Projects DRAG SNAKE "Vintage Terror!"

I do as well! Great artwork.

 

Actually I don't think Shelby had very much at all to do with the Dragonsnake cars. Remember they came from the shop across the street from the real race shop. I think the only time he really had an intereset in them is when he thought he might make some money selling them and or their drag racing developed Hi-Po parts. But when that didn't exactly pan out, AND just as the second Dragonsnake (the blue one from above) was about to become the winningest Cobra Race Car of all time...he pulled the plug.

As for the yellow one, I believe this is actually what it looked like not long after it left Shelby's shop.


I am not sure but I am betting the original owner chose the graphics and had them painted to look like the second factory car. They are very close in style (while I wonder about the driver's side snake facing the wrong way?). LOL But then this car was painted red and then yellow again and then one of our great contributors here on the thread had a big hand in restoring it. So I am not sure when its current graphic first appeared, but I bet someone will come along and tell me....LOL!

But as for the rest of the graphics, while they were inspired by the original cartoon on the second factory car, I am fairly sure they all came from the owners, not Shelby.

 

Not a lot to report this weekend other than playing around with the graphics on the rear. I also went into to work for a bit this morning and knocked out the rest of the missing side graphics so they are all ready to re-install. We also started replacing some of the parts and pieces we removed for the stripes.




Everything seemed to go back on fairly easily and if you look close up there on the dash you can see the tach back in place as well.


It took a while to track down all the hardware for the stupid thing but I finally found it. I love having that tach up there! Obviously the windshield is also back in place as well.


Our seem line where we reversed the graphic is perfectly hidden by the lower frame and rubber of the windscreen. But to be honest, even before we put it in place, it was hard to spot. It is something most people will not even realize but I really like the fact that we reveresed it, so no matter which end of the car you look at it, the graphics are in the correct orientation.


Nothing to report here, just a pretty cool shot. LOL


I am really digging the final draft of the Cobra on wheels (and you will note, mine is facing the correct direction....LOL.


And finally before I installed the rear license plate light cover, I put some black electrical tape on the sides to try and focus the light a bit better. If you remember a while back when it was first installed, it basically shot light everywhere exept the license plate...LOL!

 

It's my understanding from following their history that the original Dragon Snakes were painted several times and colors over their lifespan.

 

Definitely, they have all been in the paint shop several times. All, except for one. Both the two factory units started out as Vikng Blue with extra flake added. But only the first one survived with no further color changes.

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CSX2427 was just painted custom ordered yellow as delivered. The owner came up with his own graphics and had them painted on. Most people will never have any idea how much research went into this car's restoration. Steven Juliano traveled the country and to England more than once looking for information, parts, and materials. The original owner was a great help. Steven visited England hunting carpet and scored a bolt of 100% correct material. Steven tracked down and visited the man that made the special Cobra only drag racing shock absorbers hoping to learn enough to make something that looked correct. Surprise, the man kept a set of Dragonsnake specific shock absorbers in 1964 and Steven was able to make a deal for them. We never found the original 4-2V induction system. The original owner had sold it off long ago. I did come up with a match from another Shelby race engine. It took years to come up with every piece. Some details depended on the original owner providing them and he kept quite a lot of memorabilia, trophies, race driving suit, and some parts. The last two new old stock parts we had been hunting were found and installed in 2018.

Steven Juliano worked with pictures of the car right after the buyer had it personalized, that original owner in personal visits during the restoration, and a painter to recreate the logos.

The car started as a drag racer but a subsequent owner converted it to a road racer and raced it in SCCA events.

The original owner got some technical assistance and parts from the competition department at SA. Neat car.

 

The first drag car CSX2019 has only been completely painted twice as of the last time I examined it this century, by AC Cars (seen that way in the movie Viva Las Vegas as a road racer style car) and then heavily metal flaked light blue it was still wearing a few years ago when I looked it over.

 

Regarding custom colors of street and race cars from Shelby American.

In general if you bought and applied any company’s factory mix for AC or Shelby “colors” you would probably be surprised how different they were from what the Shelby factory painter applied. He has told many people for decades that factory colors were just a starting point. He modified paints to suit whoever wanted it, especially Mr. Shelby. Some of the blues were the most modified, usually darker.

 

See, I told you. LOL.

Thank you Dan, I figured that was a perfect lead in for a good Cobra Lesson this morning. Your knowledge is always appreciated. A perfect way to start off a Monday!

 

I got to work early this morning and since I had some time on hands and an updated "Snake on Wheels" I decided to knock a couple out for the helmet. I made them just a bit larger, about half inch or so. I am really happy, they look so much better than the silver and gray versions!




Now we are ready for a bit of clear coat and then put it all back together!

 

You are welcome.

In very basic terms every customer race car was a one off; for any kind of racing the buyer had in mind at any level of intensity. You can look up published lists of what basic racers meant at various times but in general anything from weekend warrior to international road racer was yours to purchase if you had the funds.

Stage I
Stock engine; more or less a well optioned street car as most competition features could be ordered alone for any car.

Stage II
January 1964 onward, street 2-4V engine and some race goodies.

Stage III
Day one new with 4-2V Weber carburetors on a nearly stock engine other wise and selected race gear.

Stage IV
A fully prepared (almost as well as a SA team car ...LOL) race car for serious racing.

In simple terms, Shelby American prepared team cars were normally completed in groups of two or three at a time. If two or three care were completed in the same time frame they could be very similar except for individual driver preferences. They didn’t stay similar for many reasons and usually had some things in flux race to race. Over time most gained their own unique features that made them easier to recognize as individuals.

Today people get hung up over color matches. In period there weren’t any hard fast rules. What people call Ford Guardsman Blue was in reality whatever was in favor of the day at SA, usually darker. The Cobras that ran in Europe in 1965 were whatever Alan Mann Racing came up with as Shelby ran the GT40s and Mann ran the Cobras. Mike McCluskey painted CSX2589 deep blue for Mr. Shelby decades ago. Lots of people call it Guardsman Blue in color. The story published decades ago is that Mr. Shelby picked a Corvette color he liked but he wanted it darker. I call all those darker blues Shelby Blues.

(One of the colors offered new by AC Cars was Bright Blue. AC’s Bright Blue and Ford’s Guardsman Blue are not the same.)

 

I like your graphics of the snake on the rear better than some of the original painted versions, and reversing the snakes at the windshield was a neat idea too.
Love the helmet too.

 

Okay boys (and girls) if there are any watching. I always say that, I guess to be politically correct but I do not believe we have had a female make a comment on this thread in over 2600 posts. Unless of course you count Jackson who drives like a girl! LMAO...

But seriously, we have a decision to make today of the utmost importance. After reviewing all of the Snake on Wheels art, I had a HAMB "lurker"....(you know who you are)...send me a PM and it got me to thinking this morning. So I decided to put this most imperative concern to a quick vote to see what you guys think? TAIL or NO TAIL?



Tail or No Tail, that is the question. Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the severe unbalanced nature of a reptile without a tail Or to take up said tail and place it as afterthought to an already proven graphic....etc. etc. etc. I am just guessing but I bet that little soliloquy was lost on this crowd. LMAO! Certainly lost on anyone that ends nearly every sentence in a netspeak acronym for laughing at some level!

 

Just say no to a piece of tail.

 

‘How sharper than a serpent’s tooth it is to have a tailless Cobra!’ (King Lear Act 1, Scene 4)
The tail just seems to be hanging out there taking up space. I vote no tail.

 

I think I like the tail! Gary

 

Always up for some tail

 

A little tail never hurt anybody!
But in this case If it was me, I would go sans tail.

 

Nope. It wasn't broken.

 

I'm with Gary. A Cobra needs his tail, as we all do!

 

I can mentally see 'ol Bill Shakespear rolling over in his grave as he wrestles with the choice...tail or no tail, that IS the question!

I'm with 'ol Bill - no tail!

 

Forget all this silliness! Get the dang thing on the road (track).

 

Imho, the tail actually detracts from the sense of speed in your "original" version.

 

To change thou mind or not to change it AGAIN! That is the question . And if you get some burn out rubber on them quarters it would have tails! lol Larry

 

Randall I’m with choffman41 get the damn thing done and burn some rubber no ones gonna care about the tail of it’s covered with burnt rubber anyway lol and just for the comment I’m gonna go install a rear view mirror in my car so I can see your face when my car outruns this thing lol


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Sorry Jackson couldn't resist poking the bear...lol. I actually tried returning the favor this weekend:


But looks like I am going to have to figure something else out. With the tach up there, the addition of the mirror really makes it hard to see anything out front to the right (like a christmas tree).

I think we are handicapped enough against the old MOPAR without giving you the hit as well!

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Here you go Jackson, in true "Old School MELTDOWN Thread Style" the new lyrics to the Beach Boys Shut Down! LOL .....Man I miss those threads!

Tach it up, tach it up...Buddy gonna shut you down

It happened on the strip where the road is wide
Two cool shorts standin' side by side
My fuel injected Cobra and a 426
Revvin' up our engines and light'n the wix

Tach it up, tach it up...Buddy gonna shut you down

Declinin' numbers at an even rate
At the count of one we both accelerate
My Cobra's light, the slicks are startin' to spin
But the MOPAR wedge is really diggin' in

Gotta be cool now power shift here we come

The Wheel Altered Ivey's winding out again
But my Drag Snake Cobra's really making me grin
It's got the traction and she's stretching the shocks
The little Ford is screaming and that really rocks

(Saxophone Solo)

Pedal's to the floor 3rd and 4rth in a wink
And the 426's lead is startin' to shrink
He's hot with GM Injection but it's understood
A Boss three sixty three is sittin' under my hood

Shut it off, shut it off buddy gonna shut you down
Shut it off, shut it off buddy gonna shut you down
Shut it off, shut it off buddy gonna shut you down
Shut it off, shut it off buddy gonna shut you down
Shut it off, shut it off buddy gonna shut you down

 

You really have too much time on your hands Randall lmao but I gotta give you credit where credits due that’s pretty good lol


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Did you say pretty good or pretty true. Sorry I missed that...? LOL

 

I know, I know. It is coming. Trust me no one wants to hit the water box more than me. We are just waiting on a couple of vital firewall pieces so we can finish the interior plus a backordered one way valve for the two inch fuel hose. When those things are in place, trust me, it is going to be on like Donkey Kong!