Projects DRAG SNAKE "Vintage Terror!"

Cheetahs powered by Chevrolet....
I could be wrong.....

 

Standard Torqs? I am open...photoshop standing by...LOL!

 

289 Cobras came with three different wheels IIRC.... bolt-on Five spoke mags (the straight round spokes, and OEM on the Snakes), Halibrand knock-off mags (generally only on the road-race cars), or knock-off wires (only seen on the street versions). While factory steel wheels were required in the stock classes, the exception was if the car came factory-equipped with mags which the Cobra did. There's lots of bolt-on 'Halibrand' copies out there, if you're looking at new wheels that would be my choice....

 

I ain't fellin them daisy wheels but that's just me.

 

What did this one have for wheels?

 

Looks like the street wires in front....

Keep in mind that there's different 'versions' of these cars out there. Shelby only built a limited number of these at the factory (and that number could be anywhere from 4 to 10, depended on where you look), but also sold the parts needed to convert a 'regular' Cobra into a Snake, with guesses of up to 20 or more cars 'built' by owners or dealers. Some of the conversions ran wires all around, some in the front only. And not even all the 'factory' cars came from the factory with everything. There is one that was supposedly ordered as a snake, but showed up at the dealer with bad paint, missing trim, and the drag race options missing. All things the dealer ended up correcting and charging back to Shelby.

Carroll Shelby was known for playing fast and loose with serial numbers, so documentation is suspect IMO. After he left Chrysler, who can forget his 'recreation' of a dozen 'new' '66 GT350 Mustangs (from assorted used cars they bought) when they 'discovered' some 'unused' serial numbers, or attempting the same trick a few years later with some 'newly discovered unused' 427 Cobra frames...

With that said, probably the most accurate (and better documented) versions would be the actual 'Factory-built' race 'snakes. Shelby built two, both used bolt-on mags front and rear. At least one more is well documented as coming with mags (also the only privateer ordered one with the four webers motor), lets assume the mis-equipped one would have had them, and add in the very first one (which did have wires in the front, basically being the prototype) and you've accounted for at least 1/2 of all known 'snakes, with 60% (at least) having four mags.

There were quite a number of these being drag raced across the US (more than just six), I suppose there was more dragstrips than road courses in the US...

 

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

 

My vote is for steel wheels all around.

 

I do kind of dig the steelies. There is something appealing to a really fast car wearing steel wheels. Certainly no way to turn a Cobra into a sleeper but there is some kind of primitive appeal. The real issue however is finding any wheel design that offers a front runner width. Of the above only the Torq Thrust and Kidney Bean offers them. So probably a version of the first sample and maybe mix in a "steelie" once in a while for a different look. So 1, 8, and 9

 

Mini-lites were popular with the sports car crowd at one time. Not sure they would be right on that car. Never saw them as front runners, but if they were on a TR-3 or MGA they would only be 4" wide.

 

Same here.

 

Torq-Thrust er Halibrands in my book...

 

Number 8 has my vote, looks like business.

 

Torque thrusts but they need to be early straight spoke not the new version I think you can buy new ones now I believe they are called torque thrust original also if you are gonna go the kidney bean route don't put those cheap ass looking ones spend the bucks and buy the right ones lol


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#2 or 7 in my book!

 

Oh don't worry Jackson, I will spend some bucks. I was at Wal-Mart this morning and look what I found. These bad boys set me back nearly $27.50! LMAO! It was buy a set get one free too! I also got a set that look like teddy bears!

 

Didn't they at least have some with 4 lugs.

 

But seriously. I will check with the American Racing folks this next week. The original straight spoke style changed to the "D" shape as a necessity. You can thank the Vette Boys for that as the originals would not clear disk brake calipers. Maybe the new design with the straighter spokes have had concessions made to address the same issue etc.

 

Yes they had some four lug but I just didn't think they looked as realistic! LOL

 

Shelby American “Dragonsnake” Wheels

CSX2019 first Shelby team drag car = 6.50X15 front and 7.50X15 (“INDY” wheels machined to fit Cobras) rear “pin drive” magnesium six spoke racing wheels by Ted Halibrand exactly like the team’s road racers were using at the same time.

6.50 wide wheel, early design of bolt on balance weights (on back of wheel)


7.50 "INDY" (one of five I have with my red car originally from cut back door car CSX2385)


CSX2357 second and final Shelby team drag car = 6X15 front and 7X15 rear (looks like the 7”ers anyway) “bolt through” curved five spoke spline drive wheels by American Racing. This version of wheel was made especially for drag racing.

6.0X15 "bolt through" new old stock (As far as I can tell 6.0 wide was only for Cobras. American Racing offered width sizes between 6.50 and 8.50 in their speed shop catalogs. Even with a 6.0 wide rim tires had to be chosen carefully, diameter and tread width, if one didn't want to modify the width for front fenders. )


CSX2248 Shelby prepared drag car shows up in period pictures with some version of American Racing wheel on the rear and stock Dunlop brand wire wheels on the front. I don’t know how it was originally completed.



CSX2427 Shelby prepared drag racer got the “hidden lugs” road race design American Racing wheels.

"Hidden Lug" road race style, this one is 8.50 wide




CSX24272 started off prepared for later versions of magnesium road racing with “pin drive” wheels but was used to fill the order for a drag car.



Of all these cars the only magnesium wheels that have been reproduced commercially are the ones like CSX2472 left SAI with.

In general the subject of "factory" magnesium racing wheels is very complicated. The nature of a small company constantly evolving to stay competitive meant that just about every time a new batch of wheels was ordered something was changed. Example: Front brake caliper designs for street cars changed several times and then in the summer of 1964 the "big brakes" were adpoted for cars participating in the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) sanctioned races. Every time the front brake caliper design changed they got bigger. The result was front wheels that cleared the brakes on let's say CSX2009 would not work on a car like let's say CSX2127 unless some type spacers for the wheels were used. Shelby just had a new batch of wheels made to fit the current new cars. One Saturday about ten years ago I had five different versions of original 6.50 front "pin drive" wheel rounded up to test fit on my red car. None of them would clear the stock front brakes except the last version released for "big brakes".

Anyway, the wheels described above are just a tiny fraction of the versions Shelby American used themselves and or sold over the counter.

 

Awesome. Sure glad you are aboard "rr" you are a wealth of information on the subject!

 

Looks like I will be down to Mo-Kan tomorrow to try out the new headers.
You should stop by.

 

I've been biting my tongue on suggesting Minilites, mainly as Randall noted the lack of "frontrunner" widths on various wheels.
The real Minilites from the UK that the Trans-Am cars used were pretty cool looking (rare and expensive now), some teams replaced the Magnesium American five spokes when they found they were cracking from side loading.

Speaking of rare, check out these Minilite type wheels made by American.
http://www.triumphexp.com/phorum/read.php?5,1382381



The Minilite wheel was probably the most popular aftermarket wheel ever, ubiquitous on both road and track for decades. Originally developed for the BMC Mini and produced in cast magnesium, the Minilite made its competition debut in February of 1964.
https://autouniversum.wordpress.com/2010/01/20/a-concise-history-of-the-alloy-wheel/

Plenty of Photoshop material here:

https://www.google.com/search?q=mag...d=0ahUKEwj1qfK5vKXXAhVS-GMKHXpIDSIQtI8BCCooAA

https://www.google.com/search?q=tra...ved=0ahUKEwj13IX5uaXXAhUW9WMKHcIJCqsQ_AUIDCgC

 

"ubiquitous"? Please Denny refrain from vocabulary like that, it makes Jackson's head hurt. LOL! Cool info though....

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That was straight from that website Randall.
Have fun with the wheels.

 

Speak for yourself Randall oh and you should come to the kan tomorrow and hang out I have some chassis info you need to see if you want this thing to not only handle but hook up well


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u· biq· ui· tous
Definition:
Present, Appearing, or Found Everywhere.
Use in a sentence:
Parts from Jackson's race car are generally ubiquitous at the drag strip! LMAO

 

I might just do that, what time do the gates open?

 

So Jackson is the "you know what" in the "you know where" and ready for test and tune?