Hot Rods Barn find! California Drag '57 Chevy OCIR

I ran brackets at OCIR in the early 80's and seem to remember there was an old man and his wife (probly in their 70's then) that ran a sleeper 57 Chevy. From what I remember he would pull to the line nice and quiet, hook up and go!

 

Do I see a shifter for a manual transmission, and no clutch pedal in this car?

 

A standard '57 frame (east coast) is made of 2 c-channels []

A "California" frame, which I understand was standard for cars to be delived west of the Mississippi, was 1 piece rectangular tubing. Stronger, and they look much nicer, not having a nasty weld seam.

 

Beautiful car, Dean! My father ran a '57 at Vargo dragway back in the mid sixties! It was dark green with a one piece bumper, '301 ci. w/ 2 fours, 4 speed, pont/olds 5.13 rear ....and on the rear quarters it had "Untouchable" on both sides in gold paint! All I have are a few of his old trophy's! Dean, I know this is a huge long shot...but, any chance it is dark green under that white paint? Still trying to locate it!

 

I don't there are any traces of green, but I will look a little closer!
-Dean

 

X2
I had a '55 tudor with this type of frame under it some years back and this is the same info I was told .

 

I’ve personally only heard of them referred to as California frames recently, I’ve always known them as “seamless frames”.

I’ve always been lead to believe that the one piece bumpers where only made in California (57 only), however the frames where made from several suppliers across the country and shipped to the assembly plants, and only one of these suppliers had the equipment to make the seamless frames and that’s why you don’t see them too often. I think calling it a California frame is just something that carried over from the bumpers. I’ve owned a 55 and a 57 that where Oakland built cars and had the two-piece frames, and I had a 56 with the seamless but I don’t remember what plant it was from.

I’ve also always been told that the one-piece frames are stronger, lighter and as someone else said look a lot better.

 

I had a 55 from Janesville Wis. with a seamless frame , and Canadian cars had 1 piece bumpers aswell. I have a 57 one piece sitting in my basement.

 

Very cool! Some guys have all the luck.

 

Dean, great find !!! I also left my 150 "as found" I hope you enjoy yours as much as I do mine.

 

gmstuff- love that 150! Such a cool color and stance, and the headers are awsome.
-Dean

 

Dean, The headers were on the car when I found it .They were chrome and built in 1961.

 

Cool car.. Almost a shame somebody fixed the rear wheel wells.

 

gmstuff- too cool, what I would give for a set of those!

UPDATE: After much digging I talked to the original driver, Vincent Sumpter, and got the history of the car. He bought it in California around 1980ish (still checking on that). It had been owned by Robert Voss (Elmer Voss' son) since 1970 and was a street rod at the time, with a 1969 Corvette 427 and the radiused wheelwells, which were cut by Voss using a sawzall. Sumpter rebuilt the 427 putting nearly $8,000 into it at the time. The mill produced approx. 750hp with a single 1150 Dominator, 12.5:1 pistons, a huge cam, and a 4500rpm stall backed by a TH400. He installed a '57 Pontiac rear with 5:57 gears, and ran a best time of 10.90 @ 131mph with it at OCIR, running at 10,000rpms through the traps. The car weighed 3400lbs and would pull the wheels right off the ground. He moved to CT and brought the car with him, and had the roll bar installed by Chassis Dynamics Inc. so he could legally run at Lebanon Valley. In 1988 he was forced to sell the car. It was at this time with it's new owner that the 427 and Poncho rear were removed and given to his brother. The original engine can be determined by the stamping "VOSS" into the front pad of the block. I will start trying to track it down tomorrow. Sumpter sounded very excited to hear the car had been found though, and I'm planning to meet up with him in the next few weeks so he can see it again. So the car's racing history doesn't go back quite as far as I had thought, but still very interesting!
-Dean

 

.....made it's first showing the other day at a local car cruise too!
-Dean

 

I've been interested in 55-57 Chevys since I was about 13, and that was in 1961. For a long time, I've tried to get the skinny on the seamless frames and one-piece bumpers. Check out "Social Groups: 55-57 Chevy Cars" here on the H.A.M.B. I wrote a little article on what I've been able to find out about this. Someone out there must have worked at a GM assembly plant or the supplier of bumpers or frames, and thus have knowledge of this, but for the life of me, I've seen very little info in print.

As an update to the article I put in the 55-57 Social Group article, A.O. Smith Co was the manufacturer of the frames that were welded together out of two C channels, and they were located in Milwaukee Wisconsin. My CA-built 55 has one of these frames under it, and still visible, are the letters A.O.S. stenciled upside down on the left front frame rail.

 

Very solid !!!!! While your out driving your 57-----I'll be home welding up holes in my 53!!

 

"The original engine can be determined by the stamping "VOSS" into the front pad of the block. I will start trying to track it down tomorrow."

Neat story on the car find. Even better if you can locate that hot 427!