History What is the big deal with Gassers???

Ok, now you brought the altered class into this discussion. I also remember the Modified Production classes as well. Never really got the difference between M/P and gasser.

 

The nitromethane burning blown Altereds (AA/FA) of the 60's and early 70's produced several thousand horse power and were the most outrageously overpowered and evil handling Drag Racing vehicles ever conceived, eventually being banned from sanctioned competition because of their marked tendency to crash. They hardly ever went straight and had to be peddled constantly, frequently leaving snaking stripes of rubber all the way down the track.

Oh yeah !!! OT

 

oh yeah !!!! Wild Willy Borsch

 

So what class was the 'little red wagon' in, way back when.
You know the one that would wheel stand near the whole length of the strip...

 

the Little Red Wagon was an exhibition-only car; it ran in no class except in promoted match-races with other wheelstanders.

it was originally conceived by Chrysler's racing program as a potential A/Fx package, but had frightening wheelstanding tendencies, which Maverick learned to tame, and thus became one of the first, if not the foremost professional exhibition drivers of all time

 

M/P was created to fill the need for a more "street-oriented" class when the 1963/64 rule changes in the gas classes moved them towards being strictly dedicated race-cars. A lot of the cars that were competitive in the '58-'62 era would have had to change altogether or retire the car were it not for the M/P class.

Engines could be non-standard bore/stroke/compression/cam timing, same make non/standard option, or other make altogether, as had been the case in gas classes earlier

Modified late models were also fairly popular. Think "outlaw-type" mods to ex-Super Stocks that were no longer competitive; or sort of a Proto-version of Pro-Stock, but with descending weight-break indexes similar to gas-class racing; IE an example might be a 406 Galaxie with a 6x2 intake and a B&M Hydrostick, and 'glass panels

IIRC, no engine setback was allowed and carburetion only; no FI or Superchargers

 

Indeed! Oh...and my Stude has a big nose and a hot body an I just can't help starin at it! ( it's gotta purty good heart in it too!)

 

Its either in your blood or it aint. Glad im fully ingrained with drag race DNA........thanks dad.
(P.S. some of these new gassers are a disgrace, i tend to lean towards the real thing.My dad has a real deal survivor 35' ford gasser and its a treasured piece of our family)

 

OH YEA! Id take shakie puddin for breakfast dinner n supper!

 

love them all...........in the center of gasser country

 

Around here is seems like the big deal with gassers is that they are the flavor of the month, kinda like pro street cars in the 80's and the 90's.

 

This is my dads gasser. 1935 ford. True Survivor. We have tons of trophies this car won fro 1961 through the early 70's. It has been repainted but other than that its as it was when raced. My dad drives it on the street ALOT and everyonce and while we do take it down the track. This IS why i love gassers. They are our history!

 

I've always wanted to build one of these, but I should have done it when I was younger. Built this one 2 years ago, have about 150 miles on it, now I can't get into it due to some 70 year old knees. Guess I'm gonna have to unload it. Lotsa nice parts in it. Runs great, handles fine, stops excellent. Only thing bad about it is the fact I never changed the gears in the ford rear. They're somewhere around 2.70, and with a muncie 4 speed it makes a very brisk idle speed. However a killer top end. Love the looks of the thing, and if I had the room I would keep it and just look at it. But alas, can't keep 'em all........ Norm

 

Not really a fair comparison at all. Pro street was an emulation of the pro cars off the track. Let's get that look on a street car mentality. The gassers were/are the race cars. Let's put the race car on the street, different mentality all together.
A period correct gasser build should be something to be proud of, a survivor should be cherished.

OK now if a build has the mentality of let's get the gasser look on a street car - well that would be a poser and about the same as building a pro street poser. That's a fair comparison for sure.

 

I understood "Gassers" were required to have finders and hoods?

 

Don't forget , they were classed on power / weight ratio so that is
when some more of the back-yard innovations came to play -
frame and body lightening ( drilling and punching )
Straight front axles ( removing a-arms , coils , cross members )
Tilt front ends , traction bars, spring slappers,
engine set-back , engine height ( c of crankshaft ) which
both had to be regulated and many other fun speed related fixes!!!
Many were on the crude side ie back yard but very effective !!!
Read GASSER WARS book by Larry Davis
Check out Gene Cromers Moonlighter Willys resto here on the H.A.M.B.

 

not that all gassers are cheap but if i had not went this direction with my car, it would still be sitting in the corner of the garage waiting for me to hit the lotto ! plus i have way more fun with the car & it seems to get a ton of attention anywhere i go.

 

Gassers really seem to be diffrent things to diffrent people. I have seen gasser style builds with ac, power windows, leather upholstery with billet everything and modern wheels. Not exactly period correct. Seeing a old gasser with minimal interior, lightening holes, gas stained dual quads and authentic mixture of vintage speed parts just brings many of us back to the 60s. As a kid gassers were the most bad ass cars around. Crazy tall stance, hole in the hood and loud. I remember several street gassers that ran around my town. Light small body with a big motor. Even the model cars we built were gassers. These cars seem to never completely go out of style some 50 plus years later.

 

What he said.................

 

One thing that i have noticed that a lot of people think that its not a gasser if it does not have a straight axle..WRONG.. For years most gassers in my area were street driven and had stock front ends. Most were C/G or D/G At one time we had a E/Gas but to much arguments so those cars ran D class. One other thing that was missed a lot of the stock class guys would step up several classes so they could race more. I have witnessed 8 or more classes entered on one car.

 

Building Gassers is great if your going to run the car. Building a Gasser to be a poser is Gay.

 

When I was 8 my brother got a 62 Chevy II. When I was 11 I got a magazine with Doug Thorleys Chevy 2 much in it. When I was 15 I Carried home a straight axle and Springs from a 62 Chevy van and put it under the 62 Chevy II I made 55 inch ladder bars in school And all the brackets to put the straight axle in the car. When I was 17 I drove my gasser to school. It's a way of life you either get it or you don't. At 49 I am still working on the car.


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Gasses at the drag strip are very cool, on the streets there just plain uncool and look like mud cars.

"Keep them low, keep them cool."

CRUISER

 

Like I said some people just don't get it.


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Ha Ha, I sure enjoy mine, I towed it through the town 4th of July parade with my t-bucket last year. Most didn't get it, thought it was broken down, when I would light it off the old timers that "got it" had a big smile and gave me the nod....priceless

 

gasser(correct for glass) , streetfreak whichever they are cool and thats all i have to say about that

 

Well for me it was seeing cars race that could be driven on the street. Yeah it's a 6 but a national record holder with tags on it is impressive. It was not hard to imagine a bigger class gasser coming through the "Mo" on a Saturday night. I could never imagine me in a flopper fiberglass car like today. At least Harry took the hub caps off to run.

 

I love them, always have...my latest build is close to what would have been built back in the day, the only deviation would be the radial tires and two instead of three pedals... 327 solid lifter engine that was once a strip motor...

As far as being a poser, I was only able to run it about a month this fall to run everything in and shakedown the truck but still managed 700 miles on it....

Plan is for a lot of street miles on this thing... at least a lot more than the mileage I've put on it for the last 32 years I've owned it... not a poser, and not a pavement scraper....

 

Cruiser knows cool “forever in the slow lane”.

 

Everyone likes what they like, but not all "gassers" then (and now) were jacked up street freaks.