Features Ford Thunderbolts Photos Wanted

Happy New Year 2014. 50th Anniversary of the Thunderbolt. Imagine all those Lucky racers going to DST about this time a year in the snow in there Station Wagons and pre fabed two Bars to pick up their Brand new 1964 Fairlane THUNDERBOLTs. Getting ready to make history and kick butt all year long. Awesome

Happy Birthday THUNDERBOLTS

Colorado got Two Thunderbolts, Both Ordered out of Courtesy Ford in Littleton, Colo.

Marv Youngman and the 4 Speed Thunderbolt



Julseburg Dragstrip aug. 23 1964

Rick Hearn and the Automatic Thunderbolt

Rick was 17 when his Grandgather, Father and Rick drove up to DST in a 64 Ford Truck and yes in the Snow to Flat tow their THUNDERBOLT back to Colorado




Continental Divide Raceway Castle Rock, Colo. 1964



This is the Year SHOW off your THUNDERBOLT

 

There's a good piece on YouTube about the history of t-bolts, and lot's of pictures,most definitely my dream car.

 

That is a great shot. 17 and a T Bolt..... Some luck there.
Ken, you need one of those.
Eric

 

http://www.fairlanet.com/FE/

It will be here before you know it....

 

this link http://www.georgeklass.net/super-stock.html was posted on the FE Forum. While searching through all the photos (Fords are near the bottom), noticed another T-bolt at our local track (guessing Mission Raceway by the advertising ads in the background).



anyone recognize this car? the lettering is hard to read? Big Jim's Tire and Muffler? Possibly a car from Washington State?

also here's a picof the McLennan Motors car altered (I think it's been posted before)



also here's one I haven't seen posted on this thread before (unless I missed it? )



all pics were from the link above

 

Blowing it up, it looks like "SADLER PORTER" on the door (possibly the team members?) and maybe "BRANTFORD FORD" or "BRAMFORD FORD" on the front fender. The small lettering on the fender above the decals and on the mid-door are too fuzzy to make out.

 

Looks like an altered wheelbase so probably not a DST original.

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John;quite a few DST built T-Bolts got whacked and made into AWB cars,especially after they were no longer competitive with the "NEW" wave of AWB cars!! ROY.

 

But were any of the original 100 delivered as AWB? I know some were eventually modified but thought they all were delivered with stock wheelbase.

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It is hard to tell ... but the front end on this one sure looks like it was extended via Photoshop. Especially forward of the front wheels and hood. Are there any other period pictures of this car in this version out there?
Joel

 

The top car (#81) I remember very well, it was indeed a real Thunderbolt, an aluminum bumper version. It was owned by Larry Schaefer from Bellingham Washington, and he was a regular racer at Mission Raceway in the mid to late 70s. That photo was taken at Mission. I don`t know who or when the car got the altered wheelbase /straight axle treatment, but it was like that when Larry bought it.He raced it with a 428FE Ford and a C6 automatic, running mid 11s. When Mission shut down at the end of 78, Larry offered me the car turn key, with tow bar and tow hubs for $4500.00, but as a 21 year old in the process of moving away from home, and already having a drag car and 2 street/strip cars, and now no race track, and no money, it couldn`t happen. Eventually Tom Willford from the Seattle area bought it, and the car was bought by Jim Gonia, who still owns it, and its now restored to its origional condition.
In 65 or 66, 2 real Thunderbolts came up here to BC Canada, one was Les Ritcheys car, the other I believe was Gas Rhondas old car. One of the buyers was Gary Wanless, the other by the team of Chilton and Dooley. Not sure which buyer got which car. The orange McClennan Motors car in the 2nd photo was the Wanless owned car, after he converted it to an altered wheelbase. Unfortunatley the car was later cut up and scrapped when Wanless took the running gear out for a 67 or 68 Cougar Funny Car he built. I got this information from Wanless himself, who I had met at a Ford meet in Vancouver in the late 80s or early 80s.
The last car I have no idea about.

 

Pic of Gas Ronda and sum of his winnings while at the wheel of a Thunderbolt. What was his saying " Drive a Ford win a Plymouth" He actually won 2 Barracudas

 

Unless I'm mistaken, the top car was originally sold through Frank Vego Ford in the Atlanta area and was raced around Georgia and the Carolinas with sponsorship from a company called Foreign Car Service (which I believe was owned by the car owner Don Fong). Then somehow or another it made it's way to Ohio where it was raced as the Baker Brothers "Shaker" and sponsored by Curry Ford. From the photos I've seen, it looks to have received the altered wheelbase treatment during it's time as the "Shaker". There's a photo floating around with it painted that same color blue with the same rounded rear wheel openings and lettered "Curry Ford" on the quarters. I'd guess it made it's way to the Pacific Northwest once it left Ohio, but I don't know for sure. If Dennis is still keeping tabs on this thread I'm sure he can shed more light on it because I know he put forth a lot of effort trying to determine if it was actually the "Foreign Car Service" car and how it was connected to Don Fong. Best I recall, one of the mechanics there at Foreign Car Service named Norris Swain or Swaim was the driver when it was in the southeast.

The McLennan car was originally Bill Ireland's car, sold through Damerow Ford in Beaverton, OR. I can see what Joel is saying about the photo looking 'shopped but I think it was really done that way. I do not have other photos of it after the AWB conversion but I do recall another car (T-Bolt Too, maybe?) that was stretched in a similar fashion.

Speaking of Dennis, has anyone heard from him lately? He hasn't posted anything in a long time here.

 

Here are a couple of cars similar to the first one with the cut out wheel wells. I guess that wasn't as bad as the Foster car which had the roof cut off. Sorry these aren't my photos and I do not have the photographers name to give credit. Shown for reference only.

 

The Far Rockaway AWB car was the Dobbs Ferry car then became the Far Rockaway car, run as a stock T-Bolt then they did the AWB treatment, Red Holeshot is the same car. The gray car photo is at Cecil County Drag-O-Way in MD. Joel

 

I shot this poor picture of the Far Rockaway Ford at Englishtown, NJ 1965.
Joel

 

Dennis and a bunch of us are hanging out and posting pictures over on Facebook.
Joel

 

The red Holeshot picture is at Island Dragway, Great Meadows, NJ. The Sidney Foster picture is from Biloxie, MS Dragway I believe.

Joel

 

more T-bolt stuff? can the public view or does one have to join the facebook page you guys are posting photos on?

 

Has someone started a Thunderbolt Facebook page?

 

About Facebook ... There is a Ford page on Facebook, Factory Experimental page, Detroit Dragway, Fullsize Flyers, Mid-Size Flyers and a number of personal picture sites as well at track pages. I don't know if you can view it without being a member but it's no big deal to join. It is a great way, along with these pages on HAMB to see and learn more. Take a look, you'll most likely find a lot of friends there. Don't abandon the HAMB and others, just add FB to your viewing.
Joel

 

just spent the past three days re reading all these post!...my mind is blown! I feel like i know the Thunderbolts inside and out! Thank you ALL!! who has contributed!!!

 

In a race at Cecil County on Sept. 19,1964 two of the entrants,the Lewis Drag Team from Pa., and Academy Ford of Maryland are listed as entering T-Bolts. Neither of these teams were original owners-does anyone know which T-Bolts they had? Thanks. Sylvanus

 

Joel,Feel free to keep posting pics here on HAMB. I (along with many others) am not interested in joining Facebook.
Thank's,Myron_

 

Got that right.

 

I have to agree with Joel. There are a lot of good Stock and S/S photos on Facebook...especially on the Fullsize Flyers and Mid-Size Flyers sites.

 

I agree too... Nothing wrong with Facebook. Lots of good stuff showing up there along with good folks.

 

FB is a great source of pictures for gassers, customs, etc. in a general sort of way. Not particularly good for in depth info or history, though.

 

I've got over a thousand pictures on my computer & most of them have come from facebook. That doesn't include what all I have on different clips.
It's a good source.

 

Thanks for the info Joel!