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1928 Schumacher Special (early hot rod)

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by alsancle, Dec 5, 2005.

  1. alsancle
    Joined: Nov 30, 2005
    Posts: 1,572

    alsancle
    Member

    Bob, no formal invite but this year would not have been a problem as there was a Stutz Class and I was being gently prodded to get it done for that. Other years would depend on what they have for classes I would imagine. I guess it could always go in prewar sports & racing too (I think they have that every year?).
     
  2. alsancle
    Joined: Nov 30, 2005
    Posts: 1,572

    alsancle
    Member

    I want to thank hamber Vintageride for sending me a number of interesting news clippings of Gus Schumacher from the 1930s. I particularly like this one because it refers to the "beautiful aluminum and chrome sports roadster" which is the topic of the thread. Gus states 160hp which is right in the ballpark of the 170hp we were hoping to get out of the Stutz engine. The $12,000 represents the 10k the customer spent and the final 2 Gus spent finishing the car.

    When I get a chance I'll post some of the other ones.
     

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  3. alsancle
    Joined: Nov 30, 2005
    Posts: 1,572

    alsancle
    Member

    I really like this ad because it mentions Gus's custom building. The quote is "We build sport race car bodies. Individually designed to your own stock car chassis". Of course, from the specials I've seen that Gus did, he didn't leave much stock on the chassis.
     

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  4. alsancle
    Joined: Nov 30, 2005
    Posts: 1,572

    alsancle
    Member

    This one is cool because it talks about the construction of the Vanderbilt cup car. In a previous post in this thread I attached a picture of the tubular constructed chassis that they mention in the article. The other thing I noted was the reference to this being his 14th production car. I think I've mentioned a couple of times that each car was numbered (mine is 11) and we had assumed that the Vanderbilt car was 13. The race car pictured in the article is #12 or #13, but we are missing one car somewhere.
     

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  5. alsancle
    Joined: Nov 30, 2005
    Posts: 1,572

    alsancle
    Member

    I have permission from the family to post some more pictures of Gus's cars. This is #9 which started life as polished aluminum with a similar rear setup to #10, gas tank with water tank exposed. At a later date it was painted and a rear body section added.

    Before I saw the side view and exhaust I had always assumed this is the Duesenberg A powered special documented by Bill Lewis in 1936. It seems to have the "sighting" rod running down the hood Bill described in detail. Any thoughts on what the chassis might be?
     

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  6. alsancle
    Joined: Nov 30, 2005
    Posts: 1,572

    alsancle
    Member

    Here is another shot of "#9" racing down the road. This picture is earlier then the previous post based on the absence of the boat-tail. The water-tank/gas tank setup is a Gus design trade mark. It seems he utilized fan-less cooling with a rear mounted auxiliary water tank that he could control the flow of water from while driving. This is the same setup found in #10 & #11.
     

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    Last edited: Jun 25, 2011
  7. alsancle
    Joined: Nov 30, 2005
    Posts: 1,572

    alsancle
    Member

    Checking in to say we are not completely goofing off. I'm hopeful the engine will be finished this summer. We plan on running it on a dyno to dial it in prior to dropping it in the chassis. Shifting gears away from the body and trying to get all the mechanical stuff done so we are ready for the engine. Maybe Ed can post a picture or two of the engine if he drops by the shop :).
     

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  8. alsancle
    Joined: Nov 30, 2005
    Posts: 1,572

    alsancle
    Member

    Front shocks are mounted. Running the brake lines. Right side lower hood is finished.
     

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  9. The37Kid
    Joined: Apr 30, 2004
    Posts: 30,629

    The37Kid
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    That looks GREAT! I missed a few posts, never saw the #9 photos before, who made a V8 at that time, might be based on an Apperson?
     
  10. alsancle
    Joined: Nov 30, 2005
    Posts: 1,572

    alsancle
    Member

  11. alsancle
    Joined: Nov 30, 2005
    Posts: 1,572

    alsancle
    Member

    Here is a close up of the tank setup on #9. The first tank is for coolant as Gus always ran a fan less engine setup. There is a knob on the dash that can be used to regulate the flow of water from the tank to the engine. This is the same setup that is employed in our car.

    [​IMG]
     
  12. edinmass1602
    Joined: Aug 9, 2010
    Posts: 55

    edinmass1602
    Member

    I gave John, the engine builder a kick in the ass today to get the motor on the front burner. I'll keep at it and add some pictures soon. Ed
     
  13. alsancle
    Joined: Nov 30, 2005
    Posts: 1,572

    alsancle
    Member

    Is that a Pierce with a Dietrich body in your avatar? Definitely tell John to get in gear - I'll start looking around for some money to pay him with :). Would love to see some pictures. The last hang up we were dealing with was the tach drive off the back of the cam.
     
  14. Happy to see you are still moving forward with this.
     
  15. The37Kid
    Joined: Apr 30, 2004
    Posts: 30,629

    The37Kid
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    Is this some of his handywork?
    [​IMG]
     
  16. alsancle
    Joined: Nov 30, 2005
    Posts: 1,572

    alsancle
    Member

    Hey Bob,

    That's a nice looking DV32 engine with 4 Winfields. Did it out of the NY area? Perhaps Gus did work on it. My engine originally had 4 Winfields too but were removed to use on a race car. Here it is a bit later with Carters. We are restoring it with Winfields.
     

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  17. The37Kid
    Joined: Apr 30, 2004
    Posts: 30,629

    The37Kid
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    Nice engine photo, if this from the family collection please pass along my thanks for them allowing you to share it. Must be fun to have original photos to help in the restoration.
     
  18. alsancle
    Joined: Nov 30, 2005
    Posts: 1,572

    alsancle
    Member

    The family has been great. This photo is from the family collection. Gus has given me permission to post what I think might be appropriate or helpful to the restoration of the car or to discover more history on this father's specials. Gus follows this thread so he will see your appreciation :).

    On the note, any idea what Chassis or engine might lurk under #9 pictured previously?
     
  19. edinmass1602
    Joined: Aug 9, 2010
    Posts: 55

    edinmass1602
    Member

    Hi AJ, No, the Pierce is a one off LaBaron barn find from 1999. It had 30,000 miles on the clock when I found it. It is one of only 5 true custom V-12 Pierce cars left. Sadly, in 2008 although I vowed I would keep it till I die, a west coast collector MADE me sell it to him under duress........ :rolleyes: I cried all the way to the bank and wiped my tears with his check.......:D and then went and bought a 60 hp HCCA car, another great Pierce(32 coupe), and still have some left over for another Pierce!
     
    Last edited: Sep 9, 2011
  20. I just spent the morning reading this post. WOW!!!
     
  21. edinmass1602
    Joined: Aug 9, 2010
    Posts: 55

    edinmass1602
    Member

    Hi, the motor is back on the front burner, and I will take a series of photos of it and post them this week or next. I may try for a video with some back ground information also. The Holman DV-32 Stutz boat tail racer had a hard day at the Pebble Beach races last month. Rumor is a slower car pulled in front of his car and slowed down faster than the Stutz could, and the "bumped, locked, or went sideways into each others wheels" no one was hurt. The Stutz WAS NOT AT FAULT. New wheels and fenders will be required to make repairs. This is the same car that you can see on the Indy 100 year celebration videos that beat out the Hisso making 110 MPH lap speeds.
     
  22. edinmass1602
    Joined: Aug 9, 2010
    Posts: 55

    edinmass1602
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    Stutz 1928 boat tail DV-32 race car.:D
     

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  23. alsancle
    Joined: Nov 30, 2005
    Posts: 1,572

    alsancle
    Member

    That is good news that John is getting going on the engine. See if he decided on how the tach drive will go into the back of the cam.

    I didn't hear about the accident in Monterey. I'm glad nobody was hurt. Vintage racing makes all other hobbies look economical. I wish I had some pictures of the cross-bolt web that was built for the bottom end of that DV32 block. It bolted between the pan and the block and it cross bolted the mains for lower end stability. Very cool. The DV32 engine and the Vertical 8 that are is in our car have more or less the same block. The big difference is of course the single overhead cam vs. the double on the DV32 (DV-Dual Valve, 32 valves). Single overhead cam is SV-16 (Single Valve, 16 valves). The biggest impediment to HP in the SV16 engine is breathing.
     
  24. cball
    Joined: Apr 9, 2007
    Posts: 522

    cball
    Member

    super cool, interesting car and story.
     
  25. alsancle
    Joined: Nov 30, 2005
    Posts: 1,572

    alsancle
    Member

    This first picture was posted over in another thread. It's one of Gus's Rolls conversions. We think he did 2. One Conv and one hardtop. The lower picture is the Conv before it got it's tow body. Two of Gus's sprint cars are on the trailer in back. This picture was given to Gus Jr by the guy that took the picture when he was a kid somewhere in Pennsylvania.

    [​IMG]
     

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  26. edinmass1602
    Joined: Aug 9, 2010
    Posts: 55

    edinmass1602
    Member

    A Springfield Ghost or Phantom steer and stop like trucks. That's why they make a great tow truck. :rolleyes: Just goes to show you Gus was a class act. Ed
     
  27. The37Kid
    Joined: Apr 30, 2004
    Posts: 30,629

    The37Kid
    Member

    Is that a Curtiss fifth wheel house car and maybe the tow car still attached in the background? [​IMG]
     
  28. alsancle
    Joined: Nov 30, 2005
    Posts: 1,572

    alsancle
    Member

    Is this the same trailer with the other Rolls tow truck? The body on this was fabricated by Gus. You can see his name across the hood.
     

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  29. The37Kid
    Joined: Apr 30, 2004
    Posts: 30,629

    The37Kid
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    Two different Rolls and trailers. I like the Rolls with the trailer, and think the trailer in the yard is a better one. Check this out on Old Motor. http://theoldmotor.com/?s=curtis
     
    Last edited: Sep 10, 2011
  30. edinmass1602
    Joined: Aug 9, 2010
    Posts: 55

    edinmass1602
    Member

    Here are some recent shots of the engine. Notice the valve photo. Threads on the valve provide adjustment on the bucket for lash. Very much like motorcycles in the 70's and 80's. Makes for a difficult job to replicate them. Ed
     

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