Just wanted all to know that I have lowered price one final time on the dragster to $4750. If it does not sell by end Sept it goes into storage until I have time to start parting it out. It is still listed in the HAMB "Cars For Sale" section on this site.
A little update for those on the site. I am putting the dragster in store for 6 months while I have Hip Surgery and sell our house and move back over to the coast (Ventura/Camarillo Area). Hope to have operation in late Nov. I had second thoughts about selling the dragster as I always flet like it was unfinished business, never being able to make it run the numbers I know it can. So after we get settled from the move, I will pull it out and make some changes to help it out and see if I can meet my goal. If after the operation I still have trouble getting in/out of the car my old partner will drive for me. I'll still hang on the HAMB and throw my 1 cent in now and then. Good luck to all the racers, be safe.
Old28, Good luck with the surgery and hope ya have a speedy recovery! Glad to hear your keepin the ride for a bit longer, lookin forward to seeing what you get her to run.
I too hope all goes well with the dismantle, rebore and reassembly of the conrod and gudgeon pin area(hip). When I built my car I incorporated a step on the side. I've got 2 iffy knees and a section missing from 1 leg so I just put one foot on the step, swing the other over the bar onto the seat and slide into place.
300racr ---- Thanks for the good word on the operation & recovery, I am sure I will be a lot more mobile than I currently. The owner (that being me) is going to help the car out by dropping a few pounds during the recovery process. I have set a goal of 12.99 or better with the current Chevy 194" motor, only time will tell. spanners ---The dragster already has a side step, I can get in fine, it's getting out that is hard. This frame was not built for me and it is real tight and has no drop pan for my feet to help push me up and out. If I end up being able to drive again I will be making some changes to the frame and foot pan. If my old partner drives it he fits fine at 5'10" and at 175# and should o be good for a couple of tenths improvement.
Tom, are you going to eagle field? I`m planning to be there hoping to make my first non -driveway pass. I hope they will let me make the first one a single so I won`t endanger anyone.
No on Eagle Field, but I will be at ANRA race (pit cart only) to say hi and watch Saturdays doing. No problem on a single at Eagle Field, Rocky is on board for first time cars. A buddy of mine Scott & his wife will be there with two cars, both Pacific NW units, same as our SDRA cars but with 7" Pie Crust Slicks. Good luck, have fun and be safe.
If your old partner can't make it you can always count on me to shoe for you. Hopefully, this weekend I will get to drive our car. Dick has made a drop in pedal set for me. We will see what happens. Hoping to see you at ANRA and personally give you one of my speedy recovery hugs. Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
Well Tom, the offer from HAMBsterLady surely will keep you in the SDRA game. Also well wishes on the surgery, and moving, and your goals with the car and the little engine. Wow. You have a full plate Thanks for the tip on lowering the floor. I'll get to that in the spring. Maybe then I'll be able to get out of the car without prying with the back of my arms. They get pretty bruised doing that.
HAMBsterLady -- Thank you for the offers on driving ( we will do that again) and God willing I will be at the ANRA Final on Sat with my pit cart to get around, say hi to everyone and get my "recovery hug". Good luck to both you and dick this weekend at Eagle Field. bobw -- Ya, a full plate for sure, rented another storage shed today and will start moving the dragster and all shop/garage stuff to it in the next few weeks. I need to get it done before the operation so I don't have to deal with it after.I know you will love the lower floor/foot rest to help in getting out of the car After talking to a few people that big in the 6 cylinder building business I really feel the goal is obtainable. Time and a lot of testing will tell.
Regarding getting out of the car, you might also want to put strips of non-slip stair tread on the floor. It sure helps Tom and I get out of Dicks car. It helps you to get your feet under you. Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
Wow guys (& gal), those are some great tips for making a HAMBster "adaptive". LOL. Seriously though, keep the ideas coming. I had given up on the thought of being able drive a HA/GR but you are causing me to reconsider!
HAMBsterLady -- I put the non-slip stripes in after you drove last year. The main problem with the dragster is I can't get my feet under me to push up with. If I am able to drive after the operation I will be changing the floor so it has a drop pan to get my feet in. RacerRoy3 -- As I said in the above note the problem is the seperation amount between the seat bottom and the floor. Currently I have only 6" between them. I will remove all the floor, move my brake Master Cylinder & Peddle and build a drop floor pan that will give me a total of 12-14" between the seat bottom and the new pan floor. I am sure bobw is going to do his ride this spring. Got the idea from my buddy Scott from the Pacific NW group, his car is set up this way and it is very easy to get in & out of.
Old28 -- I think that you are on the right track. After we reach "a certain age", the knees and hips start to act up, having your butt lower than you knees really spells trouble. I have had a total shoulder joint replacement which leaves me with limited range of motion and the inability to pull myself up with my left arm. Coupled with the knee and hip thing it makes getting in and out a real issue particularly if you are trying to meet the egress requirements of certain sanctioning bodies. When looking at pictures of the lakes and salt cars of the '40's and '50's, I noticed that many of them had dropped floor pans. I assumed that this was to compensate for the channeling of the bodies over the frames which can really limit leg room. Anyone who has taken a close look at some of the radically lowered rat rods knows what I am talking about. I don't think sitting up a little higher in the breeze causes that much of a problem.
We are plannin on putting a dropped floor in mine aswell. To help in getting in and out, I may be a few years behind some of you but still plauged with knee problems too.
300racr & RacerRoy3 -- I am a real backer of the floor pan idea, first saw it in my buddy Scott (siderod) car from the Pacific NW SDRA style group. It works real well in his car. To get the total measured amount I sat in a chair with my feet on the floor then raised them to a point that was do-able and it worked out to 12-13" from seat bottom to floor pan bottom. I know it will help me if I am able to shoe the car next season.
That sounds like an a1 solution, we ain't getting any young or any more agile. Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
I shared this little detour about accessibility for HA/GR's with my bride. She offered the observation that we had covered all of the bases except the cane holder. I patiently explained to her that in the heat of competition the driver might have a "senior moment" and mistake the cane for the brake lever and take an unplanned trip through the sand trap.
Not to mention when you're halfway down the track and you............Dang, I forgot what I was going to say. Now I remember. You're halfway down the track and you........... Nope, lost it again.
I would buy into starting such a thread with one small modification. It should be: "Getting geezers into & out of the car". My wife just commented that "geezers have to have fun too"!
I don't have any trouble getting in the car, just say "HAMBsters to the staging lanes". I don't WANT to get out at the other end.
My problem is that at some point I will have to stop having fun and get OUT, that's when the trouble starts.
What if the pit crew attaches a rotisserie and turns you upside down and shakes you out of the car like sauce out of a bottle? You'll have a helmet on, so how much can it hurt?
Im a LONE WOLF driver, no pit crew. The only rotisserie I use at the track is on the grill for some good food with a few cold ones.
Well I have just returned home after having a new right hip installed and I am feeling real good. Was in Los Robles Hospital, Thousand Oaks, CA for the surgery and recovery for 4 days then moved to a rehab center in Camarillo, CA for 18 days. It will be a slow 4-6 month build to get back to a normal life but I am up to the challenge and plan to work out each day. Long term I would really like to get back in my SDRA dragster at a later date. I have some major changes I am going to make to the car so it will be easier to get in and out of. More on that later, but a T body is in the works. Car is packed away for the next few months until I can start working on it and we get moved back over to the "COAST" were I belong. Hope all had a nice Turkey Day and have a nice Holiday and New Years.
Old28, Good to hear from ya! Glad to hear your on the road to recovery. Happy Holidays to you aswell sir.
The Jalopy Journal
