Projects Bad Banana Resurrection - 55 Chevy Gasser

Its running thats very cool!!!!!! I got my new gasser magazine and found the 2011 gasser reunion ad in it hope to see you there.

 

Congrats!

Ok, now I'm motivated...heading out to the garage to get something accomplished on my own project!

 

Ha ha with these damn gasser threads popping up on here today I'm doing the same !

 

I was watching your video and enjoyed seeing your step-son squirting the injectors. I was that kid once, I befriended a neighbor and helped him with his '67 Chevelle. I would help and hang around him all day. After we done some stuff to the car, he asked me if I want to hop in and go for a ride? He didn't have to ask!
Once you got that '55 running, there must be a moment looking at your step-son and remembering you and your dad.

 

good to hear it running!!
light at the end of the tunnel for sure!

 

Haven't updated for a couple weeks. I know because that annoying message on the front page tells me so. No much to show in pics. Got the idle bypass fixed and it idles great now. Just buildin', cuttin', grindin', weldin' my ass off. I'll try to get either some old pics or new ones posted this week. At least this post will make that message go away...

 

looking awsome,,,,,keep it up

 

Damn that sounds good.

 

WOW!! Took me back to 1967 when I was 15. Local family all had race cars. One was a yellow 55 gasser. I can remember standing in exactly the same place, the fiberglass frontend off of the car, the gas tank up front and the injectors sticking up over the radiator from my view. Just about exactly like your vid. Injected small block, don't remember anymore what it was. I believe it was a 327. Last time I was there in the garage was the end of the '69 season and they were tearing it down for maintenence and were going to alter the rear wheelbase. Never saw the car again. Gave me goose bumps. Could have been me standing there instead of the camera. Side note, this shop was on 3rd street in Waterford WI. Up one block at 3rd and Main was the local Ford dealership. They raced a '67 Super Stock Fairlane, a Stock class '69 boss 302, one mechanic had a '68 340 Cuda, and someone there raced a '69 Shelby Mustang 500. Katzman owned the '55 Gasser. They would fire up the Gasser Friday evening before going to the strip, drive up to main and turn around in the Ford dealership driveway and nail it back down to the shop. Then the dealership would bring out either the Boss Mustang or the SS Fairlane and take a blast down to that shop and back. All this was with open headers and slicks. You could hear them all over town. The local evening cop was really cool. He knew these guys were doing this. When each had made their little run up and down the street. He would slowly cruise down 3rd street and back, then go on his way. They would bring out the Gasser and then the Failrlane or Boss or which ever car that night, and do it all over again. Then the cop would do his little slow cruise again. Everyone knew it. Everyone loved it and some of the people living on 3rd street would even come out and sit on the porch to watch the little show. I usually worked at a gas station across the street from my house on Friday evenings. This was mostly before getting my license in late '68. When I heard the motors start my boss always looked at me and told me to hurry up and get my ass done there, with a smirk. I'd hop on my bike and tear down. What a great memory tripper. I thank you for that. Mark L

 

Sounds good Rusty, I think I heard it at my house. LOL!! Very cool, glad to hear you got it running.

Jon

 

Great car and a great story!

 

This is truly a wonderful story. I'm very happy for you and your father. There's another facet to this story, which will become more important to you several years from now. That will be when your stepson is reliving these past few months, when the two of you rebuilt an old racecar and how he learned to do this kind of work from you. You're reliving memories and creating some new ones for the next generation. This is a win-win-win for three generations. Excellent job, sir.

 

OK... Time to post some more old pics. These are from 1971 and 1972.




The first one above is dark but I remember that day at Green Pine. Dad won and he got a trophy. I remember going to the tower and they had a shelf with various trophys there and I was told I could pick whatever one I wanted. That was the best one on the shelf in my eyes. Not sure where that trophy is now. It could be packed away in my attic. I might have to go up there in the spring and look around. I don't think my dad has any of these anymore. I think I kept some of them. In the pic is Dad, my uncle Jim and me.



Uncle Jim and I at Beaver Springs. I still have one of those wind breaker jackets. It has "Bad Banana" on the back and a big ol' Bowtie with Chevrolet in it. I might have to take it along to the races when we run this car this year. It isn't the one I am wearing, I think it was either Dad's or Uncle Jims because I wouldn't fit into that one anymore...



Note on the back of this one says I am motioning my dad back into the garage. I am guessing it is running and I wanted to make sure he didn't hit that old wood furnace.

The rest of these are just various pics from that time period.



These last two below were taken at York on July 29, 1972. Not sure who they are but I figured you guys would like them.





I'll try to post some new pics of the build in a few days. Might have something decent to take pics of by then.

 

You are right I hope. No telling what he will end up doing with his life. He probably won't realize for a long time what this means to me.. Funny how your perspective changes as you age isn't it? Right now, video games and TV are the most important things in his eyes. He does help out quite a bit though. Right now it is just him and me doing all of it.

 

I got to thinking... This looks to be about a 300 day project if I use my self imposed deadline of Beaver Springs on June 10. Right now I am about 200 days in. I have about a 100 days left but that means testing, bugs, etc all have to be done. It will still be tight but I still think I can make it. I try to do something on it every day even if it is just order parts or something small. I can see progress every week that way. Can't always get something done everyday but I shoot for that.

 

That thing sounds awesome, thank you for using alky, makes me real happy

 

Sounds like a reality show with much less stress! Good luck and hope that there are no major stumbling blocks in your way.

Love the videos.

Subscribed the other day...

Mike

 

THIS THREAD IS AWESOME!!!!!! Very heart felt to alot of us. AWESOME CAR ! AWESOME MEMORIES WITH YOUR DAD TO STILL SHARE. It doesn't get any better then THAT!!! GOD BLESS you guys and HAVE A blast AND ENJOY it to the FULLIST.... Most of us on here can only Dream the DREAM YOUR LIVING!! Now GET IT DONE FOR YOU,DAD and ALL OF US !!!!!!! YOU KNOW YOUR DAD WANTS THAT RIDE WITH YOU BAD !!!!!!! THANKS

 

I love this thread! I'm in the UK, it's 1.41am, cold and I should be in bed. But I'm not as I had to read every page and then watch the fire-up videos. Great job Rusty! And now I must get some sleep.

Paul 348 tripower/4-speed/posi 59 Impala

 

I did exactly the same as Paul. Great thread and love to see the consideration and respect for your Father. I can picture him smiling.

 

Wow.. The ol' BB has gone international!!! Thanks for the kind words

Couple quick pics I took tonight. I still have some finish welding to do on the cage but most all the pipe is in. I am leaving the door bars for last since I have so much sheet metal work to do. I don't want to climb over them ... I should have done this car when I was younger..



Step-son made all the pieces for the shock brackets in this pic and I welded it up. He's gettin' pretty good at fab work..

Sheet metal work this weekend hopefully. The plan is to have most of the big work fairly well complete by the end of March and use the first part of April to get the details buttoned up. Would like to be burnin' rubber sometime in April.

 

lookin good ,keep-on keepin -on

 

THAT is really one of the coolest parts of this build. Imagine, all you readers, if that was you.................man!

 

Rusty, very cool car! I can't wait to see it in person ( in the other lane )

Don

 

Love the steering wheel!

 

Couple more build pics.



Wanted to see how the steering wheel, seat belts, etc were going to work out so I needed a volunteer to be driver.





Stuck the wheelie bars on to see how they were still going to mount. No big issues here.



Got the engine/trans out after lunch today. This will make room for final firewall and engine compartment finish work. Once all that is done, we can put it back in for the final assembly. Got a lot of stuff mocked up today that I wasn't sure was gonna work but I feel pretty good about where we are with the project right now.

 

cool
thanks for more updates on the '55!

 

That metalflake steering wheel is gotta be woth at least 10 HP!

 

WOW...thanks for the updates! The look on his face says it all...

 

Been a couple weeks since I posted an update. Lots of little stuff now and not much to take pics of really. I have the firewall done. I added 24 gauge steel behind the aluminum to make it more rigid (and make it legal). The car has steering done and brakes now (plumbed and bled). Also added the battery box and mandatory battery kill switch. Working on the rear sheet metal this weekend. Some more work to do on the front floor before we put the engine and trans back in.

Still look to be on track for possibly a test before the end of April. Still freakin' snow on the ground here.. . Doesn't look like the engine dyno test will pan out but I do have the whole fuel system out right now being flow tested so it should be pretty close right out of the box.

I'll try to post build pics in the next day or so. Maybe try to scan some more old ones as well.