turbo forced induction use in the 50s?

when i was a kid, my (late) grandpa had tons of cool gearhead stuff... one thing was a GE turbo from an aircraft. he had some pics of a bellytank that he and his brother and a couple buddies were building in the early 50s- and were planning on using a turbo'd flathead (not the big ass GE).

while they were all former military, one being a machinist (grandpa) and at least 2 of the others being aircraft mechanics, i suppose they could have had some success... but life got in the way, and the bellytank project was abandoned (apparently to grandpa's grief... which he was quite vocal about when drinking). the turbo flathead, he said, was run for a short time in one of the guy's cars. that's about where the details end.

anyone know of turbo use by hot rodders in the 50s??? research hasn't come up with much...

thanks,

 

There were intercooled supercharged motors in the 20's. I have read somewhere turbos were around earlier than the 50's. With poor fuel and ignition technology I bet it was a real can of worms back then. Oh yeah, turbos are still a can of worms.

 

yeah, there were turbos in aircraft use in the 20s... mid 50s airesearch was born and automotive use started climbing... plus the corvair in '62...

i'm sure they were iffy at best, then...
researching it kinda led me to getting side tracked from hot rods for a little bit, putting some projects on the back burner, and ended up building some turbo cars that are off topic to the HAMB.

not necessarily planning on building a turbo 'banger motor for my dodge brothers project... but it's crossed my mind.

just looking to see if'n anyone knows of hot rodders usin' 'em after the war... figure some musta found their way into use... successful or not...