Hello Everyone My company has been commissioned to build the body for the Hill/Davis City of Burbank streamliner - land speed record holder 1952-56 and first American car to exceed 200mph. One of the original builders is here in Indianapolis and has been involved in building this reproduction. Build process has been very similar to the way it was done in '52 - the major difference is we carved the body from high dense foam then coated it with plaster before laying it up with 'glass and resin. This car also differs from the original in that it has all the gear to pass tech at Speed Week - with luck we will see it run. For those of you that will be at Bonneville in August, come by and see it in person. For everyone else check out the stop motion video on our facebook page. Car is going into paint tomorrow - will update with some photos as we finish. https://www.facebook.com/pages/Indianapolis-Fabrications/185258424817710
Got the streamliner parts painted - client is busy getting motor in and final assembly done. Should be mating the chassis and body together later this week. I have 2 booths - lights make color look different in the photos, but it is the same. We are putting vinyls on the car for now so that it looks as it did in '52 - I recreated the hand painted lettering from photos of the car. Photos as we get it together
Here is photo update from the weekend. Car is running a flathead as it did in '52. That's my boy Angus helping with graphics and pulling the belly pan in the rear of the car. We are working tonight to get the car on the road to Utah tomorrow.
Just as an asides: When the Hill-Davis City of Burbank car set the International Class record in '52, it was powered by a 248" Flathead engine equipped with a set of Adams/Moller hemi heads that were provided by C & T Automotive. The "Davis" half of the partnership was called BILL Davis at the time. In later years he was well known as WILLIE Davis-An Indy crew chief and owner of the sprint car driven by Gary Bettenhausen to two USAC Sprint Car championships back in the days of the Gary & Larry (Dickson) Show. The current engine is a big (304) Flathead that belonged to Willie way back in '49/'50.
Is the "City of Burbank" Streamliner the same Streamliner that Harry Duncan ran later on in the late 50's?
Thanks for clarifying Dale. I guess I should also correct my first post that this is not the first car to exceed 200 but the Class "C" record holder in 52. I think the So-Cal streamliner was the first in 49 or 50.
I might let Dale pick up here, but that is the car in the photo as far as I know. The car was wrecked in '55 during a speed run - driver survived but the car did not
I guess I didn't fully answer. We sealed and released the plaster then layed the fiberglass and resin onto the form. Then removed the foam - similar to how the car was built (only they used chicken wire and plaster). We then body worked the panels with short strand body filler and then body filler. 3 coats of Slicksand (sprayable polyester filler) then sand to 80. Then 3 coats of Slicksand and sand to 280. Then 2 coats of K-38 and wet sand to 500.
Another note ! The original 320 hp engine is sitting in speedway Bills museum as we speak! Maybe Speedway could loan them the original engine if enough requestscwere made?
Speedy Bill would probably loan it, he is all for the sport. Best wishes on a successful campaign at Bonneville! ~sololobo~
Just an FYI ... This thread was actually started in July of 2013 (not 2014)... and the "CITY OF BURBANK" clone 'liner debuted last year at Bonneville Speed Week (August 2013):
The Jalopy Journal
