
• Jack and wheel brace for changing a trailer wheel.
• Spares and tools for what I wear (clear visor, dark visor, tools to change visors, spare earplugs, spare race suit if heavy rain is forecast).

All of the above is kept on a particular set of shelves in a separate place in the garage to my other tools so I don't forget anything. I just empty the shelves every time I go.

Things I should really take but I've never needed and I don't have room for:

• Vacuum cleaner in case I go into the gravel (which I've never done). My car has no cover on the cambelt, so if I did go off into gravel at any point then I would come home again and clean the car properly. I had a cambelt go last year due to something getting in between it and a sprocket and it cost me two year's of racing budget to fix the engine!
• Bucket and sponge to clean the car if it gets mucky.
• Spare nose and front wing.
• High stands and a method to lift the car up high.

Running the car on my own or with just one friend, my attitude is if something breaks needing a decent amount of work (e.g. a clutch), then I just come home again.