Hey Tim, Paul Sutherland who built this car at Woodys and later drove it, has given my car a passing grade. I went over to Paul's house so he could look at my blueprint I did to build the chassis. " Good to Go " ! After the March Meet the car was taken apart for painting and final details. Pops Bradford ( Bradford & Son Fiat AA/FA ) is building the 354 90% Nitro motor and should be done real soon. The closest color I decided on is Lazer Red.
I was working in Petaluma, Ca. this last week. I had been emailing back & fourth with a friend and Std. 1320 member John Cox who painted cars with Nat Quick . John memtioned that Nat lived in Petaluma. I looked up his address and he was only 2.79 miles away. So I called Nat and went over his place. He is one great artist. He also paints WW 2 and Viet Nam era aircaft and builds models too. Bitchin ! I picked his brain about me paint the lettering on my car. I am almost all set and here is the art work. Nat sent to a local sign painter & supplier and got the brushes and One Shot lettering paint. Now it is practice time.
Nat Quick painted alot of FEDs and F/C like Soapy Sales Woody FED that Tommy Allen and Steve Carbone drove, Robert Andersen AA/FD, John Dearmore AA/FD, Bennie Osborn AA/FD, all of the Revell sponsored F/C and the first Jefferson Starship LP album cover.
Riceman, Real nice job, you had advice and help from all the right guys[ Woody, Paul, Pat, etc.] but you still had to do the job, and you can be real proud of the job you did . congratulations! waldo
Thanks Agentwaldo, I have enjoyed every dollar spent LMAO. For a roller, no brakes or third member with steering, shorty body and pedals from a major chassis builder in California goes for $14,000.00-$20,000.00. How much did I save doing it myself ? I don't want to know, but I can say I did it. With no so called required tools and machines ( Lathe, mill, english wheel, sheetmetal break ) and just tools out of my tool box, drill press from hell and a belt sander, The Possible Dream can be done and building a FED like so many did in their garage.
So now you just put on a bitchin paint job on your new dragster and you don't want to chip the paint around the Dzus Fastener holes. Go to www.fullborerace.com and check out the Teflon Button Washers that go under the button heads. .010'' thick and $17.00 for 100. Full Bore Racing Product is owned by Roy Fjasted, who also owned Speed Products Engineering (SPE) and The Roadster Factory. Cool Dude and a Must Have Item if you don't want your paint job to look like crap.
Wow...what a beautiful car. If I live to see the end of my current project, I'm gonna spark me up something just like that. I'd build my version 6 inches longer, and with a few more tubes in the cage so it'd be legal for N/TF, but other than that I woulden't change a thing. Have you made any noise with it yet?...what tune-up are you using?...engine internals?...fuck, I love that thing.
Just re-read the whole thread . This is sooooooo good it put a BIG smile on my face , bet it does even more for you . Keep up the GOOD work...........Z.
The engine is a 1956 354 Hemi with all the right stuff for a BIG LOAD of NITRO ! It is being built by Pops Bradford of Bradford and Son AA/FA Fiat so it is done right. He is the MAN ! All that will be going thru a 12 spring , dual disc, 6 finger Hays slider clutch, 3.90 spooled full floater 8 3/4 Mopar rearend. The motor is 21'' out and yes there is a Lenco coupler and collar in there. Up Close and personel
I see you own the mightiest of engine stands. The 54 has always been my pick of the early Chryslers....it's a geometric work of art. But, about that spool...have you talked to the old timers about the use of a locked rear in a shorty tire killer? I thought those things were all about letting the spiders steer the car.
This point interests me greatly, I've a spool for my 8 3/4 and have wondered if I really want to go there.
The body is finally painted, Lazer Red. I let it sit for 10 days to gas out and then put it on. The Tri-Tone of the paint changes depending how much light hits it and the angle of the panels. The Lettering will be metallic gold with white outline. <!--~-|**|PrettyHtmlStart|**|-~-->
I have road raced, but in the 30 years I crewed on these cars, I have never drove one. So I might as well learn with a spool since there is one in there. Pat Foster told me "Don't be a weak suck and drive the Bitch !" Then he explained his style driving with a spool. " Give the car a hard shoulder move in the direction you want the car to move. " We'll see.
Through Standard 1320 Member John Cox & co-painter, I got hooked up with Nat Quick. Nat was and is still one of the BEST Drag Racing Painters. His did most of the Revell Funny Cars, Barry Setzer Vega F/C & Lil John Buttera Setzers MONO RED, Soapy Sales, Beach Boys-Smothers Bros, Don Schumacher's Yellow Aero Vega, Robert Anderson, John Dearmore, Dearmore & Gingrass, Kuhl & Olson, Jim Murphy's NTF and now my Fueler to name afew. BITCHIN !
IMHO, and I have some experience, I would not use a spool on a car like this. I use an open rear with spiders in my AA/F Coupe (see avatar) and she goes staight as an arrow while both wheels smoke em hard. But, that's JMO.
We fired the motor for the first time at Sacramento Raceway "Nite of Fire". Had a few bugs, but it lit off the first time. It just sat there firing on all 8 and I could see flames even in the bright sun light & 104F temps. With no warm up , we went for the 85% in the tank. Thanks to Dexter "Pops" Bradford ( Bradford & Son AA/FA Fiat )for building the long block. The next faze is care and maintanence of 1500 HP Motor.
Adjusting pushrods is a bitch, even on a cold motor. How much pain can a man's fingers take with doing this on a hot motor ? I had Stock intake rockers arms and used & abused Donovan 4130 forged exhaust rocker arms on my Nitro motor. There were 3 bent pushrod tips after the first fire up. Here is the problem solver. Give John Dearmore at Dearmore Racing Enterprises a call at 903-765-2124. Some mighty nice parts. I am getting a set for my 354 Nitro Hemi. Nostilga Top Fuel Racers Jim Murphy (5.74 @ 257 mph at over 10,200 rpm), David Pace run John's roller rockers. Easy to talk to and knows his stuff. Call him early, it gets hot in Texas. <!-- / message --><!-- attachments -->
WOW! Color me jealous. I rebuilt a stock rocker assembly this afternoon using stock parts and some copper tube to replace the springs. Sure wish I could afford something like that!
The Jalopy Journal
