Projects NEW BUILD-OTIE'S AUTOMOTIVE B/A FIAT TOPOLINO TRIBUTE

Just started putting together a replica/tribute of the Otie's Automotive Fiat Topolino. It will be my first drag car and my first scratch build.
As far as I know the car was originally built and raced by Waldo Hirschfield and K.S. Pittman and won B/A at the 61 US Nationals. The car then came to Ohio and was purchased by Otis Smith for his son Bill as his first race car while still in high school. Bill raced the car in 62 and 63. The car was then disassembled and the chassis was used to build Oties 23T that he raced in 64. Bill went on to race gas dragsters. The car is being built as a tribute to make full quarter mile passes.

Looking for more pictures of the car and wondering if anybody out there knows the whereabouts of Waldo Hirschfield..

 

Good luck on your new endeavor . Looking forward to future progress.

 

Cool

 

Great project. Gotta' love a steel Fiat!!

 

Very cool, love these early drag cars. I had the same set in my dragster, 6-71 blown hilborn 2 port SBC, was a blast to drive and would destroy the 9" slicks & clutch unfortunately!

 

Neat project! Nice to see all of the tribute cars coming out of the woodwork, its great to be able to show the youngsters what the golden age of drag racing gave birth to!

On another note, I cant help with the drive itself, but I do have a NOS Isky idler pulley bracket for the rat motors if you come to needing one!

Keep building!

 

Thanks, I just got a SBC idler bracket in todays mail. Got the patch panels ordered and the body left to get blasted today.

What I really need to find is a pair of hinges and a handle/latch for the drivers door. This was an old drag car body that had the drivers door welded shut. If you know anyone with Fiat parts please ask, I'm having no luck so far.

For the blower drive, I'm at a minimum looking for a short Isky snout and tri-plate. The correct idler pulley and water pump pulley would be helpful also.

 

This is going to be a GREAT ONE!

 

Cool to see another altered.

 

Anybody recognize this decal?
It's the best picture I have and the only one we cannot figure out.

 

Have found and purchased an Isky short snout, crank hub, intake, idler bracket and water pump pulley. Thanks to all who have helped.

Still looking for an Isky tri-plate and 2"drive pulleys, idler pulley and stud.

 

Found a great set of doors and the missing hinges. Thanks for the lead Chopper. Thanks again Wayne for selling me your extra parts .
It's going to move things along much faster not having to patch up my rusty doors.

 

Picked up the glass front end today from Class Glass and Performance in Cumberland, MA. It's a great looking piece.

 

Your wealcome on the parts. It was nice meeting you guys. It was good knowing the parts went to a nice guy who was going to put them to good use. I held on to them for 45 years,now they went to an other good home.

 

Time to start figuring out the chassis!

 

Nice.

 

Found the best picture yet.
Bill in the car with Otie firing it up at the 62 Nationals.

 

Finally figured out the mystery decal from the new Nats picture.
Cragar Happy Hoss-Power

 

Neat project, Best of luck with the build!
Look forward to seeing it make a few passes!
KK

 

Way Cool Build !
I 'll follow along...

 

1962 Dragway 42

 

Finally starting to make some progress, sheet metal to repair the body finally showed from the Netherlands. Super nice guys I talked too, but I don't think they move at the same speed as us on this side of the pond. We started the body work this week, replacing both rockers and the tail pan. Found a pair of super nice model A frame rails (thanks Rob) and the boxing kit showed up a couple days ago.

Got a call two days ago and got invited to the Gasser Reunion at Thompson, OH. They want us to bring whatever we have finished and they invited Bill Smith to sign autographs in the legends tent. I have 12 weeks left, looking like a lot of sleep deprived nights coming up over the next 3-months.

The most exciting part, at least for me, is I found a complete Isky blower setup exactly like what was on the car. I was so exited when it arrived my wife didn't even mind when I had it on the living room table.

 

Got my 59 Olds rear end housing back from being narrowed, tough to find someone that can still do them.
Thank you Al Goodman for digging out your old fixtures. Al's a super nice guy with a lot of good advice. His second question after asking how wide and what are we building was "who's going to drive it".

 

1. Found a 327 block (in Bill Smiths garage) that was bought new, machined at Otie's and never used. Been sitting in a damp garage for the last 50 years. Currently out getting acid washed and shot peened to see if it's worth using. I hope it's OK, I think it would be really awesome to have something that actually went through the shop in the car. Check out the stamp. They stamped everything they worked on to cut out the BS when someone brought something back they said they messed up. Can't make a warranty claim without the stamp.

 

Have found all the stickers and decals for the car.
The large Eelco feet and Howards decals I found on eBay, purchased the large NHRA decals from Mike Goyda and the balanced by Otie's sticker that was on the Hilborn scoop is an original that I had new copies made of.

 

Found an early B&M shifter that I'm going to try and fabricate a reverse lockout for and use. Car was a originally equipped with a Hydro, going to run a Rossler Turbo 350 a friend made me deal on I coundn't refuse.

 

I haven't heard the name of Otie Smith in years.
I bought a 283 block from Otie, in 1962, while at Kent State.
Is Otie still with us ?

 

Great thread, super pics of the old car...keep up the good work on the new one !!!

 

Wow, a real dedication to doing it right, great stuff so far !

 

Unfortunately we lost Otie in May, 2014, he was 94.
This coming June they are putting up an Ohio historical marker at the site of the Akron airport drag races that, from what I understand were the site of the first NHRA sanctioned events on the east coast.
Otie, as president of the Akron Cam Jammers organized them with the Safety Safari.
This is a link to the Facebook page about the marker:
https://www.facebook.com/Akron-Ohio-Race-Legends-Fund-PO-433-Tallmadge-Oh-44278-1683707035183904/
This coming June 19th they are having a dedication for the marker and a car show at Akron Fulton Airport.