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Reggie recently joined Bracket Masters Racing Team and is a great addition to our group.  Reggie's Duster will make the 2nd Mopar in our club that's dominated by Chevrolet's.  This Big Block 440 Duster is consistent and can always be counted on to go a few rounds.  Reggie has been racing for a lot of years and is a protégé of Mr. Hank Robinson (Mr. Mopar in Baton Rouge).  Reggie literally grew up in Hank's shop and has acquired a lot of the knowledge from the racers that are in and out of the shop.   Reggie is an excellent mechanic and a very wise and knowledgeable racer.  He has done the majority of the work on all the engines that the car has run.  Reggie is an avid follower of NHRA professional racing and attends at least one National Event each year along with Divisional events in our region.

Bracket Masters Racing Team welcomes the Jackson Family: Justin, Toshia, Reggie Jr.,  Mrs. Viola Jackson and Mr. Reggie, Sr.

Sept. 2001 - The engine in the Duster was recently rebuilt and is in the testing stage.  It is currently running in the low 11 second range, but is expected to drop into the 10's as soon as everything is sorted out.  The car recently passed NHRA Chassis Inspection and is ready to dip into the 9's.  Reggie may suprise someone shortly.

10/21/01 - Memphis, TN.  Reggie ran a 10.66 sec. ET (best ever) before #5 cylinder expired.  After removing the heads, we cannot determine exactly what happened to the cylinder wall.  The complete wall in gone and the piston is junk and the rod is broken.  The head is not repairable above #5.  All other cylinders and parts look good.  Nothing else is hurt!  The speculation is a flawed or cracked cylinder wall.  This motor only made 8 passes before failure. (Late entry - There was a broken Intake Valve in #5).
Reggie plans to put the old 440 CID motor back in.  This motor had been running fine for 8 years. (see entry at 3/23/02 - Racers find it hard to go slower!)

11/11/01 - Reggie has been selected to join the BMRT Board of Directors and he is also assigned to the Publicity Committee.  
Justin Jackson, Reggie's youngest son, and avid racing fan, attended the regular BMRT meeting. 

3/23/02 - Reggie has assembled all of the parts to put his motor back together.  It will be another 440 cid Big Block Mopar.  It will have special Mopar Aluminum Heads and some other innovations to make it perform at a higher level than the old motor.  Hank Robinson, a long time Mopar engine builder and Super Gas/Super Comp driver, is giving technical assistance and he will assemble the heads.  Reggie is targeting the mid to high nine's.  This motor will be extra special.  The converter is being freshened up and the stall speed changed to match the new Comp Cams cam.  Some interior sheet metal work has been done to make access to the transmission easier and the engine support system was modified to limit the travel of the motor.  Reggie is really serious this time. 

4/6/02 - The whole Jackson family traveled to New Iberia, LA for the 2002 Scout-O-Rama.  Although the car was not running, Reggie installed a dummy transmission and a broken block with water pump and distributor inserted.  He also had a cylinder head on one side with one piston inserted in one of the open cylinders.  This motor was used for "Show and Tell" for the Boy Scouts.  Reggie's idea was really great and generated a lot of conversation during the day.  Many people had never seen the inside of a motor. 

4/28/02 - The whole Jackson family, including Reggie Jr.,  traveled to Memphis, TN with the team.  Everyone had a very nice time at the 1st annual Bracket Race ShootOut at Memphis Raceway Park. 

5/16/02 - The new motor has been installed and is almost ready to breath first life.  This should happen sometime this weekend. 

5/19/02 - We have a Big Block!  Those were the words of Reggie Jackson after firing off the new motor over the weekend.  Reggie was working against the clock because he had to leave for an assignment early Monday morning.  Long time friend, advisor and Mopar engine builder, Hank Robinson, came over to put the final touches on the engine startup.  The motor sounds crisp and clean with no leaks or other problems.  Reggie's attention to detail has paid off in the first stages of the testing.  They can't wait to get to the track this coming Friday or Saturday to get in some real world testing. 

5/25/02 - The Duster went to State Capitol Dragway for Friday Test and Tune.  Reggie came off the trailer with a 10.78 second pass, shifting at 5200 RPM to keep it mild on the first pass.  Everything worked as it should and there were no leaks.  The car had a very intense technical inspection, requested by Reggie, to make sure the car is technically correct.  We run the cars all over the country and we want to be safe and correct wherever we run.  Reggie made one more pass in the first round of competition, and won, but put the car on the trailer and headed home.  He and Brother Ronnie, Viola, Justin and Toshia his pit crew, where very pleased with their efforts to build the new motor and get down the track with no problems.  It is a very satisfying feeling to help build your own motor and have it perform the way you expect.  The next time Reggie brings the car out he will raise the shift point and let it all hang out!

6/23/02 - Reggie and Viola attended the Annual BMRT Picnic at State Capitol Dragway and participated the racing.  The Duster ran well but due to the close tolerances in the motor, three spark plug gaps were found to be closed.  After inserting Index Washers to move the plug tips out of harms way, the car ran well.  Minor electrical work on the line lock circuit also took place.  The picnic was a great success and enjoyed by all. 

6/29/02 - Reggie took the Duster to No Problem Raceway Park and another unfortunate occurrence happened to the motor.  During the first run, against another Mopar, a Viper, Reggie had a great Five-O light but couldn't hole off the charging Viper when he ran a 10.76.  At the end of the run, the RPM would not go back to normal.  The motor was shut down and several things were checked.  The car was returned home and during a check of the valves, a broken exhaust (Correction - INTAKE) valve was discovered.  We will wait for the head removal to determine the extent of the damage (we hope, very little, as no metal particles were found in the oil or anywhere in the lifter galleys after the intake was removed). 

7/6/02 - Reggie and Skip removed the motor and transmission after the head on the right side was removed and taken to Hank's Auto Performance for investigation.  The head of the exhaust (Correction - INTAKE) valve was stuck in the valve seat.  The top of #6 piston was trashed but the head had very little damage and will be saved by installing a new seat, guide and valve.  

7/12/02 - Reggie is reluctant to return the motor to service without knowing why this combination has broken two exhaust (Correction - INTAKE)  valves when everything seems to be OK and he cannot find a problem that tells what happened.  Reggie is in the process of calling tech. lines to question the different vendors of the heads, valves, springs, cam, fuel pump and carburetor.  The valve company has offered another set of valves for free, but will not tell what they found on the first failure, which was sent back for analysis.  Reggie will send this set back also.  We are not naming any companies because we do not have all the facts yet. 

8/7/02 - Received this information from Reggie.  "Still waiting to have the cylinder repaired.  The valve seat needed replacing.   I talked to the manufacturers tech. rep. for the valves that I was running.  They pointed to a problem in the valve train.  I checked everything that he suggested may have caused the problem and found nothing wrong with the valve train or setup.  I have purchased another set of valves from another manufacturer.  I hope that this solves the problem.  However, to be on the safe side, I have modified the fuel system, the ignition system and will add a charging system to the car.  After the engine is reinstalled, I will have to make some brackets to make the charging system mount up correctly.  I hope to have the car running within the next couple of weeks."

8/11/02 - Reggie picked up the Jr. Dragster from Keith's Pro Paint & Body on Sat. afternoon.  He towed it to No Problem raceway Park for the Baby Pro-Mod Race.  The Jr. Dragsters were not running but it did get to appear in the Cox Communication-Louisiana Drag Classic commercial that was shot at this event. Reggie was in charge of this operation and he instructed the kids on how to start the engine and the precautions necessary to drive the dragster.  Many children had a chance to sit in the dragster and play with the controls.  

Reggie with Jr. Dragster 

9/6/02 - Reggie visited the Glen Oaks High School Automotive Class to introduce himself and to give them information on the NHRA Youth Education Services (YES) program.  See the Jr. Dragster Program page for more information on YES.  

If first impressions make a difference, the Glen Oaks High School (GOHS) Automotive Class, from the instructor, Mr. Lyons, to the fine young men in the beginning class, to the excellent facilities, made a very favorable first impression.  Reggie, who works as a Engineering Specialist at a nuclear power plant, has a lot of experience in what it takes to make an excellent program.  Excellence is a way of life at a nuclear facility.  Reggie gave GOHS an "A" for his first visit. 

Mr. Lyons has invited the team to visit his class whenever we are available and would like for us to speak to his classes.  The young men are all very respectable, very well mannered and helpful.  The school's program has state-of-the-art equipment and they work on new vehicles for practice.  The vehicles are donated from different organizations around the Baton Rouge area.  When the young men finish the course, they are able to go to work in many automotive dealerships and auto repair facilities in the area.  Mr. Lyons is a certified mechanic, and the GOHS program is the only Certified Automotive Repair Program in the area and one of the very few in the state.  

Reggie was given a chance to speak to Mr. Lyons' class and show a portion of the NHRA Youth Education Services (YES) program tape to the young men.  We are sure that a good working relationship between the GOHS Automotive Program and Bracket Masters Racing Team will develop and enhance both organizations. 

9/28/02 - Reggie, helped by Reggie Jr., installed the motor and transmission today.  The start-up should be completed late Sunday.  Skip will tune the carburetor after the startup.  Reggie has been working out of town the last 2 weeks, working long hours and this weekend was the first time he had a chance to work on his motor installation.  Reggie is using his extensive knowledge of nuclear reactor materials to consult with one of the sister plants owned by the electric utility he works for.

10/4/02 - Reggie was at No Problem Raceway Park to test the rebuilt motor in the Duster on Friday night.  The car ran very respectable and sounded very good.  Reggie will be ready for the Challenge Race at the Louisiana Drag Classic this coming weekend, October 12-13, 2002. 

10/13/02 - Reggie's Duster ran very well all weekend as he tuned up for the Team Challenge Race between New Orleans and Bracket Masters.   In the Team Challenge Race at the Louisiana Drag Classic, Reggie ran a little too quick in the final round and finished Runner-Up to team mate John Collins.   Reggie earned a large 2nd place trophy for his efforts.  Congratulations Reggie!

11/6/02 - (Update sent in by Reggie Jackson):  Took the car to SCD on Nov. 2, 2002.  The Duster ran consistent all day with no mechanical problems.  Driver needs to get back to cutting good lights and not worrying about mechanical problems (PART FAILURE).  My brother, Ronnie, served as my pit crew during this trip.  Car ran a best time of 10.71 sec. at 121.7 miles per hour.  I plan on parking the car for the holidays and make some tuning adjustments to the chassis setup.  Will be more than ready to race when the track opens after the holidays.

12/14/02 - Reggie took the Duster to No Problem Raceway Park and had good luck and bad luck.  He won in the first round, running a 10.70 on a 10.65 dial-in.  That time would have been much lower had he not let up as soon as he caught the other car at about the 1000 ft. mark.  After that round the electric motor on the water pump gave out and Reggie retired for the day.  Everything worked perfect, up to that point.  He is very pleased with the new motor!  

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