History Bring Out Yer Board Track Pics!

If this not a Duesenberg Radiator, what is it?

For the last 20 years or so I have had this radiator and never properly identified it. It was sold to me by Alec (A. K.) Miller of Vermont, the Stutz owning recluse.
It still carries the number 7 on the core, in general it resembles a walking beam Duesy radiator, but is it? It also resembles the radiators used on some early racing Hudsons at the Savannah races maybe they were Duesys in disguise?

More info on that radiator.

32" (815mm) tall, including the neck.

20" (510mm) wide.

ID number, 8128 stamped on rear.

Tag from manufacturer or repairer,on the rear, marked 'Pat Pend, El Arco Radiator Co, New York, Patent number 486065.

Applied tag with number, possibly after repair, 9210.

I have also included a photo of the cap, it is very distinctive, with an inside thread, ie the neck filler has an outside thread.

Also note that it has trunnion type mountings to the chassis, identical to the system on a 1918 Stutz for example, American in style, not European.

The very small inlet and outlet pipes are a modification that I did to test it on my central heating system in France.

 

That's great - thanks

 

Been working on the "Poor Man's Miller" lately. Started with a 29 Chevy frame which I narrowed 19", and shortened a total of 13" in two different locations. The frame lends itself nicely since it has similar lines to a Miller. The 19" wire wheels, spindles, front and rear brakes, and rear axle come from a 29 Hupmobile. They came from the factory with hydraulic brakes - should make this little girl stop on a dime.

Got her rolling this week, and mocked up the V8 60 Flathead just today. Lots of work to do but we're on our way. Time to tear it down and send her the frame off to the blaster, and tear down the 60hp.

I tried to follow/scale a few different Millers from multiple books. I really like the Boyle Special and am heading that direction. 100" wheel base, body 22" wide and 140' in length. Not a perfect true reproduction, but it will be a close as I can muster.

Any comments or suggestions - please pass them along.

 

Good choice of bodies!! Keep us informed of progress.

 

Levis,

Great work- PLEASE keep us up to date with this and any other pics you have of the progress so far!

 

...and is now host to a strip mall and WAL-MART in place of a track where the likes of Johnny Gerber raced!

History?... aw who needs that??

 

This is gonna be nice! I look forward to the updates.

 

pictures of board track bikes at Barber Motor sports Museum:

http://picasaweb.google.com/Woogeroo/BarberMotorsportsMusuem#

look down toward the bottom for the board track bikes...

-W

 

Lot of good board track history and footage in the early part of this vid:

http://www.joost.com/03600bl/t/Golden-Moments-Oval-Heritage#id=03600bl

 

Thanks for posting this,... great stuff!

 

This thread has been AMAZING.

Miller 91- Your pics are outstanding

Levi's Classic- Can't wait to see you project car coming together. So cool.

I'm heading to Davenport next month for the big Antique Bike swap...CAN'T WAIT!

This video will flip your lid. Especially the Indian twin firing up at the end:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aRO5UtYxFjM

 

I want one of those old board track racers!

 

One of the few items I regret selling was an architects drawing of a planned Board Track somewere in Pennsylvania. It had a rail road depot ot bring the fans to the track and a siding that was above thetrack on the backstretch were you could view the race from the railroad car. Track had four pilons so they could run airplane races as well. I must have been a grand era.

 

board track racing nah i dont like splinters

 

check this out

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Lets crank this post up again!

 

This thread is Aces!

A board track thread on another site I frequent really left me in awe how big of a wood track hot bed L.A. was back in the day. I could be wrong but I don't think any concentrated area had quite the explosion Los Angeles did.

Great read.

 

1915 ASTOR CUP. First race at Sheepshead Bay.

#1 Peugeot- Dario Resta
#2 Peugeot- Johnny Aitken
#3 Delage- Barney Oldfield
#4 Peugeot- Bob Burman

..all DNF.

 

<TABLE background=oldpaper.jpg><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top align=right width="20%">[SIZE=-1]SERIES: [/SIZE]</TD><TD width="70%">TPL- 619</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top align=right width="20%">[SIZE=-1]DATE: [/SIZE]</TD><TD width="70%">07/04/1922</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top align=right width="20%">[SIZE=-1]DESCRIPTION: [/SIZE]</TD><TD width="70%">Harry Hartz in car #12 and Jerry Wonderlich (His name is misspelt on the print.) in car #24 were two of the nationally known drivers who competed on July 4th, 1922 in the National Championship Race at the Tacoma Speedway. Hartz had just taken second place in the 1922 Indianapolis 500 on Memorial Day. Both men were driving Duesenberg Straight 8 race cars. The Tacoma Speedway was south of Tacoma in what is now Lakewood, opposite the Mountainview Cemetery. The Wooden bridge over the track provided access to the parking area in the middle of the track.</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

 

Sweet!

 

i'm missing the updates on this thread. let's bump it and see some more!

 

I did not see any mention of the track at Oakland/San Leandro Calif. it was torn down about 1950-51. I Saw the track but never saw them race.

Someone mentioned a "pipe dream" Build of a track, By rough estimate a 1/2 mile track would take about 2 million Board feet of lumber not counting the grandstands. I can Hear the environmentilists now

 

love board track

 

The only boardtrack in Oakland{Elmhurst}, CA. was the 1/2 mile 40 degree banked circle that lasted from 1911 until it's demise in 1912.

You must be thinking of Oakland Speedway. This was a 1mile dirt track that featured A.A.A. races from 1931 to 1936 and thereafter featured races run by the Bay Cities Racing Association until it too fell off the map in 1954.

You may have to check with the Californians on this but last i heard there was a shopping mall built on the former race track.

 

Obviously it was injury free on the boards that day.

 

Unlike this particular afternoon.

 

I'm guessing all this wood was used as an alternative (maybe cheaper) to concrete? Truly impressive thread.

 

Yes it was. Although one particular track had asphalt poured between the boards but that was stopped because of complaints by the racers of debris showering them. I have a photo somewhere of a motorcycle racer looking like he was dragged face first for a mile after completing a hand full of laps.

Speaking of alternative's, one other track was ripped apart by local residents as fire wood during the Depression and was later used as housing. Some of those houses are still standing today.

 

Hey great video!! What is that from? It'd be great to see the rest.