Australia's hot rodding pioneers

You mean the red one a couple of posts back? It would have to have been Lou Molina's Monza Holden. Ibn the pic you can see the potvin style blower under the front suspension with the intake running back.
Really cool styling

 

The Fellows who made the Hudson Heads, Harry Bink and Clive Gibson ring a bell with me, is Harry Bink connected to the guys who had Bink's Wheels in Canberra? Clive Gibson , was he the father in law of Don Martin who won Middle Eliminator at the 1967 Drag Racing Nationals in a Rambler powered rail? Is Clive Gibson the same guy who raced a 1938 Dodge sedan at Mount Druitt, Bathurst etc in the 1950s?

 

That must be it DirtyNails, wow that is a very cooling looking thing. Any idea if it still survives?

 

Griff,I am sure it does,I met the late lou Molina back in the 80's and he had a bar chock full of motoring stuff from the 30's onwards including a couple of his race cars.
i do have a pic somewhere of another called the scepter( I think) which was also a blown Grey motor.

. The point of me posting this stuff here is that before the SBC Aussies could build some hot grey motors and Y blocks independent of other influences.
Flatties got their share of attention too including Eldred norman who ran a V16 racer called the Double 8. it was powered with a ...not one but two Ford flatties! . When the engines got a bit tired he swapped in a V12 Zephyr. he's the same guy who made the norman Supercharger.

The biggest horses got from a Grey was a Waggot twin cam headed grey with 220HP. Not bad for a miniature Chev six.
heres one getting the message ;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhFKum5PDqY

 

Here is Aussie Hot rodding ( i suppose ) at it's level best. The fabulous Waggot Twin cam Grey motor .

 

Has anyone got pics of Jim Veal's grey powered altered?
I have a lead on the motor supposed to have 220hp at 8500rpm running on methanol.

 

Binga, a grey at 8000 revs is on the ragged edge ..They will rev to that but the trick is to run under 6000 or over 7000 . Around 6200 there is a harmonic in the crank which breaks them. As some one said, " I wonder why so many of the old time Holden guys had six inches of grey motor crankshaft as door stop.? "
There are pic s in some of the Australian Hot Rodding review of the altered,in fact dozens of them. I wonder why it's so damned hard to find stuff today for them?

 

Any chance you could scan and post a couple of pics?

 

Our Fiat D/A with grey power ran 13's in the 60's, then the engine went into a T bucket body on a tube chassis and I believe ran 11's and held the NSW record but that was after my time. Our engine was the 'classic' grey...

3 1/4 bored Canadian block, 11-1 pistons, 35-75 McGee cam, 3 x 1 3/4 SU's on a ram log manifold, Lynx extractors. Line bored, balanced, lightened flywheel, standard 3 speed gearbox with inline floor shifter and EH first gear and cluster, which it used to chew up at an alarming rate.

Our spares kit for a day at Castlereagh included 5 gallons of Shell MB 115 racing fuel and as many spare gearboxes as we could afford to build. It wasn't uncommon for a gearbox to last one run, then need to be ripped out. We could change that box in 20 minutes flat. We got down to our last gearbox and no cash, so we cobbled one together out of bits from other broken ones, and that final gearbox lasted into the next car!

Still, it's some indication of the power that ol grey was putting out. An EH gearbox isn;t that easy to destroy, and I've seen the bottom plate come off that car's box with a mountain of smashed gears and syncro rings piled up on it a few inches deep like icing on a cake. One of our club members was running an EH in BMP class with the very first genuine 186 red motor block in an EH, and he couldn't bust a gearbox like we could!

Cheers, Glen.

 

Binga ,What I will try and do is ask a guy I know who was there and did it in those days. He actually has a couple of Waggot Twin cam heads and a Dunstan Rotary Valve head. If he hasn't pictures I know he will have access to pics of the altered. Better than trying to get clear pics off the newsprint.

 

Yes, Paul, the car WAS rusty - but fixable at a price (aren't they all!!!) We told KSK that it would be cheaper to buy a new, fully optioned Fairlane than to CORRECTLY RESTORE the Customline. A close inspection when we received it revealed rotted body mounts, rain gutters rusted through the pinch welds of adjacent panels, 'A' pillars rusted through at the base and just about every pinch weld suffering advanced rusting. Oh, not to mention rear quarters, all floors and the panel between rear window and boot opening!
Oddly enough, the custom panels have survived surprisingly well and the chassis/running gear, apart from missing engine pieces, radiator, etc is quite restorable.
For years I've threatened to cut the thing up, hang the custom bits on the workshop wall and tip the rest. BUT, as there seems to be more known history to this car than previously realised, and it is regarded by many as an important item in Australian Rod and Custom history, I've had another think.
The situation is this: I'm prepared to put my time, effort (and that of Adam) and, of course, money where my mouth is to get the old girl back to her former glory.
I have enough parts on hand to rebuild the present Y block to 292 c.i., Thunderbird heads and 4 barrel etc, and the rest of the chassis/running gear is a straight forward restoration. One of the crazy headers is missing - have to replicate that!!!
Another BUT: We need a reasonable, restorable, body shell complete with doors, bootlid and front clip. Not mint, don't mind rusty floors, sills, lower quarters etc but structually sound. don't really need the running gear as the existing items would be used to keep the car as original as possible.
SO - any leads on a bodyshell to a complete car at a reasonable price to use as a donor? any help would be appreciated.

 

Adam and I spoke a couple of times about this custom, and we both believed that finding a better body was the only way to go.

Buy he had a few of his own project on the build (and possibly still does) that all he could do was park it, and think about it later.

Was all the interior trim with it when delivered to you? As it was stored out of the car when I found it. And I did take photos, that Adam should have. Along with a full set of build and other photos I sent him that were made off the originals Don allowed me to copy.

At least it has survived.

Am glad to hear that you have taken on the responsability of bringing it back to life.

 

I think that most of the trim is there, I'll check this morning. Just which version the car would be, will depend upon Adam; he's the bodyman!

The hubcaps from the later version have survived, one was missing some pieces but Adam picked up a complete one some years ago. Most of the tail light fittings, heavily pitted, and one set of side mouldings came with the car.

Did Don ever tell you what he adapted for the side mouldings? I think that Adam even has the headlight surrounds from the later version.

 

Glenc was the Customline from Campsie a blue one with lots of undercoat, was the body altered. Tell me what you can remember about it.

 

The complete interior trim is still in it. After carefully wiping a heavy layer of grot, I very cautiously applied a little of the appropriate general purpose detergent to a portion of the rear seat back and worked it with a nail brush. A wipe with a damp cloth, and the remaining dirt, stains, mould etc came away to reveal quite savable trim - if the rest of it is anywhere this good!

The backings for the door trims have virtually turned to pulp due to moisture, but the vinyl coverings are also savable. About 3" of stitching has let go between pleats where the driver sits but that's about the only repair needed!!

We intend to carefully remove, clean and store the trim very soon.

The dash is complete with the exception of the radio knobs, the later Customline steering wheel has a piece missing from its base; and, oh yes, Adam still has the chain link gear shifter and, I think, the skirts!!!

A couple of questions:
- With the second version, from what were the front half bumpers, and was the rear split bumper adapted from a holden FB/EK?
-With the first version, what was used for the grille and bonnet 'nostril' components?

Just trying to piece together a piece of Aussie custom history, and get it right!!!

 

That 'shroud is the top radiator tank!

A red hot 'Grey' needed every bit of cooling it could get!

 

Looking at the early photos, I would say he cut down the original front bar.

Have no idea about the bonnet pieces, possibly the upper and lower grill surrounds could have come from an FE FC Holden as the headlight surrounds did. But am looking at what would have been available at the time for the other parts

Here are some photos of the two earlier front versions, and why the twin headlight and custom grill front was built.
Don built the new custom front on a spare car while he still drove the slightly front end damaged one around

Can you post some photos of how it looks at the moment.

 

I think the nostrels are removed from the original grill bar and the grill is two original
top mouldings-the bottom is just inverted(I think!)
The badge is a 57 cusso badge(I sold one late last year-doh)
Like S/c said they look like original bars shortened and fc head light rings
Dont Know what the indicators are I will keep searching!

 

Looks like you nailed it on those parts

 

Good spotting, unclechop! The hunt is on for '52 Ford grilles.

I seem to remember when the '57 Customline was released that there was talk of the V8
badge being from one of the recent F series trucks. Would bet that the parking/indicator lights are from an early Mk. 2 Zephyr

 

Will try to post some depressing shots soon, but can see light at the end of the tunnel - as well as through the floors, bootlid, door pillars, and so on!!!

 

Very early, before the rectangular ones.
Looks like you have solved the parts puzzle

 

Perhaps the blinkers are from fe holdens inner indicator bezels

 

I sort of remember it in a flat beige colour, but it changed a lot while it was around. No grille, oblong cut-outs in the sills just in front of the rear wheels with the exhausts sticking out, BLOODY LOUD, extremely low, it may have had radiused bonnet and door corners, no side trims, smooth bumpers. The beige may actually have been grey primer, that's about all I can remember.

Cheers, Glen.

 

The original Kustom City from the 60's, did a few custom Cuzzo's

Have some scanned articles on their work.
A pioneering shop that is yet to recieve the recognition they deserved.

I have been compiling bits and pieces of material on them for years
Both the shops they had, were only streets from my shops in Peakhurst and Revesby.
Now thats strange.

 

Smooth Customs, that big V8 badge in the centre of the custom grille is definitely from a Ford truck, probably a tow truck or similar (F100?) I know cause I had one hanging on my bedroom wall, it was a bugger to pinch too!

Cheers, Glen.

 

We had them on the older tow trucks where I did my time

Cuzzo ones made great belt buckles, my cousin had one.
He said that most people would not pick a fight with him when he had it on, one guy busted up his hand one night when he hit it instead of him.

 

From some googling I think the side trim is made up of tank fairlane pieces-some 61 some earlier?

 

I sold mine to a local guy for a 57 or 56 cusso and it was the right one it was about 12" across-huge maybe they had them on both?

 

The origonal Kustom City was run by Tony Andrews and he made Mag Wheels as well with the business called The Mag Wheel Centre. His brother David worked for him and David built a Customised ' 54 Cusso that he made into a two door, quad head lights etc. Tony had the famous Blue Jay a custom FJ Holden he also had an Altered Drag Car 52 Chevy called Rent A Beast it was powered by a big block Ford, I think Jim Leis also worked there as well. This business concept was 10 years to early for Australia. David Andrews went on to take over the job of Manager of Sydney's Castlereagh Dragway during 1969. Tony went to work as a sales rep for Golden Fleece Petroleum and had a number of other business ventures, I have not seen them for over 10 years, David still lives in Sydney's west but I have no idea where Tony is.