History H.A.M.B. Cars that pushed the limits (Vintage only Please.)

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Guy, while I do agree with most of what you said I have to correct you in two things… the car was and still is channeled over a 32 frame, so it‘s never been a hiboy . And second, it does not have black and white scallops nor am I planning to put any on. But other than that, I fully agree. I probably ruined it by your standards.

*edit* I replaced blurry pics with less blurry ones

 

You haven't ruined anything .You made it yours. I have always liked that car.

 

by my maths, that makes him 20 years old in that photo !
It always intrigue’s me as to how young the original hot rodders were……….

 

I also have always liked this car.
Originally built in 2001, it’s not like you have lost it’s history by changing the colour……….
Both versions look good !

 

Short stories of innovation. Dear old Dad was a late model and modified circle track racer. He and John Rieburger built a 30s Plymouth modified with a "big" Chrysler 6. A cpl racers caught on and cried foul, not a Plymouth engine. Dad took the "Chrysler Corp of CANADA" tag off the donor and said it was Canadian and the tech guys bought it. Later the car got stuffed in 1 corner and put a "diamond" in the frame. Car would practically go around the track on it's own after and John wiped out the whole field in what was called the "Australian Pursuit" qualifier, where the #1 guy had to start from the back, in just 4 laps. They disqualified the car, "...we know (so n so) is cheating and we can't catch him, you guys are out."

Later he built this 61 Galaxie with an experimental 427. The whole cage was 2X2 box tube instead of round. Lots of room, stiff as can be, very fast. It got stuffed in the ass hard when one of the others was pissed he couldn't pass my uncle, Tony Altobell, in the feature but Tony still won. The only feature win for it and the 1st night he drove. Dad cut the damage off so the back was a little shorter by about 6" vs starting over with a new car. Once again they cried foul and called it a modified, they raced and did well that night but no more, "Fuck em..." was the battle cry and the car got sold off in parts. Damn I had a good childhood, Lincoln Park, 1965.
(Yes I've posted this before)

 

Thanks David.
Marcus...

 

And now this word from our Pot Stirring Department:

The great Tex Smith is seen here with his hot rod which proudly displays a VW front beam.

I got a feeling that, through historical photos, this thread is going to break the brains of the traditionalists as they find out that "traditional" doesn't mean what they think it does.

 

Personally, I don't use the word traditional when describing the style cars I like/build I call them period correct, because you can build a 100% period correct car that is anything but traditional.

The Model A Tudor Iam building is a good example-

Model A sedan on a highly modified model A frame with a 1954 261 a Cyclone adaptor to an early Ford transmission, Q.C rear far from traditional all period correct.

 

Sometimes we just compartmentalize things. We can't resist, and I'd bet we could have a 10 page discussion as to why the HAMB vs the rest. No need. Anyone who thinks higher tech didn't arrive until the Vern Luce or such cars wasn't there, didn't live it, and at a minimum doesn't read enough archived info. Tube chassis, 4 links, ladder bars, hell even coil over shocks, none of it is really new or modern. That shit saw limited use because it was expensive then, like high zoot uber-electronic waahzoo DOHC stuff today. I've said before, like it or not we restore. Not to stock but restored to a time we cherish. I'll go out on a limb (probably a really fat one if I'm being honest) and declare that there were not only highly skilled craftsmen back then but they were better than some of the best today. They called it heliarc, we call it TIG, they probably said 4 bar, we say 4 link, we say coil over, they probably said helper spring, they had mechanical fuel injection, we now have electronic. All the "tech" from hot rodders in the time we love can now be found on the showroom floor. Make no mistake, hack-fuck slobs were around too. Booger weld angle iron, shitty seats, old smokey motors, and now when that shit is found some just fall to their knees in honor of "...this is how it was done..." when in fact it wasn't. They were just old hacks. This is a good topic, paying tribute the best of the best from the best generations. Love it...

 

Growing up in southern Wisconsin back in the 60s there were 2 drag strips and at least a half dozen circle tracks within 50 miles. Everywhere you went there were race cars being built at service garage's and in people's driveways. No rules on how things were built or with what. arc welders, torches and a grinder were most guys fabrication shop. Wanted to make your 55 fly ? One 409/4 speed out of a new wrecked 62 Impala at the junk yard, a piece of 3/8 plate some angle iron plus torch and you have a Hurst style motor plate and a trans crossmember, Need traction bars? A piece of angle welded to the spring bolt plate and to the frame near the front seat, some steel round stock and 4 tie rod ends, and you have traction bars. Guys built what they needed and manufactures like George Hurst and others put those ideas into production and anyone could go fast. But it always started with someone with an idea that hadn't been done before. Thats hot rodding to me and it still happing today. Larry


And I do agree with highlander there were some real hack jobs, but a lot of talented stuff got built by a guy in his garage with a torch and an arc welder and a grinder.

 

The Junior Johnson 1963 Chevrolet

 

Anything Smokey Yunick built.
Now, if his Chevelle could be discussed here................

 

Not up to me, but it was a 66 Chevelle. The 65 thing is only in the classifieds. Talk about innovative...

 

It was about that same time that Dick Deutsche built his second dragster in SoCal. His circle of friends included many young guys who worked in the aircraft industry. His first racer was front engine digger that ran a 216 Chevy, and the second rail used the same mill, but in a rear engine configuration. This was in about 1951. The rail was based on a set of the same PBY wing spars as the Carrillo roadster, and was build in Richards back yard. Originally, the old 216 was the powerplant, but by pure luck, Richard ended up with a 261/216 Chevy six that lived in a Tee roadster. That little six had a very early cast iron Wayne head. It had a Vertex mag, and a pair of Winfield's sidedrafts on Wayne manifolds. That engine went into rail, and was run a few times before Richard sold the dragster, sans the engine. The dragster went on to live a life on the salt....

 

Tom Cobbs blown flathead roadster was pushing the limits when he built and raced it in the late 40's.

 

The 1935 Ford Miller Indy Cars, Frontwheel drive, four-wheel independent suspension.




The story I have always heard was the cars failed because the heat from the exhaust boiled the grease out of the steering box.

I wounder if it was the steering box are the U-Joint?

 

I just noticed the tricked-up floor in the Junior Johsons/Ray Fox 63 Chevy, playing with aero?

 

Chet Herbert's propane-powered, Horning 12-port head GMC, 32 sedan

 

1927 Miller Derby built on behalf of AC Delco. Finished 6th in 1928 Indy and 12th in 1929. Front wheel drive.

 

How about Max Balchowski and Ol’ Yeller I and II?

 

Cheater

 

If the rules don't say you can't than you can.

 

Great thread!

 

If the rules don’t say if you can do it….then you can’t.

 

It's called working in the gray areas, if a rule is black and white maximum cubic inch and your over, minimum weight and you're under yes, it's cheating but if there is no rule against doing something it's legal!

My dad built a couple street stocks in the 1980s the rules said the battery had to remain under the hood.

Must people left it in the stock location, but since you wanted weight low, to the left and rear dad built a new box and put the battery on the left side frame rail just ahead of the drivers' feet.

The battery was still under the hood, and its weight as low, to the left and rear as possible.

By your theory my car is illegal, our rules state car must run stock frame rails. They didn't say they had to come from the same car, so I used three sets of Model A rails to kick and stretch the frame for Chrysler rear leaf spring.

Our rules don't say we have to run the stock suspension, so in your world since I did two things not in the rule book my car world my car is illegal.

 

How about Jack Gillis, at 18 he put a 6-71 on a Flathead in 1947. Article written by a member with a very short career as a Journalist.
https://www.motortrend.com/news/the-first-gmc-blown-roadster-jack-gillis/

 

I totally understand what you are saying. I too worked in the gray area of the rules with the SCTA and always conformed to exactly what was written. My car was never ever found to be illegal but despised by many mainly because it was not a Ford roadster. The ones in control just changed the rules for the following year and what did I do? Followed the new rules which usually worked out better……4 times. They thought Fords would be eliminated but just the opposite….. after 53 years since my car was originally built there have only been 2.
Same with our Super Stock dirt car. Like you say certain parts must be stock. We use a 72 Camaro front suspension rails at a mandated length, a stock right lower a arm from a 85 Ford Crown Vic, Pinto spindles, GM metric brake discs and calipers, Chrysler leaf rear springs, etc

 

Never actually understood why Roth cars get a pass as traditional?

 

Why would they need a pass? Roth was a customizer whose formative years were during the era considered appropriate for HAMB content.