Is this what I've always called "The McCarthy MERCER" that lived most of its life about 600 feet behind me until 1962? The car is now in the Simeone collection. Wisehart lived in Greenwich about 45 minutes away. It has odd detachable wheels, is the chassis drilled for brackets or not?
1911 Mercer Racing. DPL photo and caption. I would guess Syracuse judging by the banner seen in post #904.
Kurtis, that is either a Library of Congress photo or possibly a George Waterman photo and a pretty good one at that. That is Pullen at the Astor Cup race at Sheepshead Bay in September 1916 (Joe Thomas was his riding mechanic in the race). The bodywork is one of the ill fated 1915 Indy cars that had the first of the Erik Delling OHC engines. The first set of three OHC cars he built had the cam drive at the rear of the engine and he had real trouble getting them to run right, allegedly because of lack of proper connecting rod and piston material due to the war, if my memory of his reason is correct. In 1916 the second set of OHC engines with the cam drive at the front were ready to run and they put one of those engines I believe in this 1915 bodywork driven by Pullen. The latter 1916 bodywork was a bit different and I believe they changed the bodywork on at least one or two of the cars after this race to the newer bodywork as Thomas drove one of the newer style later in the year in the West Coast events. This Pullen car carried the #4 in the race and Pullen later drove the #4 with the newer bodywork at Tacoma in 1918. Joe Thomas had #3 on his OHC mount in late 1916 and then switched to #6 for 1917 and then back to #3 again for 1919. In the Sheepshead Bay 9/30 race the other Mercer was driven by Ruckstell but he blew a tire and flipped the car but neither he nor his mechanic Clarence Quicksell were injured. Ruckstell had the 1915 bodywork for this Astor Cup as well although after it was damaged they may have switched to the newer bodywork with the more aerodynamic radiator (and the bodywork had the venting on the sides done differently)-Jim
It kind of looks like Pullen there although other pics I have of Pullen don't look so close-you may be right-Jim
Jim, Thanks for the info. The Astor Cup race you mentioned had a 300ci limit, am i correct? If so, when did the rules come into effect?
Harold- Higgins-Mercer far left and eddie Pullen - Mercer Auto Co. DPI photo and caption. Looks like Pullen with Delling? in the engineering or testing lab room. That is an l-head crankcase on the cart.
37kid RE: Post#909 Is this what I've always called "The McCarthy MERCER" that lived most of its life about 600 feet behind me until 1962? The car is now in the Simeone collection. Wisehart lived in Greenwich about 45 minutes away. It has odd detachable wheels, is the chassis drilled for brackets or not? That car has been inspected with a fine tooth comb and there in no evidence of the frame ever having been drilled. The wheels on it are different than the photo you sent.....they are Michelin racing wheels and rims with a single twisting hold on device. Best, Walking Beam.
Thanks Jim. I had to ask 'cause it's a little confusing at times. I noticed the 300ci limit {231 to 301ci} was implemented in the early Elgin Road races but some cars, including the Mercers were exceeding that limit. In the case of the Mercer, it came to 305ci. Were the cars penalised extra weight or were they passed to race in this configuration? Obviously i'm still learning American racing but were the later Mercer engines you mentioned exactly on the cubic inch limit?
T-Head great pic. It has been published somewhere before and no question regarding Pullen. I cannot remember if I have a picture of Delling-I thought I did but CRS. Delling though had worked in a number of European auto factories before coming to America in 1907. I would guess he would be in his late thirties or forties by the L-head era and the guy next to Pullen looks a bit younger than that. Still a great pic-Jim
Kurtis you are correct that some exceeded the limit and I cannot swear how they allowed it. The Mercers though were listed at 300.7 and they were allowed to run in the 300c.i. races. Most stayed below the limit though (at least on paper). I may have it in my notes somewhere but God only knows where-Jim
NO! John McCarthy a local Plumbing Contractor who owned a 1911 MERCER from some time before 1919 and sold at auctiion in 1962 for $15,500. Winner beat out a very good friend that had arranged a bank loan for $15,000.
Last of my Mercer pics. Time to call Paris and Liege again. 1913 CHICAGO AUTO CLUB TROPHY. #20 Joe Dawson-Deltal-finished 2nd & #21 Ralph DePalma-Mercer 35T-finished 1st. 1916 AMERICAN GRAND PRIZE. Santa Monica, CA. Glover Ruckstell=MERCER.
This will always be "The McCarthy MERCER" to me. John McCarthy was a very good plumbing contractor and found the MERCER here in town sometime before 1919, the year his daughter was born. She told me the car was a wedding gift to someone in town who was tragicly killed in a rollover on Rt33, most likely a mile or so from were I am now. This may explain why the car has a 1911 chassis and later engine and transmission. I've been tolk by someone very knowledgeable in New Jerseythat it is the best T Head out there.................but I think that would b a tie with the exPeter Helck car. I still want to ride shotgun in both of them...........OK, just looked at that blowup, the wheels on the "McCarthy car are different than the ones in the era photo.
I believe your photo is of Californian Kelly Petillo in Nov 1932 at Oakland Speedway.(His second AAA start) His car appears to be Leon Duray's 1931 Duray Spl underslung Stevens:Whippett Duray 2C engine driven by Duray at 1931 Indy 500 which proved to be Duray's last AAA start after failing to Q at Indy in 1934. photo courtesy IMS archives The same car reappeared at the 1935 Indy 500 as The Bowes Seal Fast Spl In it, Rookie Johnny Hannon died in a crash on his first practice lap at speed. Rookie Clay Weatherly died when he plowed through the Turn 4 wall on the ninth lap of the race, ironically in the same car as Hannon. edit: There were two Duray cars, the sister car was #44
Great pics Kurtis. The best pic I have seen yet of the Deltal and the other pic answers my question that they still had the 1915 bodywork on Ruckstell's car in November of 1916 (after he flipped it in September).-Jim
Buildy, there a good article on them in one of the club publications maybe in the 60' or 70's. It was either in the Bulb Horn or the Antique Automobile. I will keep it in mind to think about just which one and when it was. Best, T-Head
A pretty Mercer Raceabout. http://www.flickr.com/photos/38583460@N06/4187177251/sizes/l/ Another http://www.flickr.com/photos/95528302@N00/1131884876/sizes/l/ The Mc Carthy Mercer? http://www.flickr.com/photos/7585509@N05/3494997945/sizes/l/
Mr. Paine from Maine, He was wearing a red and black checked shirt the day he got the car for $15,500. I tend to remember details like that.
Buildy, That white MERCER with the 7 on the radiator is a restored one I've never seen before. The other is the former McCarthy MERCER.
Buildy, I need to get out in the shop and get something done so I will give you the short version. Delling designed this L-head 4 cylinder (my guess in 1912) along with a fellow MIT student Hackenthal. There is a pretty decent write-up in The Automobile February 26, 1914 with pictures and a cross sectional drawing-worth getting if you want the particulars of the engine. They raved on its high speed, high efficiency, poppet valve design...with 4 cylinders 4x6 rated at 25.4 HP...its cubic displacement 300 inches. If you were to study the later Mercer 22-70 they are remarkably similar except the Deltal had five main bearings whereas the Mercer had three. It raced only once that I know of that being Elgin in 1913,finishing second a remarkable feat for a new and untested engine. There was an absolutely deplorable piece entitled The Mercer Metamorphosis written on the car in Bulb Horn (June of 1984). There are some good pictures but the hit job on Eric Delling is astounding and as I said, deplorable. Finley R Porter was a very accomplished engineer for having no formal education to speak of. His early T-head goes without saying was a very well designed and successful motor. Delling though was no slouch. Delling has been described by some "authors-researchers???" over the years as a fraud and an exaggerator of his accomplishments and several articles including this Bulb Horn article questions his credentials. Delling graduated as a mechanical engineer from the College of Technology of Charlottenberg Germany and worked at several European auto factories before coming to America in 1907. Some of these so-called researchers raise questions about his claim of attending MIT (which he did attend night school there while he was working on his language and differences in US and European ideas on engineering-wise indeed). His accomplishments at Mercer were very impressive as well. According to William White President of Mercer, Delling designed the whole Model F racing car (1913) and the Mercer L-head bore his design elements. He also designed two sets of OHC engines (the first set no too great but the second set very impressive). Not all that much has been written on the Deltal and if you can get a copy of the Mercer Metamorphosis it is worth it for the pictures I suppose, as long as you read the text with an extremely large grain of salt.-Jim
"Buildy, That white MERCER with the 7 on the radiator is a restored one I've never seen before." I `m not familiar with that one either.It was at Amelia Island.
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