History I think I found Larry Neves #2 track roadster

Here's another thought on the snaps...is there a chance the cover didn't line up or use all the anchors on the body therefore some may never have been used but with 90+% working it still performed as needed...

 

This is all looking very good. Exciting! Big thanks to Stogy for the excellent overlay work.

 

I was looking over these photos and saw the snap holes along the top of the cowl. I looked at my roadster and found a couple of holes still with bondo covering them I sanded more and found all the snap holes along the top of cowl matching the 92 roadster. I really think the 92 roadster body became the 2 Roadster body.

 

Thank you for all your help I really appreciate it. Your overlays are mind blowing and help out a lot to prove that my roadster is indeed the number 2 car.

 

...this is another Warp maneuver in Photoshop which is an electronic/digital scale and wrap to an image...There is NO Cut and Paste...I took a piece of image and formed it over the other image...

I noted an area in the Circle on both sides that gave me pause...but again this may be a limit to the technology and I don't want to force that to fit as it may alter a more genuine representation. That is why its so important to get the Current Photo on the correct visual plane to the Originals...

Think of it this way its like overlaying the Original with a Direct sized Copy of the Original in Transparency with No Warp...just scaling equally...if required...

The other thing I may have mentioned is since we don't have Those Snap Covers we'll never know if there were Dummy Snaps that weren't inferior but just didn't line up to well. Some may have been added to tighten up the cover a bit. and there's stretccchhing the cover to get that Button over there...

By the way I don't know much about Upholstery but Neves Racer was Lavishly Layered.

Did it Roar at the Track Till 1950 or was it Hotrod til 50 and Then came the Roaring?...Gotta get Schooled...

Again to anyone attempting this method of ID which is a plausible option especially in light of Historical interest
I can't emphasize how important Nailing the Angle and Profile of your Subject is for verifying because you want to avoid Warping for Accuracy as much as possible...

I really think for this Hotrod the Ole Tripod and Really nailing that angle should yield a near match

That said I think the fact I could get so many so close is again historically really cool.

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I know I’m biased but after that overlay I’m going to say now I feel certain it’s the car with all the similarities, family connections, and now these overlays. I didn’t want to get my hopes to high or shoot too soon but there’s a lot more that my roadster matches to the number 2 Neves roadster then doesn’t.

 

Congratulations @Youngster51...The Restoration of Past Excellence has been declared...Awesome...I look forward to the Journey your embarking on...Sounds 1st Place to me...

Here's a pic below that I thought might be where the Nose of the Neves Roadster came from but upon scrutiny I say no BUT possibly formed and finished by the same Metalsmith maybe?... Casually in a bit of corner play...

I'd pay to be able to hop into one of those for a rip around a track a few times...

Question...Did these Roaring Racers race on both pavement and dirt or was it one before the other?




Credit to Photographer, Owner
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The idea idea that the 92 & 2 were the same body I think is valid. How many useable T bodies would one family have? Why pull one out of service if you can still race it?
Another thought, how many other cars are standing in line claiming to be #2? What other leads are there. A quick look at all if the incarnations of the Spurgin & Giovani will show major changes from the beginning until it was found and restored. I really doubt that the #2 was totally lost and I doubt that a closer match could possibly exist. You have so much evidence both mechanical and anthological I'm pulling the trigger. Where is the evidence that it is not #2?

 

I guess now I will have to make a plan and see how to go about restoring the roadster to the 1950 Oakland version. In the next few weeks my plan is to remove the Chevy engine and trans and move the body forward on the chassis to its original location to get a rough mock up and feel of the original version of the car. I have a flathead, trans, and wheels to bolt on to really get a look of how it was if you squint hard.

 

Man, I love this thread

 

Youngster51,

I can't wait to see the #2 Roadster be reborn! This has been a really interesting thread and history lesson. Thank you for bringing us along for the ride.

 

I really appreciate it. Thanks to the HAMB and the guys on here that helped without them I would have not been able to get this far. The HAMB is a true archive of hot rod history and great hot rod guys willing to help.

 

In the Roadster Show pictures are the rear wheels chrome reversed Ford wheels?

 

I think they are if it was restyled in 1949 have to be 16” ford wheels but they do look wide maybe re hooped.

 

That is what I was thinking they look too wide for 16s. Were all the late 40s fords 16"? If you could see the centers, '49 Merc had the right pattern and were 15". In high school a friend reversed a pair of 16" wheels for the back of his Model A. We teased the crap out of him, told him the ruin the bearings and bend the axles with those deep suckers.

 

Ford came out with 15” 5x4.5 lug pattern on the shoeboxes in 1949. I think 40 merc and early F1 pickups had accessory 16x6” wheels but they’re rare The widest 16s ford made.

 

Amen. I think everyone involved in helping here deserves a nice cold beer. This is really awesome stuff.

 

Great detective work buy all that contributed. Love this historical stuff.

 

Did you get the engine with the Eddie Meyer heads that the family found in the garage?

 

I have a pair of '47 Merc wheels, 15" with the original pin stripes. This is the type of thread I like the best, restoring a famous piece of history, I wish I would have had even a small portion of the Spalding Bros car, when I built the copy.

 

You had the necessary skills and the historic interest. That's all they had when they started. The Spalding Brothers would have been happy.

 

Do you guys think the nose on the Neves roadster was custom one off or a kurtis nose?

 

Given the location, perhaps Jack Hagemann had a hand in it.

 

I think so to. I’m pretty sure He built the tube chassis under my roadster it’s almost identical to the woody lee car that Neves had built also so I’m sure the 2 roadster chassis would have been very similar.

 

The only two metal shapers I know of that did racecar work would be Hagermann and Bob Allinger. Allinger was in Santa Clara I think. Built midgets dating back to the thirty’s and built Lee Chapells tornado streamliner.

 

I have been told, everyone driving open wheel cars, wanted a Bob Allinger seat !

 

The caption says the paint was mirror like metallic Maroon any ideas what colors they would have used for the nose scallop, Number, and striping. The show board next to the car says done by Tommy the Greek.

 

I've always associated Greek style striping with white striping outlining a wider darker color then a white stripe again. Teardrops on the louvers. All the older guys I know called it Greek or Nor-Cal style. If only I could find a good color picture!