I've seen others mention it before, but I thought it would be interesting to have a thread stating the window of RPMs and the gears you spray in. A lot probably depends on the shot, so please list:

Shot
Gears
Rpms

-hype

 

Shot- I have used 60,85,100
Gears- 1,2,3,4, never sprayed in 5th, didn't seem it would ever be necessary
Rpms- 3,000-redline

 

Obviously the goal is to spray as much as possible without going too high or too low, so would you mind stating what "redline" is to you? Right now I'm being conservative and stopping at 6200, but if several people are spraying higher I'll move up.
-hype

 

I want to know why you would spray in 1st, dont you break traction?

 

shot: 75
Whatever i think i can get lucky and not blow up with that night.

gears: (1+2) 3 4 5
I do not spray in 1st or 2nd for traction+response time reasons (unless I am on slicks). On street tires I spray 3rd + 4th for 1/4, and 3,4,5 for racing

rpm: ~3200 - 6550
I go from a little over 3000 (usually around 3200) up till as far as I dare before hitting fuel cut (which is what ~6750?)

 

Shot - 35,50,75,100,125,150
Gears - 1,2,3,4 Auto
Rpms - 2,000 to shift at WOT approx 6200-6400 RPM in Drive O/D on.

 

I spray to right at redline in 1st,6400rpms. 2nd I shift at 6200, 3rd at 6000


I break loose sometimes but I guarentee you will run faster if you spray in 1st even if you are spinning you are still moving forward. I have watched people time and time again that were just spraying in the higher gears, I have gotten in the car with them and told them to just let it rip from whatever rpm they feel comfortable in 1st and they always run faster.

This is what I have done on street tires and it seems to work out best, but go experiment at the track for yourself and find what works best for you.

 

Jim,
I'm not one to question, especially with someone as knowledgable as yourself, but did you spray your 100+ shots at 2k? I read often and try to glean knowledge from here and elsewhere, but I've always seen people talk about starting spraying at 3000-3500 or so. That must be one hell of a torque spike, especially on an auto.

I'm willing to drop down from my current start at 3200, but do you have any suggestion as to what you consider a safe bet? My car is my daily driver, and I'm aiming for a relatively conservative, reliable setup. I'm also not much of a gambler.
-hype

 

Hype I didn't say I was doing it right, just what I do.

How low of an RPM you spray at is determined by what gear you are in. Do you know what would happen if you sprayed in 1st gear with a 5 speed? It would hit the limiter so fast you wouldn't have time to shift. Thats what happens in my auto too even with slicks.
Street tires it would be even faster.

Where the danger comes, in is spraying at a low RPM in a higher gear say 3rd or 4th, you have all the torque and it can't release, it just builds up mega pressure in the cyl and has to go somewhere and if it can't move the piston fast enough then the result is pretty easy to figure.

Thats why I spray right out of the hole at any RPM and don't worry about it. I hit the spray the same time I hit the throttle. (One of the secrets to a fast 60')

When the car shifts automatically out of first at around 62-6400 it only drops to just over 4k so thats why I leave it on through the whole run. So far its worked.

The biggest problem is with the 5 speed because it won't downshift if you hit the juice on the street at a low RPM, that is what will blow your engine.

Also I only have one year of racing with nitrous even if I am an old guy so I still have lots to learn too.

 

Shot 35,50,75,100 (wet)
Gear 1,2,3,4
RPM 3000 due to wheelspin, otherwise Id go lower

 

50 Shot
2-3-4
3000-6300k

I tried 1st gear but it's pretty much useless.

 

Why do you think 1st gear is useless?

 

If I hit the N2O in 1st gear, the tires break traction and my RPM's climb to redline very fast.

 

I used 3200-6200RPM in all gears. Very conservitive, but that's what I wanted.

First gear was a little hairy!

 

50, 70, 85 shot
End of 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th
3k-6200

Spraying in first is pretty useless for me as well. Sometimes at the track, I'll spray at 4800-5000 at the end of first and pray to hold traction.

 

Yeah teh rpms will climb to redline very fast if you spray in 1st gear, but isnt that the point of having nitrous in the first place, to go faster. I have some traction issues as well spraying in 1st but I have still found that you will run faster times like that, I hit it at 3000 in 1st and just go at the track.

 

bjj, u a 5spd or auto?

 

Yup. My experience may not apply to a FWD Maxima but in my Z28 I'd put the sox on at about 2.2k RPM. With the turbo 400 and L82 converter that was about the time the rear wheels were breaking the beam at the track. On the street you have to play it by ear but in general if you left a traffic light about the time the rear of the car cleared the intersection was about right.

 

I am a 5-speed

 

35shot
2,3,4,5
2k-6.5k

1st gear only lasts a split second anyway, and 2nd isn't much better - at least on street tires.

 

ok, i read that the zex nitrous setup's are designed to spray at WOT, now for us auto boys........thats ALL the time, is this safe? im looking into getting one of these zex setups

 

75 shot/wet.

I agree with BJJ, I spray on 1st through 4th. I found spraying on 1st I get better times at the track and I start spraying around the 3000 rpm range. This where I get the best times.