Anyone know what diameter was typical of a tube-style bumper? I have 3" tube mocked up behind my Austin, not sure if its too big? Opinions? Suggestions?
>>>>>,Well,,most of us used 2 1/2 inch tube bumbers back in those good ole gasser days ,,reason was ,,we could use the cut off bottoms of Beer Cans to make ends for the tubes ,,pop riveted on there ,,but sum guys went with the 3 inch tubes ,.,,kinda what you like best ,,but rules said they could NOT be filled with lead ,,so,,ihad a 125 lb GreyHound Bus Battery just inside that tail gate cover and a aluminum 20 gal Helicopter Gas Tank at the front of the bed ,,so ,,don't need to fill the tube bumper with lead ,,lol,,lol,,
>>>>>,Of coarse that pic above was takin' in 1969 ,,but i did the same thing on my current 1927 Model T ,,Beer Cans are werth more than just drinking out of ,,,LOL
when you could put weight in the 1st ones where water pipe with screw on cast iron pipe caps on each end so you could adjust the lead if needed
>>>>>,Since i did Turquiose pinstriping around my flames ,,i used COORS beer can bottoms ,,turned inside out ,,werked pretty kool ,,
>>>>>The rear tube bunper on my "T" is part of a chrome steel brush guard for a pick up truck,,,, the tube bumper on my old C/Gas '54 Ford Pee Cup with a 396 BB ,,was a piece of aluminum tubing outa a wrecked helicopter ,,from the aircraft junk yard behind my Union 76 Gas Station at the International Airport in Anchorage ,Alaska when i lived up there in the '60's ,,
>>>>>,Instead of using pop rivets on my "T" bumber ,,,like i did on my old pee cup ,,i just used bathroom silicone on the inside to stick those beer can ends in ,,,piece o cake ,,
<<<>>>>Might take your tape measure to the grocery store ,,and measure thos big beer cans ,,,orange juice cans ,,or what ever ,,and find sum kool ends for your bumper you have ,,,it looks kool ,,
>>>>>,GasserJohn; yep ,,the rules were pretty lax back then ,,K S Pitman filled his spare tire housing on his '33 AA/G Willys coupe with ,,,,Concrete ,,took four guys just to mount it ,,lol,,and got away with it ,,well,, for a few races anyway ,,lol,,lol,,
>>>>>,A Good Example ,,that C/Gs Rod Shop anglia held the NHRA record in summer of '69 at 10;45 ,,the best i could do with my C'Gs '54 Ford Pee Cup w' a 396 BB was 10;80's ,Nice Tube Bumber There ,,
I think that you need to choose what will look best on your car. I think that 3" is fine for that Austin.
>>>>>,Back then ,,NHRA said you had to run a rear bumper/push bar in the gasser classes ,,no rear bumper/push bar and you were in the Altered Class,, same with hedder collectors ,,hedders without collectors ( Zoomies/weed sweepers () you were in the altered class,,,BUT ,,,amazing in the Gas Classes ,,,Front Brakes were OPTIONAL ,,recomended ,,BUT not manditory ,,i didn't run front brakes on that '54 Ford Pee Cup C/Gasser ,,that Dana 60 rear with sintered metalic big hude brake shoes was enough to slow it down from over 125 mph ,,even on our gravel shut down we had in the '60's at Polar DragWay,Alaska ,,it was a little scarry at times tho ,,sideways on gravel from 125 was interesting ,,to say the least ,,whew ,,but it was fun ,,
>>>>>,I agree with R.Seghi; what you have looks good with that body ,,nice size matches the overall deminsions of the car ,,,,,keep it ,,
>>>>>,Well,,color is up to you ,,i saw a few back in the '60's that were flat black ,,most were water pipe ,,but the majority of em were polished or chrome ,,don't weld the ends on,,,you might wanna removed em sumday ,,find sumthin' you can pop rivet on ,,or silicone in ,,make it simple ,
In the later '60s in the NW 3" tube was common. Some of the fellas used smaller tube but you could gain a little weight with the larger tube. The '64 Rules say that the tube must be permanantly attached IE welded in place. But you don't want to go by the earlier rules because they also say that the body or chassis may not be raised to gain better weight transfer. I don't have a later rule book to go by. But getting back to the question common where I was at in the era of car that you are building 3" tube was common.
Ya have to remember why we used pipe bumpers....it was for the lead shot ballast! When you needed to add a bunch of weight either for traction or to make the class weight, some guys went to as large as 6" diameter, but 3" was probably the most common size.
There was a fella that ran at PIR when I was a kid that hooked a water hose to his to change classes. He might run C class in the morning and then drop to D class if he wasn't competeing.
Ive got a 1947 a40 dorset 2dr for sale,im up in Quesnel B.C. Canada it has a very good body,asking 3500.00. Call Darrell at 250-992-9058
The 3" diameter looks good to me. I'd shorten it so that it just sticks past the rear fender seams. Here's some examples. There's even a few Austins in these. Plus, I just love an excuse to post gassers.
I'm planning to use a piece of 4" exhaust tube for the bumper on my Henry J just because I have it. Just made a pair of domed ends to weld on last week. Gary
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