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The Other Street Slingshot

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by J.Ukrop, Jul 30, 2013.

  1. J.Ukrop
    Joined: Nov 10, 2008
    Posts: 2,789

    J.Ukrop
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  2. flamingokid
    Joined: Jan 5, 2005
    Posts: 2,200

    flamingokid
    Member

    Neat idea,but you couldn't get me to drive that in California traffic,not even 40+ years ago.I'd feel safer on a murdercycle.
     
  3. seatex
    Joined: Oct 24, 2006
    Posts: 2,670

    seatex
    Member

    Hey, it would look cool cruising Congress in front of the Continental, though! Did he know what happened to the car, Joey?
     
  4. cmyhtrod
    Joined: Nov 29, 2008
    Posts: 360

    cmyhtrod
    Member
    from ct

    Murdercycle... Ain't that the truth
     

  5. J.Ukrop
    Joined: Nov 10, 2008
    Posts: 2,789

    J.Ukrop
    SUPER MODERATOR
    Staff Member

    Sadly, like many of these machines, its whereabouts are unknown. I fear that it got turned into a ribbon-painted/Ansen-magged/Velvet-tuft interiored product of the '70s. Or maybe it was just tucked away somewhere and forgotten about...
     
  6. Bitchen! I remember the SOHC powered street legal digger, and then there was another T that had front wheel pants that was pretty radical.

    Never seen this one!

    What kind of heads are those? They have two hold down studs in the middle of the valve cover...

    Being Tom McMullen's room mate... Jeez, the stories they could tell!

    Sam
     
  7. AHotRod
    Joined: Jul 27, 2001
    Posts: 12,216

    AHotRod
    Member

    I wanted to build one of those SO bad in the '70's .... today they would still stop the crowds.
    Love 'em!
     
  8. raven
    Joined: Aug 19, 2002
    Posts: 4,698

    raven
    Member

    Ha, and they say fiberglass bodies aren't trad...
    r
     
  9. saltflats
    Joined: Aug 14, 2007
    Posts: 12,592

    saltflats
    Member
    from Missouri

    I wounder what that tailgater would yhink if you through out the laundry.
     
  10. chigger
    Joined: Jan 30, 2009
    Posts: 169

    chigger
    Member


    Hell , I want to build one in the NOW!
     
  11. hugh m
    Joined: Jul 18, 2007
    Posts: 2,143

    hugh m
    Member
    from ct.

    Pretty sure the car with the wheel covers was from Hamden, here in Connecticut. Maybe someone else will remember it. Given the parameters of such a build, it was pretty nice.
     
  12. 39cent
    Joined: Apr 4, 2006
    Posts: 1,569

    39cent
    Member
    from socal

    not much different than a fad T --least it does have a rollbar
     
  13. Paul
    Joined: Aug 29, 2002
    Posts: 16,382

    Paul
    Editor

    where do I draw the line?
    basicly when you loose control
    like lifting the wheels on take off,
    continueing on straight when the road turns
    or sliding unpredictably when you lock the brakes
    or just having to run race gas with a two gallon tank

    other than that it there is no line
     
  14. catdad49
    Joined: Sep 25, 2005
    Posts: 6,397

    catdad49
    Member

    Have that issue somewhere and remember it well. The cars where pretty radical then, still outside the norm and Kool.
     
  15. Nick32vic
    Joined: Jul 17, 2003
    Posts: 3,050

    Nick32vic
    Member

    Cool feature Joey.

    That car is great. I actually think about where to draw the line when building a hot rod quite a bit. It crossed my mind a few times at the Meltdown Drags when looking at and thinking about Pauls blue model A coupe. Personally, I draw the line early. My next hot rod will be a zippy street car first and formost. Hopefully over time ill be able to make it faster without losing streetability. I like driving hot rods a lot and you just dont get to do that at racetracks very often. Mr. Joey Ukrop knows as well as anyone that if im competing, im doing it to the absolute best of my ability. That means If im racing a car more than once or twice a year, its going to be a RACE car. I wouldnt want to limit myself on the street or on the strip by having a dual purpose car.

    With that being said, I think its really cool when guys go the extra mile to do both and have a car thats actually good at both. The best example I can think of is FlamedABone. He s a hero. The dude drives that car from S. Carolina to the HAMB drags and still dips into the 10's. Its only a matter of time before he puts wings on it, flys it to Joplin, and then runs 9:50 in the 1/4.


    Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
     
  16. J.Ukrop
    Joined: Nov 10, 2008
    Posts: 2,789

    J.Ukrop
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    Thanks for the kind words, Nick. Now about your next hot rod...
     
  17. takehikes
    Joined: Feb 20, 2008
    Posts: 7

    takehikes
    Member
    from napa

    I'm a friend of Dave's, we worked together for Tom McMullen at AEE Choppers...well actually Dave was the designer/engineer behind all of our parts and incredible bikes and I was a parts man.
    Dave still has the ability and mad genius to build some immensely interesting things. He recently completed a trike with two Suzuki 4 cylinder motors side by side (so a straight 8 if you will) up front running through a C4 just for fun! He designed and built it all, springer front end, frame, body, rear end..everything. We are also working on an AEE tribute chopper, a replica of one of the bikes Dave designed and built back in the day. I located nearly all the 40 year old parts needed and started assembly and Dave has been making it right as only he can.
    His collection of cars is interesting and wild. Great guy and a true hot rodder in every sense, he can do it all! Thanks so much for recognizing him.
     
  18. pbr40
    Joined: Aug 10, 2008
    Posts: 874

    pbr40
    Member
    from NW Indiana

    That thing is pure crazyness!!!! Badass story thanks joey
     
  19. I rode in that car. Had to change my shorts after the ride. Tom had an Auston with in line chev small blocks.
     
  20. wsdad
    Joined: Dec 31, 2005
    Posts: 1,259

    wsdad
    Member

    Thanks for those pictures and your article.

    Do you have any more pictures that didn't make it into the article that "landed on the cutting room floor?" I think everyone would love to see them as well.

    Also, do you have any more information about the car or builder that didn't make it into the article?

    More! More! More!
     
  21. 3rd Gen Hot Rodder
    Joined: Jan 8, 2009
    Posts: 405

    3rd Gen Hot Rodder
    Member
    from Indiana

    [​IMG]
    I am blessed to have the dragster that my late grandfather (and my namesake) Bill Bronson raced in the mid 50s. In above photo you can see the license plate between the tanks. As I understand from many of the kids in his neighborhood (he lived on Main street in a small central Indiana town that I am proud to still call home) he would drive down Main street to 'warm the car up' before getting gas at the station 5 or 6 blocks away and then drive it back, put it on the trailer and head to the dragstrip.
    We believe it was the first car built in the state of Indiana specifically for drag racing. I have a trophy from 54 and a Indiana title from 55. More photos and history can be seen at the link in my signature.
     
  22. J.Ukrop
    Joined: Nov 10, 2008
    Posts: 2,789

    J.Ukrop
    SUPER MODERATOR
    Staff Member

    As for the car, I just stumbled upon one more photo the other day...

    As for the man...stay tuned, because I think there's going to be much more on him.
     

    Attached Files:

  23. denis4x4
    Joined: Apr 23, 2005
    Posts: 4,198

    denis4x4
    ALLIANCE MEMBER
    from Colorado

    In the mid-sixties, I shot a photo feature of a street legal dragster for Hot Rod. Owned by a San Diego fireman, first name Joe, it featured a T-bucket body. I can't tell you how many of my B&W negatives and Kodachrome color slides of cars from that era were lost in moves and house cleaning.
     
  24. A slingshot for the street. Damn, that would be fun!
     
  25. Nick32vic
    Joined: Jul 17, 2003
    Posts: 3,050

    Nick32vic
    Member

    THAT. IS. SO. COOL. Thank you so much for posting! I'm going to start following your AEE blog!
     
  26. tfeverfred
    Joined: Nov 11, 2006
    Posts: 15,791

    tfeverfred
    Member Emeritus

  27. wsdad
    Joined: Dec 31, 2005
    Posts: 1,259

    wsdad
    Member

    This is the unofficial story of how "Buc," the Street Slingshot was made.

    [​IMG]





    Chapter 1

    Tommy's t-bucket (Hank) was sitting in the garage, thinking about all the fun they just had last weekend. They'd gone down to the Burger Barn to meet some friends. Later, they all went to the drag strip. Tommy and Hank flew down the quarter mile, time after time, beating everyone, and even set a new track record!

    [​IMG]

    Even though Hank and Tommy were best friends, Hank still wished there was another car to talk to. He wanted someone to keep him company in the garage at night. Sometimes it's almost as much fun to re-live your adventures through telling another car about them. No human can understand the freedom and power of going full throttle down the quarter mile like another car. Sometimes he thought he had too much time to think.

    [​IMG]

    Hank woke up early the next morning as Tommy opened the garage door. The sunlight was bright. Tommy was unloading some sheet metal and some kind of structure made out of steel tubes. He set them next to the beautiful Buick nail head engine that they had been souping up. What could he be building? An engine lift? A swing set? A dune buggy? The only hint was the word, "Fuller" written on the side of it.

    [​IMG]

    Hank watched Tommy over the next few weeks as he measured, cut, bent, welded, ground, bolted, sanded, and painted. Hank began to recognize a Slingshot dragster taking shape beside him! Finally, Tommy bolted the wheels on. Then he carefully lowered the Nail Head into the chassis. What a beauty! She was long, sleek and slender. Her chrome headers went all the way back to her wheels, almost all the way to the driver! They were set at the same angle as her roll bar and it made her look like she was going 100 miles an hour just sitting still!

    [​IMG]


     
    Hank had never seen anything like it. She was beautiful.

    Tommy turned the key. She sputtered a little. He adjusted the timing and tried again. Suddenly, she came to life!

    Hank was so excited! The sound was pure music!

    "Hi," Hank blurted. "My name is Hank."

    "Hello, Hank. I'm Velocity."

    Over time, Hank and Velocity became good friends. They loved to race each other and their friends at the drag strip. They went nearly every weekend. They even went on tour to other drag strips and even began to get a little famous. They seldom lost unless one of them hit a slick spot on the track.

    [​IMG]

     
    Velocity had to ride on a trailer behind Hank to all drag strips because she wasn't street legal. She didn't have any rear suspension, headlights or even windshield wipers. Anything that didn't make her go fast was removed to save weight. The less weight she had, the faster she could accelerate. She didn't even have a radiator! That's the way she was made. But Hank didn't mind. It just made her sleeker. He was proud to pull such a famous and beautiful red slingshot dragster around behind him. Once she got off the trailer and onto a drag strip, no one could beat her, not even Hank!

    But sometimes he felt sorry for her when she had to stay in the garage while he and Tommy went out for a burgers with their friends. He'd tell her all about it when they got back home. It was almost like she was there - but not quite. They'd laugh and talk until late at night. When they couldn't stay awake any longer, Hank would go back to his side of the garage and fall happily asleep.

    Hank would dream about all the great times that he and Velocity had together. He slowly began to realize that he was falling in love with her. It took him a while to decide to tell her. What if she didn't say it back? After all, she had gone out with that Grabowski bucket a couple of times. He had raced and beat Garbowsky, but what if she was still undecided?

    [​IMG]

     
    Well, he needn't have worried. She threw her skinny little motorcycle tires around his radiator neck and hugged him so tight, it made his distributor dizzy. She said she had felt the same way for quite some time but just didn't want to say it. Hank couldn't believe it!

    Hank and Velocity were inseparable from then on.

    Eventually, they got married. It was a beautiful wedding. Velocity looked beautiful in her veil and white dress. Hank stood around with his hands in his tux, smiling and nodding at all the well wishers and shaking hands. All their friends and family were there. They were a perfect match for each other.

    But wait, the story's not over yet. Here's where Buc comes in...


    Chapter 2


    After about a year, Hank and Velocity had Buc. Buc looked a little like both of them. He had his mom's light weight slingshot chassis, engine and wheels. He had his dad's t-bucket body, suspension, and radiator. He had the best of both of them, but best of all, he was street legal.

    [​IMG]

     
    Tommy could drive Buc to work every day. Tommy's girl friend could even ride to the movies with him in the passenger's seat. Then they could drive to the drag strip to make a few 1/4 mile passes, and they did pretty well! There was no trailer for Buc. He was a street slingshot T-bucket!

    Whenever Tommy drove Buc on the street, they would occasionally pass another t-bucket, but they would never see another slingshot dragster! Slingshots weren't allowed on the street. But Buc was. He even had his own licence plate. He could drive anywhere.

    They'd see other slingshots at the drag strip, but after their 1/4 mile fun was done, they all had to be loaded onto trailers and parked in lonely garages until the next time they could be hauled back to the track. They couldn't go out for a malt. But Buc and Tommy could go for a drive whenever they wanted.

    It made Hank and Velocity very proud when Buc did his first wheelie at the track - after picking up a head of cabbage!

    Buc grew up strong and fast. It came time for him to move out of his parent's garage and find one of his own. Tommy placed an ad in the paper. At first, it was hard to find a buyer.

    Not everyone 'got" Buc. A lot of guys responded to the ad - mostly out of curiosity. Some would laugh at his odd headers or kick his wide tires. Sometimes they would point out that he had no trunk or that he got bad gas mileage. But he wasn't built for mileage. He was built for speed! Others would offer "suggestions for improvement" such as quieter mufflers or air conditioning. One of them even said he had, "crossed the line" - whatever that meant.

    But Buc was no mass produced car - full of compromises between comfort, mileage, trunk space and cup holders. He was purpose-built for speed (and possibly, to look cool) and he did it very, very well. He wouldn't compromise. He knew the right guy would come along.

    Dave was just that guy. When they went for a test drive, he almost couldn't suppress his grin every time he stepped on the gas. Even idling at a stoplight was pure joy. Dave loved the rumpity - rump sound. He loved the acceleration. He loved to feel of the massive torque that pushed him back in the seat. He loved the thought of driving a slingshot dragster on the street. Buc had a new home.

    Buc and Dave became fast friends. They went everywhere together. The goofy grin on Dave's face was good enough for Buc. He didn't have to please everyone. That was for mass produced cars, not a Street Slingshot.

    All he and Dave had to do was
    accelerate!
     

    [​IMG]
     

    Attached Files:

    Last edited: Aug 18, 2013
    Flathead Freddie likes this.
  28. J.Ukrop
    Joined: Nov 10, 2008
    Posts: 2,789

    J.Ukrop
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    I love it. Very creative.
     
  29. Flathead Freddie
    Joined: May 9, 2021
    Posts: 806

    Flathead Freddie
    Member

    Thanks that's a great writing with alot of research involved I'm sure . Outstanding & Enjoyable ! Made my day !
     

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