History Origin of the "Rat Motor"

I know it's been discussed and debated before but I recently came across an interesting comment about the name Rat Motor for the Big Block Chevy.
In 1965 Skip Hess stuck a blown Big Block Chevy in the Shores and Hess Anglia. At this time blowers were specifically forbidden by the rules on Anglia's by NHRA. But AHRA had no such rules and after the Kohler Bros had put a blower on their Anglia, Skip followed suit. Jack Burr was lettering the car and Painted "Rat Motor" on the scoop and this is believed to be the first use of the name. It probably came from the fact that the car was known as Skipper's Critter, the name that would actually be on the side of the car later on.

 

I sorta thought that the SBC was called a "Mouse" because it was a lot smaller externally than the other overheads of it's time (Cad-Olds-Pontiac), and then, when the bigger BBC was introduced, the "Rat" moniker was kind of a given.

 

Chryslers were "elephants" due to their size.

Chevrolets were "mice" because they scared elephants.

Big Chevys became "rats" because they are a bigger meaner version of a mouse.

 

never heard that it was started by Hess, but ...???

 

I always understood that chevys were called mouse and rat motors because....

Mouse motors always throw rods trying to keep up with Mopars and Fords and the hole in the block is big enough for a mouse to crawl into.
And Rat motors is the same theory but bigger holes for rats to crawl into.

An old hot rod pal of mine always called big block chevys "grenade mills" hehe

-You know what you get when you spray a motor chevy orange?
-No, what?
-Well the paint doesn't just flake off but it'll peel a chunk right out of your block!

And I don't think HEMI is afraid of any mouse or rat!

-Shiny

 

I see an odder line...my reading of car magazines goes back to before the big block and its immediate acestor, and this is how I saw it.
Remember this goes back to '62-3 as well as to the Mark IV in '65, as the basic head geometry came out via the "mystery engine" that briefly shook up NASCAR.
These engines were sometimes referred to as "porcupine motors" because of the look of all the rocker studs sticking up at multiple odd angles...this went to "Rodent" and then to "Rat" in my reading history. The SBC as "mouse" came along as a contrast to "Rat", AFTER the Rat designation became popular.
These isn't a definitive lexical study...just the datum points I bumped into as I read my way through the newsstands.

 

yup........

 

neat.... whichever way you spin it, BBC's are good motors.

 

Especially if you have a boat.

OK, so why stovebolt? Also, I have heard the phrase stock as a stove and twice as hot, and never really understood it either.

Should I just accept it and move on?

 

Early Chevrolets had a LOT of 1/4 20 bolts and threads ... and 1/4 20 was a very popular size for stovebolts

 

thanks for the pic posting. It always cracked me up that Revell called it a 51 when it's very clear in all the photos that it was a 48 (Clam shell vent vs rectangular door)

 

Yeah that is why Jungle jim ran a rat in his funny for so many years.
Thats right sport fans it was not a hemi.

 

Bruce gets the cigar. that is exactly how it happened.
Don

 

Right-O

 

Bruce, The first of the Big Blocks were known as Porcupines due to the valve angles. No Question there. And it was probably a magazine wag that came up with that. And the timing of your remembering reading the name Rat motor also coincides with the time frame that Jack lettered the car. Now, someone had to be the first to actually use the term and this COULD be the place. Not saying it is or isn't, just the story that I heard from sold old Gasser dude. Like I say the time period seems correct and after all, SOMEONE had to coin the term.
We'll probably never know for sure, but this is as good a story as any.

 

Plus heads for a blade screwdriver. They were on valve covers and pushrod covers. hard to overtorque and ruin the gasket seal (not impossible, just hard to do by accident).

 

yep

 

"...hard to overtorque..." A good mechanic can overtorque anything...I have an old Snap-On socket made just for this need; it is a screwdriver bit with a springloaded sleeve to pilot on the screw head so you can really lean on thet sucker...

 

Anyone know how to reach Jack Burr now ?(saw his name in this post) He did a couple of boats, cars, even my son's soapbox for me.

Need some of his magic to clean up that 29 pile im working on.

Thanks

Brad

 

Jack Burr, 64, died of an apparent heart attack, July 25, 2005. Burr was a renowned painter and owner/crew chief of blown alcohol cars since the days of Pro Comp and had tuned Top Alcohol Funny Cars driven by Gary Scelzi, Tom Lemon, Tom Bristow, and, more recently, Mike Drake.

 

I thought big blocks were called rat motors because you got power "rat now".........
Snipe

 

Which engines got the term "Boat Anchor", and when did that start? I thought it was with the 225" Dodge slant six, or was it FORD 390 FE Engines? We made a mail box out of a FE once........to aggrevate our Ford Buddies.................................HA HA ...and his buddy would not let chevy powered cars park in the driveway of his junkyard in Eaton Ohio.................. They had to park on the street.

 

and there ya have it chevys only tf claim to fame ya hoo.

 

That is the right answer, according to the magazines I was reading at the time.

 

yeah Gotgas is correct.. Id pick a BBC over a hemi anyday

 

I always thought the term "rat motor" came from the south. "Heh, Bubba, which motor you gonna run?"
"Ahm a-gonna run 'is motor rat 'chere."

 

As much as I might disagree with this statement, I love it

 

No menton of the "Stump Puller" Chevy motor in this post so far?

 

I concur with Bruce Lancaster. It was a long time ago, but that's exactly the way I recall it happening.