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1955 chevy survivor "barnfind" Gasser project" update

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by gassertruck, Nov 21, 2009.

  1. Ruiner
    Joined: May 17, 2004
    Posts: 4,141

    Ruiner
    Member

    You aren't gonna find many folks on here that buy stuff done for them...and as for buying a barn find gasser, many of us would wind up redoing the fab work on it to as close as possible to how it was found and still put months of fab work into repairing any bad welds, shoddy craftsmanship and adding gussets and strengthening plates (which you're missing on the front half you just added, and I hope you're planning on adding soon) just to be able to run it down the track again in old form...and if you think you need 900hp to go fast, then take a peek at some of the record books from the 60's...
     
  2. Ruiner
    Joined: May 17, 2004
    Posts: 4,141

    Ruiner
    Member

    You've wasted just as much time on here bickering as I have...mr pot, I believe you just called me black. Sincerely, mr kettle...
     
  3. gassertruck
    Joined: Nov 17, 2009
    Posts: 85

    gassertruck
    BANNED
    from az

    at least i put pics up ruiner i looked for your pics on your gasser took three pages befor any pics and there were only a few lol
     
  4. gassertruck
    Joined: Nov 17, 2009
    Posts: 85

    gassertruck
    BANNED
    from az

    done talking to anybody who just wants to talk crap. the only way to settle anything is to line em up
     
    Last edited: Nov 22, 2009
  5. I give up. Your right dude, you know more then we do.
     
  6. gassertruck
    Joined: Nov 17, 2009
    Posts: 85

    gassertruck
    BANNED
    from az

    i will post more pics tomorrow
     
  7. Ruiner
    Joined: May 17, 2004
    Posts: 4,141

    Ruiner
    Member

    Yep, just a few pics of my gasser, I haven't been lucky enough to have shop space for a little over a year...you can bet that if I did, I'd be out finishing it...put some fish plates on that frontend where the stock frame and 2x4 tubing meet before you kill someone, cause I'm guessing you butt welded that joint...goodnight...
     
  8. Looks sick. My nieghbor is building one right now... never been much into them stock but all hot rodded out they look killer!
     
  9. 333 Half Evil
    Joined: Oct 16, 2006
    Posts: 1,440

    333 Half Evil
    Member

    If you are only going to run a 327, then why would you think you would need a 9" ford to hold up to it? If you are going to build a gasser that was to be a fake barn find that someone put away back in the day.....It seems that you are building a car that would have been from the mid to late 70's, when the gasser era was all but done and gone....yep, it appears you are building a fake, barn find street freak from the 70's. Now that would be cool as hell too....
     
  10. 333 Half Evil
    Joined: Oct 16, 2006
    Posts: 1,440

    333 Half Evil
    Member

    What time period are you basing the build ofyour car on? Clear that up and maybe eveyone here will understand the "logic" behing the build and parts being used to create it.

    I probably shouldn't ask, but wtf are you talking about when you said "4- speeds have a HP rating that made me never run one" ?
     
  11. 333 Half Evil
    Joined: Oct 16, 2006
    Posts: 1,440

    333 Half Evil
    Member

    How wide were the rear wheels then? Did people run 10" wide rims? I was told only 7" ?[/QUOTE]

    It mostly depended on the tire size they were runnin. Before my dads car got the straight axle and such, he ran it with 7" steelies and 8.00 15 recaps on the back. This allowed him to not have to cut or radius the rear wheel openings. After he put the sraight axle under it he still was running the 8.00 15 recaps, but he had pulled the 300hp 327 out and put in a 327 375hp fulie motor he had bought from a guy who wrecked his corvette....unfortunatly dad did not get the fuel injection unit with the engine, so he went to Berger Chevrolet down in Grand Rapids Michigan and bought an offy dual quad intake, two carter afb carbs(they were fatory 409 dual quad carbs) and a new bumpstick and solids to work with the new intake/carb set up. Once he got it together and at the track he found that it was making a whole lot more power than before and the little recap slicks just would not hook at all. So he then went to 11.00 15's and run them on 9" wide steelies, this wheel tire combo made it necessary to radius the wheel openings.

    You had also posted as well as other guys have about radiusing the rear wheel openings, but not all gasser did actually do that.....but those were normally gassers that were still running stock control arm style front suspension. I do agree tho..with the front straight axled, it would be cool to radius 'em.
     
  12. 333 Half Evil
    Joined: Oct 16, 2006
    Posts: 1,440

    333 Half Evil
    Member

    I don't want to talk crap, but when would you like to run 'em? I can see from your pics, your car is not ready to go, but when it is I would be more than willing to see just what ya got. I'll let ya choose what you can line up against, non gasser street rodded 55 2dr post, a real survivor 55 2dr gasser, 57 street/strip pick up built when i was in high school,or to really make it interesting a 1957 panel truck...and yes i am serious about the panel truck. The only stipulation if you choose to run against my panel....it has to be from a 30mph roll. So...give it some thought and let me know.
     
  13. fab32
    Joined: May 14, 2002
    Posts: 13,985

    fab32
    Member Emeritus

    Ruiner, Just going to chime in and agree with over 99% of what you have said. I think your finding out what percentage of HAMbers actually lived that era or they wouldn't be arguing with you. About 5 miles from me sits a '55 chevy that was run in Gas class and put away in the early 70's after competing for over 10 years. It's a carbon copy of what your trying to tell these experts about what it was like back then. Radiused rear wheel wells, '57 Pontiac rear (not narrowed), Borg Warner close ratio 4speed, origional Ford straight axle w/transverse spring, M&H slicks (hard as a rock), VW front tires mounted on home made rims with '55 centers and VW outers 301 (283 bored to 4"), fiberglass front fenders and hood w/sheet metal air scoop, no front bumper, Hilborn (the guy saved for 2 years to be able to buy it), 4 point roll bar, gutted interior and 1 fiberglass seat (made from stolen chair out of a local landramat), Surplus Airforce seat belt and shoulder belt, dash mounted Sun tach and oil pressure/water temp on a panel under the dash. It hasn't seen the light of day for over 30 years. It isn't for sale for any price (the owner is a well off farmer that's taken over the family farm) so it certainly isn't a "barn find". Everyone around here has known about the car since it was new and knows exactly where it is.

    Frank
     
  14. 333 Half Evil
    Joined: Oct 16, 2006
    Posts: 1,440

    333 Half Evil
    Member

    Frank.....not to be an instigator, but think if I came to your place and picked ya up.....we could sneek over an take a "joy ride" in it!!!? That would be a fun time....think about it!!! LOL/JK. Are there any pictures of it around to see? Never can get enough of seeing cars they way there were...for real. I'd love to see it.... Al.
     
  15. S.F.
    Joined: Oct 19, 2006
    Posts: 2,895

    S.F.
    Member

    What gas class will it be raced in? C or D?
     
  16. fab32
    Joined: May 14, 2002
    Posts: 13,985

    fab32
    Member Emeritus

    Al, I would love to take you to see it but the owner is one shy type that doesn't want anyone to know that it exists. The last time I got a look was about 15 years ago and it was only because I happened to be driving by the farm storage barn he keeps it at and spotted his pickup parked on the side. I couldn't believe how shabby it looked. Imagine years of pigeon shit covering the whole exterior, so much dust that you couldn't see inside the windows and only one front tire with any air.
    With the nostalgia racing thing being what it is today I would like to see the old girl running again but the pleading of his friends has so far fallen on deaf ears. One other neat thing about this car is that it was never bracket raced (put away before there was such a thing) just raced for class and eliminator. I guess you could call that bracket racing but the owner would be pissed if you did as the handicap he ran off of was the national record in the class.

    Frank
     
  17. gassertruck
    Joined: Nov 17, 2009
    Posts: 85

    gassertruck
    BANNED
    from az

    im doing plates today im not done as you can tell by the pics and it is not butt welded anyone who has ever done this would know the 2''x4'' box tube is in the frame a good 4"+ or so. thanks
     
    Last edited: Nov 23, 2009
  18. Nice 55!
    PS I just found the official 1950's and 1960's hotrod building rule book.This book was handed out to every rodder back in the 50's and 60's so they could build a "period correct" car! Everyone had to follow the rules within this book or their car was confiscated by the automotive fashion police! With this book, I can solve all of these disputes!:D


     

  19. how about W for WHACK! HA HA HA HA HA !
     
  20. 53sled
    Joined: Jul 5, 2005
    Posts: 5,817

    53sled
    Member
    from KCMO

    This one got a little further before anyone pulled out the ruler.
    [​IMG]
     
  21. swilly572
    Joined: Feb 3, 2007
    Posts: 100

    swilly572
    Member

    Nice ride, will look great with the rear radiused!
     
  22. brocluno
    Joined: Nov 1, 2009
    Posts: 168

    brocluno
    Member

    Let's see - I was there. I graduated HS in 66. I raced Mopars in Gas Class C, D & E then moved over to MP. I ran against a lot of Chevys with 327's and 348's. The rich kids could get 409s and 406 Fords & Mercs, but us poor farm folks built our own from whatever we could afford - lots of truck motors. I ran a 64 Valiant with a 273, then 383 TorqueFlite then switched to a 406 Galaxie with a stick. I blew up a LOT of rears. I did not have an axle under the front of either. The Valiant just torqued up the torsion bars. The Galaxie has ball joint spacers and 90/10 shocks.

    Most of my bud's who ran Chevies ran any kind of tough rear they could get. BOP was OK, so were truck gears. Narrowed rears did get done. We welded them up ourselves and had the axles shortened and splined. We narrowed a lot of Dana 44's & 60's out of trucks because they were dirt cheap and had low gears with posi. 9" were not so cheap and most did not come with posi. You could weld up the spiders to make a back yard spool, but why? Mopar 8.75s got used a lot too.

    Not all tri-5's had radiused wheel wells. There was a bit of pride in fitting it all under the body. Almost all front axles came from pick-ups and vans unless you were rich. Then you could buy a tube axle.

    For rim size, we built our own. It was one of the major sources of money at the small race car company I worked at in Santa Cruz - A&W Engineering out by the Wriggley Chewing Gum Plant. We'd cut the rims on a brake lathe, drill the rivets, roll a spacer and weld it all back together. We did a lot of 7 & 8 inch and very few 10 inch. 7's were big for the MP crowd as all you could run were 7" slicks (measured tread width). If you made the rims wider, they would load the shoulders and you would loose grip.

    Most local guys ran Bruce's re-caps out of Oakland until your tune-up was strong enough for real M&H's. If you were there, you'd work with the tire shop to pattern the foot print on launch. The rim width was very dependent on the car and the way the chassis loaded the tire along with what pressure you were running. Once you had your numbers, you'd come by the shop and order rims to fit your car with whatever rear and bolt pattern you had. Most guys ran steel rear wheels. Alloys were for the front to reduce weight.

    Most guys had plates on their cars and ran recapped cheater slicks on the street for night racing and maybe carried their M&H's in the back or a buddies station wagon with the spares. I backed up two of my buds carrying tires and wheels in my 56 Ranch Wagon along with tools, a jack and gas. You'd usually not get a race at night if you switched to real race tires, so we'd drop the air in the recaps and run.

    The other tire of choice was the 8.20/15 Atlas Plycron. Sticky bastard. Put it on a 7 inch rim behind a small motor with about 13 psi and they'd hook on the street if you warmed them up. Big motors (stout 327 and above) would blow them off.

    So, for me, the look is all about who might have built it in the first place. Pure race car? Pure street fighter? Or a combo with serious bragging rights and the time slips to back it up :)
     
  23. gassertruck
    Joined: Nov 17, 2009
    Posts: 85

    gassertruck
    BANNED
    from az

    nice post i loved reading that if you got more post it :D brocluno
     
  24. Ruiner
    Joined: May 17, 2004
    Posts: 4,141

    Ruiner
    Member

    Bitchin!...it's great to hear stories from the guys that didn't have the cash for a 392 and chrome frontends...and even better to hear about guys racing Valiants...I also never get to hear stories about the guys who build their own wheels (or worked at the shops that did), did you guys narrow front wheels too, or were those easy enough to find?...
     
  25. gassertruck
    Joined: Nov 17, 2009
    Posts: 85

    gassertruck
    BANNED
    from az

    did not do much today had other stuff going on. welded the plates on and marked out the lines for the bull nose
     

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  26. Ruiner
    Joined: May 17, 2004
    Posts: 4,141

    Ruiner
    Member

    Are you using flux core wire? If you are, and you have the option of running an argon/co2 mix with it, you should try it out...just turn up your amperage a bit to make up for the cooling of the gas and do a straight push weld, it'll result in one solid layer of slag, less weld spatter and you can get better penetration with the hotter settings and no burn through because of the shielding gas...just a suggestion...
     
  27. gassertruck
    Joined: Nov 17, 2009
    Posts: 85

    gassertruck
    BANNED
    from az

    more pics to come
     
  28. mckustoms
    Joined: Aug 6, 2006
    Posts: 595

    mckustoms
    Member

  29. gassertruck
    Joined: Nov 17, 2009
    Posts: 85

    gassertruck
    BANNED
    from az

    thanks mckustoms you make some nice shifter knobs
     
  30. brocluno
    Joined: Nov 1, 2009
    Posts: 168

    brocluno
    Member

    Fronts were a source of pride. Lots of Cragar SS wheels went on the front. So did ET Mags with the chrome outers, alloy centers and adjustable bolt spacing washers. Lots of guys ran 15x6 chrome wheels as they were readily available at any parts house.

    The thing is that we built parts for combo cars that raced at Fremont, Half Moon Bay, and Salinas on the week end and on the street almost every night. Real mags were too expensive and they broke if you got sideways and punched a curb. Steelies will bend, but prolly keep going until you can get far enough away to deal with it. Rich kids with fancy parts got more tickets and got towed more than we did :)

    We'd knock the outers off old VW rims and weld in OEM centers to match your bolt spacing. As an example: Big Fords got the centers from pick-ups as lots came with 16 inch wheels and that gave you a lot of center to work with to trim and fit the VW outers. Then the poor boy dog dish painted caps would fit right on for a cool look.

    OBTW - for narrow rears that fit under the body work, some guys ran Hudson rears as they are narrow enough to fit nicely. You need to move the springs inboard, but it's all doable. Usually those guys ran truck axles and drums in the Hudson housing. There weren't many, but always a few around. Junk Hudsons were the cheapest source of parts next to Nash's and nobody used Nash stuff as it would break if you looked at it.

    The deal that confuses guys nowdays is that there are a lot of track photos showing Gas cars with fat slicks sticking outside the body work. At least in my area, if you had any part of the tire outside the body work on the street, it was an instant ticket and maybe a tow-away. The street tires always fit inside the body. The track tires were another matter. Cars that were pure street fighters often do not have the fenders cut away. It was stock sheet metal all the way.
     
    Last edited: Nov 24, 2009

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