Projects Drop tank racer donor car?

I like the 235 and yes, with an inline 6 my problem is going to be the width of the intake and carbs. Would a custom intake that drops down a little lower to mount the carbs in the center side be completely out of the realm of "easily" doable?

 

I think you're going to need to cut a relief somewhere no matter what engine you choose. I don't think the intake/carbs on a 235 extend beyond the outer limits of the bellhousing though.

Some other engines to possibly research would be the Ford V4's which were used in Europe and domestically in the Thiokol Snow Cat. Chevrolet 153 4-cylinder out of a Chevy II/Nova. Ford Falcon/Mustang 6 might fit too.

 

I am starting to realize this. unless I want to go with a very small engine I am going to have to cut reliefs as you said. I think an early sbc would be my first choice for budget/reliability/performance/sound purposes. Your link provided a photo of a v8 tanker with cut outs for the heads and exhaust. Looks better than I expected and it would certainly help keep the engine compartment cooler

 

I think that's the ticket for sure. Start learning about Metalshaping; find a one or two day course on it or check out the Ron Covell videos on YouTube and @Mindover 's DVDs.

As it happens, I have a 1955 Chevy 265/Powerglide that I'm going to be listing for sale once I take pictures. If you're in the Northeast this might make sense for you.

 

I do not know what you plan for power. Highway speed will not hurt either axle from an A bone but A rears are not made to handle loads of torque all at once.

The A front axle is nothing but a piece of forged steel, the one in the Raven's roadster has gone well over 130 on the highway and into the 120s on the 1320 no problems.

The A brakes should be something that you rethink if you plan on cruising much at highway speed, maybe think of later model Ford or Lincoln Juice brakes.

 

I measure it tomorrow. But it's a compact unit.

EDIT
According to the World Wide Web is the B20
21 inch high
17 inch long
And 15.8 inch over the bell and I suspect from the airfilter to the distributor it's 18-18 inch wide depending on intake.

 

More inspiration:
http://www.kustomrama.com/index.php?title=Bill_Burke's_P-51_Belly_Tank
http://www.kustomrama.com/index.php?title=Geoffrey_Hacker's_Belly_Tank
http://autoweek.com/article/car-lif...ute-re-creates-bill-burkes-pioneering-hot-rod

 

I like the twin tank idea but if you want to stick with a single tank AND have it street legal the trike using the back end of a motorcycle is worth thinking about - Honda Goldwing would be perfect.



If you wanted to stay 4 wheel then a 2CV front end (which includes gearbox, engine and suspension) would work - it can go either way round if you flip the diff. Don't know where you would get one in the USA. Could use a VW Bug engine and gearbox though. Bug front end would work too....

 

I was thinking maybe keep it a four wheel deal single tank and put a souped up VW in it with the cyls hanging out the sides. You would be cooling the cyls and getting a lot of heat out of the tank. Lippy (I know a VW ain't exactly traditional but would sure haul butt in that thing)

 

Yes - pull all the tinware off it and it looks very good indeed, I run the owners' club for the Blackjack Zero trike which uses an aircooled VW engine and gearbox driving the front wheels;

 

Or a corvair in front of the rear axle. Big hp possible. Lippy

 

I saw that at the swap meet Friday and thought to myself, "Who in their right mind............."
There has to be a bar on the Guadalupe that would love to have that hanging from overhead.
If you want a full size one from an Albatross, I might relinquish mine and it ain't too far from you.

 

The back half of a bike, wouldn't that make it almost a Morgan?

 

No, not even Harry Morgan

But it could be fun ride

 

Thanks for all the advice and opinions. If I'm going to have to cut the body I will be doing an early sbc.
side thought:
If I ran my rear tire pressure a little lower do you think I could get away with a rigid rear end? The cockpit will be towards the front so I'm not too worried about how bumpy it will be (and yes, I know it will be bumpy) but more for safety reasons.

 

wish I was closer but I am in texas

 

A solid mount rearend on the street is a bad idea. If you're worried about having springs showing outside of the narrow body, consider a pair of 1/4 elliptic leaf springs off the ends of the frame rails.

 

I wouldn't even consider not running any rear suspension, if you are not concerned about you own safety at least consider others.

Mick

 

good thinking. I might even be able to squeeze them inside the body depending how far forward I mount the axle

 

I just realized I have a fresh rebuilt 302 in my shed ready to go. Any reason why I shouldn't use it???
Also found this banjo rear end:
http://austin.craigslist.org/pts/5524471513.html
I have not talked to the seller so I'm not sure of the condition. Can this rear end handle a stock 302? If it's in good condition and ready to use does $375 seem like a decent deal? If it needs a rebuild then about how much would that cost? I would have to pay someone to do it; I've never rebuilt a rear end.

 

Here are a few suggestions, I had to cut my tank in half and make it bigger around and longer. If you could do this to this it would give you more engine choices.

As for cooling, I mounted my radiator under the motor and brought the air from under the car through a duct to the radiator. I also use an electric fan.

I also used a `37 Ford V8 60 engine, it`s pretty small.

If you go with a small block Chevy ,you can use an automatic transmission. That will save you a lot of headaches. I used a top loader 3 speed and making it shift was a nightmare. you can see the linkage under the headers.

I used a `48 Ford for the suspension, they`re cheep and pretty easy to find.
The final result will be worth it the first time you drive it.

 

Conceptually, think Light Car Company Rocket:


I'd use a recent, carbed, liquid-cooled motorbike engine behind the seat(s), with chain drive to a differential, perhaps with one of the electric reverse arrangements people often do when devising bike-engined cars. There could be a scoop formed by the seat back, feeding air to the radiator, exhausting by lots of louvres. Lights, licence plate, etc. could all hang from or close to the axles.

 

I'd ask about the history and inspect the condition, but that is not crazy money with those brakes on there. I bought one of these bare for $200 and have paid $250 for rear brakes. Just the parking brake hardware can run you into 3 figures, so, I think you'd be safe buying that to put in your project. It will save you $300 not having to put an open drive conversion on there right off the bat.

I'll also add, that this one is a lot cleaner than I usually see them. It has paint on it and where it doesn't isn't orange with rust. The hoses and cables look OK so this might have come out a truck that was in fairly recent service (within the decade maybe).

There's a tech thread or two on here about rebuilding these too, so don't be intimidated by that.

 

Works on a Harley, 5.00x16 in a rigid frame. Seldom works well in a car, too much weight and you can't lean it in a corner so the sidewalls mush and the car dances all over the road.

 

It would be pretty simple to cut these both in two, but cut one closer to the nose and cut the other closer to the tail, then join the two longer sections together to make it longer overall. I'd then use one of the remaining sections, cut length-wise to form up a tall blister that would go behind the driver's head kinda like the black one shown above, that would not only add a bunch of headroom for the driver but would also add just as much height for the (assuming rear mounted) engine to clear.

The 302 Ford engine is a great engine but it's way out of the period of a dry lakes racer. I know you want to try to make it street legal and use it like a car but if it were me I'd be trying to keep it at least somewhat period correct to the era these were originally built.

 

Absolutely amazing car, just incredible! Funny that you bring up the manual 3 speed linkage because Ive been thinking about that the past 2 days. I will use an auto trans. Probably a c4 if I use the 302 I have. I'm sure I'll be picking your brain about some other things!

Thanks! I emailed the seller this morning. I hope he still has it

 

^Good plan. Another good thing about that rear is the spring pads. Though you may not use them and end up cutting them off, until you do, they give you a fixed point to work off of as far as measurements and level goes. Less noodle soup.

 

As much as I'd like the engine to be period correct I'm choosing not to mainly for budget and reliability purposes (overheating in texas 100+ deg heat). If someone could offer a solution to keeping a flathead cool enough for driving purposes I'd consider the higher price...

 

You have just opened the "Flatheads Overheat" can of worms, brace yourself!

 

BMW K100 engine/gearbox and suspension unit would be ideal for this project - 3 or 4 cylinder car-derived engine lying on its side with gearbox, radiator, shaft drive and suspension all in one;