History Vintage "Cageless" Midget Picture Thread

Thank you for the reply
The chassis on the first car looks very well made .almost too good to be home made .. but guess it could have been .
Attached is a picture of the right hand side of the engine ..

The second car is a chevy II engine .
I was thinking of using a flat head v8 in it as it has been butchered already so I can make a bit of a fun toy with this ..

Some more pics of both cars

 

Some more pics of both the cars ..

 

That first car with the Chevy is really nice, Vintage photo and a Miller carb, it doesn't get much better than that. Bob

 

Thank you

This car is amazing.. I just wish I knew more about the chassis make and so on .
As the chassis looks to good to be home built ..

I am thinking of leaving this car as is and just getting the motor to run and drive it like this .

 

Do you think the car was built in South Africa or imported? The three spring design was popular with early 1930's builds in California, but plans were sold all over the world. Bob

 

This is the carb ...

 

Ok, I saw the barrel throttle and thought it was a Miller, my mistake. Winfields are great too! Bob

 

BOB
To answer your question re the build. It looks too good a quality chassis to have been a local build car. Will take some details .. e.g. the notch in the chassis to make room for the chevy timing chain cover and so .....

 

I can see Model A Ford steering arms, a photo of the front axle would be nice to see. Bob

 

Not sure if you have already stumbled onto it, but I think you would be interested in the book Outlaw Sprint Car Racer about the life of John Gerber from Iowa. He raced a homebuilt special on dirt tracks in the 1920's and 1930's. It was Chevrolet based with a little Ford and other makes thrown in.

When I acquired some old 1928 Chev stuff last year, several people highly recommended that I get the book. We actually raced against his son Jim Gerber in the Iowa area in the 1960's and 1970's. I stopped at the Knoxville Sprint Car Museum last Fall returning from a farm sale adventure where I bought a 1928 rolling chassis. I picked the book up in their gift shop.

I just cannot believe the "engineering" that John Gerber did to the Chev four bangers in a time when there were still more blacksmith shops than machine shops in our great country.
Have fun

 

Pictures of the front axle ...

 

The front axle, spindles, tie rod are modified Model A parts the wheels at that time were made from 1926-27 brake drums welded to 12 inch utility rims. The front hubs are Model T wood wheel hubs. Bob

 

Dear midget racing aficionados, my dad Walt Mordenti is still living in San Francisco and turns 97 in July. His is best known from the 50s and 60s as the owner/builder/mechanic of the #78 Ford V8-60, which he later raced as an Offy. His well-known chauffeurs were Ronnie Evans and Roger Bailey. Ronnie's son John has posted several great photos of Ronnie, Walt, and the #78. Would love to see more pictures of Walt and the #78 if you have them in your collection.

My mom Margaret passed away in March 2017 at age 94. My dad no longer wanted to travel in his 1953 Hudson Hornet without his co-pilot of 71 years, so he sold it in November 2017 and picked up his Tesla Model 3 on December 23, 2017 (VIN 001388), possibly making him the oldest Model 3 owner. Here is a picture of Walt and Margaret on one of their cross-county adventures in the Hudson and of Walt picking up his Model 3 at the Tesla Factory in Fremont, CA. You can send well wishes to Walt at [email protected].

- Posted by his daughter Joyce Mordenti [[email protected]]

 

I remember your car well. You also had Sonny (Sanders) Madonia as A driver. Sorry no pictures though.

 

I'm in the process of restoring a Solar Midget. I'm in search of V8 60 parts, specifically a in and out box and a radiator. I would also be interested in some photos of how the fuel tank mounts (with a strap???) how the fuel lines are ran and gas pedal setup. Here are a few photos of the car pre-restoration. Thanks

 

That is a nice looking Midget.
If you don't have to have a brass one but are OK with aluminum, try Superior Radiator, Mt. Clemens MI. I just had one built for my drag car. About $300. Five days turn around time.

https://superiorradiator.net/

 

There's a great book on Solar history out there if you can find a copy....

Sent from my SM-G930P using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

I've got an original Solar catalog. Bob

 

mark light in bud sherk midget, pre-war. location unknown.
any info appreciated,
mlight9

 

Wow this once active thread has about aged out, but I'm 83 and still watching.

Anybody recognize the engine in this photo which was posted recently on the HAMB Unusual engine thread?

e

 

just saw episode of american pickers, season 18, ep 48. they purch the midget of
barney barnes. owner located in ark. price, 28,000. pic below is old, not today.
mlight9

 

^^^^^^^^ Barney used to haul that car around on the roof of his station wagon, wish I'd takes some photos of that. Bob

 

yeah, he was @ the grove one time with it on the roof of his car, think i have a pic somewhere.
mlight9

 

This was the fastest midget in the country in 1957 and 1958. 166 ci injected Ford.
There wasn't a USAC car that could touch it. Driven by Pogo Lundquist, owned by Ralph Kirkwood from Seattle.

 

I have a Solar midget under restoration that I am trying to find rear brakes for. It currently has a Alpha Romeo drum set up on it that is not correct for the car or era (1946). It only has the drums and backing plates. The car is equipped with a halibrand live axle quick change. Does anyone know what was used for brakes on these? Thanks!

 

I have seen several with 46-48 Ford brakes.

 

I have some Casale brake units ......shoes.....drums ......backing plates that came with a project Kurtis years ago and are similiar to the ones on my Solar. They are some of the pieces that I am selling with my original Solar. Let me know what you might be needing.
Thanks

 

Thanks for the reply. I would need everything for a rear brake setup. Once I remove the Alpha brakes I will be starting with a bare axle.

 

Get in touch with me if you want. I would probably have everything to build up brakes on both sides.
Thanks