Boothill express... where is it now.?

that would be cool with a HEMI!HA!

 

The first real "show cars" I ever saw were displayed in a big tent at the Kansas State Fair in the mid 60's. The Boothill Express was in that display. I was around 12 years old at the time and in awe of these cars. Thanks for bringin' this up.

 

You all drank the same goddam kool aid I did!

 

I have seen that website and that is incorrect about there being three; Ray built the original from the "stocker" shown in this Polaroid. Two years later, he made one clone from fiberglass, which was meant to make easy runs down the strip. The photo of it on the strip was taken the only time it ran, at Beeline in Phoenix.

They both exist. The difference between them is that original had a 331 hemi, the copy has a 426. The both exist. The original is the only one with the Avon motorcycle slicks mounted on 18" spindle-mount Americans in the front; the copy has 15" Americans on the front.

 

Are you kidding? he rodded a real one? What kind of a whacko could even think that up? I have new respect for this guy.

 

yes there was the origional Boot Hill Express which toured the indoor circuit
and Ray did at least one fiberglass over wood version for the outdoor drag strip
circuit when the wheel standers were the thing
the outdoor circuit version is at the Peterson Museum along with Stage Fright and other similar show cars
I was blessed for a lot of years to own the Boot Hill and a few others show cars
and met a lot of great builders / promoters / and in general car lovers
which gave me memories forever
Happy and healthy New Year
Hot Rod Hoodlum

 

I took these pictures of it on Wednesday.

 

Taken in the basement of the Peterson ..so im told

 

so the original has the cragars with the gaint slicks on the back??? wow the one i saw when i was a kid did'nt have the meatballs on the back. i guess i like the fiberglass one then.

 

I would post the pics I took of it at the Petersen a few months back, but they look the same as the ones posted above. Pretty neat car, and smaller than I thought it would be.

They had "Boothill" and "Stagefright" sitting in a corner right next to each other, and some barber shop car and the Mach 5, parked with the Ala Kart.

 

One of My Favorites.. Boothill Express, Lil Coffin, and the Car Craft Dream Rod..

My Top three Favorite Show Cars..

 

I love this pic!

 

Both of the above are correct. One is in the vault at the Pete, next to Stage Fright. We were told that the one belonging to the Pete was the exhibition car.

 

Nooooooo. Realllyy. No soup for you! That's my favorite 60's show car of all time. I still kick myself for not stepping up when it was for sale.

 

I remember when Ray would have his cars set up at the state fair grounds in Sedalia Missouri. My brother in law, Dick Shultz and my friend Monty McPherson helped Ray for several years with this show and others. Monty had a little car that he built and showed on Ray's circuit called the Orange Blossum Special I believe. It like most of the show cars of that era were static display cars. Ray built some fantastic cars that were different to say the least. Always a hit with me.
Later,
Dick

 

Volo Auto Museum 12-04, the original?

 

I was hoping you'd get it too! Then my wife could borrow it for my "last ride".

By the way, thanks to Tom Davison for all he adds to the show car posts. You're a real historian of the show rod era. I had no idea that the boothill express was a repurposed horse drawn hearse!

 

My job was working at shows so I lived and saw the era firsthand. I spent half my time between shows hanging around Ray's shop during the time it was built. Ray gave me the polaroid of the "stocker", which I still have. He took the shot when he went to Minneapolis to buy the original hearse.

I think the guy pictured with Ray in that one photo may be Hal Hammer. Hal helped Ray with the mechanicals on the strip version and was the guy that drove it at Beeline; Hal is the source of that untrue online claim that there were three Boothills. In Hal's online account, he makes it sound like he built the cars and Ray helped him; no truth at all, Hal was a minor player in the creation of the second car.

 

Ok, Did George Barris buy the Xpress from Ray, or is he just taking credit for another car he didn't build?
There are a number of cars that people own and claim to have been Barris built, and we know their full of it!
But George seems to have his name by choice on vehicles that as far as I know he had nothing to do with the build.
George and Sam built more than a few fine cars in their time, but GeeWhiz........
Just an observation. KK

 

I wished it was around here I've never got to see it in person

 

You mean like the Monkee and Batmobile??? And maybe a few others...????...

 

Thanks for this insight to the build of the Boothill Express Tom.. Since I started this thread the other day ..( simply wondering where it is now located ).. myself and others have probably learnt a lot more about it.
It must have been an amazing era to have been around in and era that will never be repeated unfortunatly.
Do you happen to have any more photos of its build up..? it would be great to see them.

A friend of mine , whilst out in the states last year bought me back a copy of the the "Rod & Custom" mag from march 1967 he found at a swap meet.. here is a few scans from it which most people have probably seen... but I still enjoy reading the article

 

I like the before and after here... its just to cool..

 

Ray sold the first one to Jay Ohrberg and I think he sold it to Barris. I don't know who Ray sold the second one to.

 

a side note to the Boothill Express,the current state of the Wake Wagon,at the Volo Museum

 

I saw the Express at a show in Orange County,NY maybe ten or fifteen years ago.It was cool to see a show car I remembered from the models of the 60's.

 

I`m guessing this is Steve, THANK YOU for tracking down and buying the cars in your amazing collection.

 

The one in the Petersen vault is the copy. The original was right here in my front room for a couple of years and is now at Speedway Motors.





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And here it is.

 

Now that is bad as it gets !!