Technical Spindle mount wheel era question

Quick question for you drag racing experts. Was there an overlap where a competition coupe would run spindle mount front wheels and still be flathead powered? Or perhaps a clearer way to pose the question would be: We're spindle mount front wheels available when flatheads were still a contender drag racing or are they only of the era that overhead valve engines ruled? I'm referring to a halibrand style magnesium wheel on a drag coupe, not lile cycle wheels on a front engine dragster. Thanks

 

These came out in about 1959 :

 

Wow awesome ad Thankyou. I guess my question would be at that point would everyone who was running a flathead have torn it out and thrown it behind the garage and plopped in a new small block, rocket or hemi?
Basically as I transform my street flathead powered coupe into a more dedicated drag car id like to know if I can run spindlemounts without the car looking era confused. If that makes sense?

 

I’m sure there were a lot of diehards, living and dying by their flatty’s, into the early ‘60’s.

 

"Probably the last competitive flathead at national events, it traveled to the AHRA World Finals in Spokane in 1978 and defeated a 16 car field in Top Comp Eliminator. The qualifiers included 15 overhead-powered dragsters and only one flathead!"
https://www.draglist.com/stories/SOD Oct 2000/SOD-102600.htm
Mike

 

My friend Pat Cramer's Rebel Rouser dragster at Dover in the early to mid 60s.

 

Wow cool Robert thanks for posting!!

 

It really depends on the class your flathead powered coupe was in. If it was the Gas Class, then that class required brakes on all 4 wheels, until later 60's, and it would be era incorrect for your flathead powered coupe to run Gas class and have spindle mounts. But if it ran Altered coupe, or Comp Eliminator it could run them.
Of course they weren't allowed in any of the stock classes, which also required 4 corner braking.

 

Gordon Anderson 1963

 

I think there was N.H.R.A. class called X dragster class for Flatheads (O.V.H. 6s too?) from early into the mid 60s.

 

Technicly not a flathead , but Safeway Sandblasting Ardun-powered Comp Coupe ran spindle mounts.

 

None of the spindle mount wheels were set up for brakes. I have converted several over the years go meet class rules.

 

It was D/Dragster, X was was for 4 cyl.

 

Thank-you, Marty

Here you Adam D/Dragster thread- D/Dragster

 

@tubman talks about D/Altered for flathead powered cars in the D/Dragster thread sounds like the class you're looking for Adam

Maybe @1934coupe could lend some insight as well.

 

Thanks for all the great info guys and thanks for the detective work Robert.

 

A D/Altered with spindle mounts! I found this photo with a Google search. It claims it is a Conn. dragway photo from 1963.

 

Hello,

The topic is always brought forward as period correct. If the American Racing Equipment spoked front mags were available in 1959, they were very expensive for each wheel. It lists at approximately $53.00 for each spoked wheel. By today’s inflation, that would have been almost $480.00 each. So, in 1959, that money was usually spent on other motor modifications to go faster, not by purchasing the latest trend in spoked mag wheels for the front.

The top racers at the time, sponsored by big money, usually had all of the great stuff we all wanted. But due to our limited expenses, that amount of money was well spent on other things to make us actually go faster. Those wheels just looked lightweight and fast. That was not always the case.

Jnaki

So, the others posting facts from their files have a point about seeing them on various race cars. But as the years rolled on from the 1959 year, different styles and costs were getting better for the average joe.

Again, like all “Period Correct” topics go, you have to narrow it down to almost a shorter time span than 1960-65 as the HAMB cut off has been presented.

By 1962, the American Racing Mags hit the street versions and then took off like a wild fire. So, they were also getting raves at the drag strip and the final builds had them, copied or not. Now, the question for you is, what period of drag racing or hot rodding is your style going after? Saying the 60s brings up so many different looks and styles that no one can lump those styles into an era.

A Chevy sedan from 1969 certainly is not a Chevy sedan for 1961. The style and methods were different for the disgruntled racers. Crazy ideas and actual designs were not always conducive to better speeds and times at the dragstrips. What goes up does not make for a faster race car in any class. (Style or speeds.) YRMV

Another example was the proliferation of copies from different manufacturers and by 1964-65, were beginning to get popular on drag racing cars and hot rods for the street. So, as you can see, the changes for period correct can change almost from year to year starting with 1960. By 1968, the whole world was going bananas and those drag racing styles also changed with the times. Narrow your dates and claim it to be a specific time period. It is too large of a style era to designate it as a 60s style, only.

Even drag racing itself went into a tail spin and the resulting classes were dropped, melded into other competitively renamed classes and eventually, by the end of the 60s, the classes we originally liked, Gas Coupe/Sedan & Street Roadster Classes along with our Altered/Competition Coupes/Sedans Classes bit the dust. By then, the money maker for the drag strips and sponsors were the top fuelers and funny cars. But, that is another sad story for all of us that grew up with the core of drag racing.

 

That may be Stan Adams Fiat before the white with red scallops paint job.