GASSER MUST HAVES and cant haves?

On paper my Henry J should have been in the 6.90 range according to those calculators. Don't put to much faith in that being what your car will run, lots of variances not calculated. They are good to get a general idea, but taking it to the track is the only real way to see what it actually does run.

 

One thing most of the calculators don't take into consideration is traction. Most assume your car can hook up well, and plant the power to the ground. So far my BBC powered Falcon has run a full 2 seconds slower than my 327 powered Austin. All of that difference is due to not getting any traction with the Falcon, and spinning the slicks the full length of the track.
Not that much weight difference between the two, but 150 hp difference more for the Falcon. Over the winter I'll be changing some things to see if I can get more of that power hooked to the ground.

 

Looking cool is way more important than safety anyway.

 

Ha ha ha, I'm happy with it to be honest it's a tough old cage, 2" is a lot tougher to bend than 1.625"

 

Bare minimum $7500 if you shop and trade, you could get to $10,000+ easy if you start buying new stuff. There is alot out there for sale. Bryce @ Dr. J's recently did a 10.75:1 pump gas 496, (4.310 x 4.250 w/6.385 rods), 250 @ .050 x .680 hyd. roller, ported 049 Oval port open chamber iron heads and a single dominator on a Victor 454 manifold. Made 707 @5800 and held over 700hp till 6400, & 654 lb ft. TQ. If you have a small block in your car now (I can't remember what you have), a rat motor will add 200 lbs!

 

I am not really sure that a BBC will add 200 lbs. I remember in the 60s we had a scale sitting in the shop and weighed a 283/270 iron head motor and a 427 L89 (aluminum head motor) and they came within 40lbs of each other.

I told people this and they questioned me and so I have written down the weights so I did not think I was going crazy.

From what I have read in several sources a 348/409 weighs 665lbs, iron head BBC 685lbs, ZL1 550lbs, BBC (L89) 610lbs, generation 1 SBC 575-550lbs, LS 407lbs, Blue flame six 615lbs.

The car in my avatar has a BBC with Dart heads and with the battery in the trunk and a few more aluminum pieces, it is lighter up front than my other 62 Vette as it came from the factory with a small block.

Now with aluminum heads on a small block and a concerted effort to lighten up the front area the small block is going to win the weight race for sure but I still have a soft spot for the BBC.-Jim

 

My thinking was 700+ hp is a lot less expensive with a BBC than it is with a SBC. Plus I figure hp being equal the BBC should live longer.

But I might be out in left field.

 

A BBC with aluminum heads weighs 590 pounds with iron heads. It's 522 pounds with aluminum heads. A SBC with iron heads is almost identical weight to a BBC with aluminum heads.

 

Chevy small block V8 575 (generic for '60s-'70s motors)
Chevy small block V8 535 ('59 Corvette 283 w/alum. intake)
Chevy small block LS1 460
Chevy LT-5 DOHC 5.7 600
Chevy L98 5.7 V8 600
Chevy V8 348/409 620
Chevy V8 348/408 655
Chevy big block V8 685 Mark IV
Chevy 454 675
Chevy 7.4L V8 656 iron, no intake, exh, carb, starter
Chevy 427 ZL-1 550 all-aluminum, "20# lighter than SB"
Chevy 6.5L Diesel V8 644
Chevy 400 SB 470 aluminum heads and intake, no acc. or wp
Chevy 396 BB 610 iron heads, alum. wp and intake, no acc.


Collected from variuos sources, mostly magazines and swapping books

 

Needs to have enough torque to jerk them front wheels up at the green light!
Pics from Greer (seperate thread) sure get the juices flowing.
man o man!!

 

Lets not forget that cool two four tunnel ram, weighs almost as much as two regular single four intakes with carb. Every time I've had mine off I think of that, but it looks so damn cool I don't care ha ha

 

Yeah and a BBC tunnel ram is a little heavier than a SBC tunnel ram! Both my gassers have tunnel rams, but the one on my 327 seems light by comparison! In August I lost two lifters when I over revved the BBC in the Falcon at the drags. I dreaded having to pull the intake to replace the lifters, but I was just strong enough to pull it with the carbs on, and not have a hernia!

 

Don...I was thumbing thru some old magazines, and came across this article. Neat stuff!

 

What a BITCHIN car !!! Chris

 

AGREE, sometimes we must sacrifice one good for another and I gotta go tunnel ram on this one.

 

Just don't build an early era (say pre 67) Gasser and use a Tunnel Ram - since the first ones came out in late 67 and didn't look anything like the current ones. Those were more like 69 or so!

 

When did the noses start coming down? While I like what is accepted as "proper stance" (but not street freaks) I've noticed some cars look far better with LESS altitude, and I hear they handle better, too.

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late 60's. As you can see my Anglia is "Nose Down" and it was that way by 68-69

 

Thanks Jim & Chris for the kind words on the gasser

Jim have you seen the 55 raced by Mike Maranoff in the early 60's

Looks just like yours with the rear fenders cut out for the slicks, he flat towed out here for the 60' Bakersfield march meet with the same colors 57' Nomad

A little later he went to a Willlys in the same red, and his stuff ran very good too

G Don

 

Here are the cars Don was refering to.

 

That's neat! I messed up when I built my car in 1996, I had a Poncho rear that I should have used in it. Oh well.

 

I guess only one pic showed up.
Here is the other car.
MELTDOWN DRAGS
JULY 18-20 2014

 

And one of the "speed secrets" is the use of a Crosley radiator..lol..

 

Had to keep it lite for more lead in the trunk, just trying to hook up those M & H's

G Don

 

So I just came from a visit to the Henry Ford museum which has Ohio George's Willys on display.

I didn't get any pictures,as the cold killed the battery in my phone while we were out in Greenfield village,but some of the things that struck me about the car were:

1: Its been a while since I've seen one up close,and I forgot that these 30's Willys' were so damn tiny!
What a handful these things must have been!

2: The stance on this car is absolutely perfect!
Moderately elevated,but not sky high,and with a bit of a "rubber rake" leaving the rear sitting only an inch or two higher than the front....just enough to perfectly accentuate the way the body lines flow and converge to make the car seem as if it's ready to leap forward,even when it's standing still

3: With the supercharged Cad motor this car's accelleration was legendary,with the Chevy motor it progressed as well developed,well sorted,and extremely competitive race car, but with the 427 S.O.H.C. motor,this thing must have been absolutely unstoppable!
The jump from 3 hundred and some odd cubic inches/and I'm guessing 600-700 hp with the little Chevy,up to 427ci/and probably close to 1000hp with the Ford must have been mind blowing!

So basically,I just wanted to point out that this car is a great example of many of our favorite attributes of the "gasser" era:

1. great stance
2. light weight
3. insane,violent horsepower!

I think this car in its current state,could be used as a template for the perfect Willys build.

Scott

Ps:Still kicking myself in the ass for not having the phone charged...!!!


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One of my favorite cars. Had to be a handful to keep pointed in the right direction (and fearless to drive it)!

 

That's pretty much exactly how it looks today Baron.
The thing is absolutely awe inspiring.

Scott


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I prefer the unchopped tall look myself.

MELTDOWN DRAGS
JULY 18-20 2014

 

I love that look too.....but there's just something about the chopped version that looks so damn EVIL!

Scott


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To me , Georges car in any of its forms;from Cad engine on...evel,mean, wicked,nasty, BITCHIN' !!!