USAC Racing Forum

Which is best to run and why?

That depends on whose car they are...on my son's car I want a squared off rear bumper...on all the other kids cars, I want them to have an angled/pointed bumper. ;)

Oh, you wanted to know why too...I have seen kids that have been driving awhile get up on the angled/pointed bumpers and really move the rear end of the car around a lot on the track, especially if they have a partially caved in front bumper themselves.  I really am squaring off AJ's bumper on his Stanley to avoid that from happening as much.

Dosen't matter we have been spun with both. I had a square one on for most of the season.  If they hit you in the left rear the can move you just the same as with a pointed bumper. I put the pointed one back on.

I started making all of ours square a few years back for the reason Freitas gave.  Yes, a triangle rear bumper will enable one from behind to push you around even if it is not intentional.  If they hit just a little off center, the triangle will push around much easier than the square rear bumper will.  You can still be hit or hooked with a square, just not as easily and the little non-intentional bumps won’t turn out as bad with the square bumpers.

Test a few models on the dining room table using cut out metal or wood blocks and you will see what I mean.  ;-)

We use the square. I have seen kids hit the pointed one and actually loose it right into the rear tires of the car in front of them. I know my driver would not forget someone that does this too him. He is a little Dale Sr. and Kyle Busch in one, sorry to say.

Thanks,
Mike

I have an angled bumper for sale if anyone wants one.   ;D

It seems to me that a squared bumper would be better going down the front and back stretch.
An angled bumper would be better in the turns.

Angled bumpered cars get turned around on corners the most, especially on starts/restarts. If the push from behind is even slightly off center, then the car will get loose or get turned. 

We make and run angled bumpers so that our cars look like a real midget/sprint car. As a dad when my 2 boys are out there driving together I believe the angled bumper teaches them how they can race someone else, either closely or when its too close. Weather a bumper is squared or angled if you have a driver who doesnt understand how to push with his bumper or drive properly then they are going to turn cars around no matter what. I think trying to make all cars have squared bumpers would just turn some racing into more of a push fest then racing. Plus if you turn a car around on the bumper, its better then pushing them into the wall.

Well put A&J. Experienced drivers have learned how to hook a square bumper and you cant hook an angled bumper as easy. Micros & midgets have angled bumpers and I think QM's should too. It teaches the kids to drive better. Thats the idea of a square front and angled rear...harder to push or hook.

I would say that even though you can get roughed up and turned with either style, it's much more noticeable if you run a squared off bumped. That's the benefit of it, if someone roughs you up enough to spin you with a squared bumped, it's going to be completely blatant.

  Squared or angled bumper how long can the bumper be? I have seen some bumpers that are 6 to 8" from the body. That can cause problems also.

My concern wasn’t so much my drivers bumping others as it was others bumping and pushing us around on lineups.  After being sent to the tail because someone turned us around a few times, I broke out the stainless tubing and tig welder and helped fix that problem.  ;-)  Plus at 12.00 each I could keep the cars looking great all year long…