GASSER MUST HAVES and cant haves?

I posted a thread a year or so ago, asking the question why are there so few sedans in the Gas classes. Now I was not talking about tri- five sedans ,I was asking about 48 and earlier or so fat fendered sedans. I have seen a few Willys sedans and very few other brands. In my head a sedan would be the logical answer in getting free weight over the rear tires compared to a coupe instead of ballast that could only weigh 150 lbs. Does this make since?

MELTDOWN DRAGS
JULY 19-20 2014

 

That does make sense.Its like Nicholson running the Comet wagon for better weight distribution.
I honestly never really thought of it before.
I know there's at least one Willys sedan running with...I believe it's the Great Lakes Gassers right now.Gold color,I believe it's a '40..?


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like 1967BB427 said locally there were a few cars that could run at or under the national record most of us were out there to have fun and be the fastest in the class and you had a choice of running for purse or the bigT(dust collectors) and when you ran at or under the record someone some where what reset the record or NHRA would refactor you combination and move you up a class (because you had Canadian heads an that changed the HP rating) and the beat goes on

 

I can post a few pics of the one I currently have on the road,but it might be a bit of a touchy subject around here,as it's o/t (66 Ford),and the only other runners I have right now are a flat track bike,and a supermoto bike.

The Model A project is still in the parts collection/assembly stage.
So far I have:
-354 Hemi motor
-spare set of heads
-4.5" stroker crank (allegedly from John Peters' "Freight Train" twin engine dragster during its later Hemi powered iteration)
- 6-71 GMC supercharger
-drilled but not dropped stock Ford axle
-30' A coupe body (6" chop coming)
-stock Model A frame,boxed and trussed
-B&M HydroStick trans

The '65 A/FX project has:
-rolling '65 body shell
-liberty proshifted toploader 4-spd
-9" rear
-heavy duty 5 leaf rear springs

I work in the oil fields,so I'm only home a couple weeks per month,severely limiting my time to work on this stuff.
Hoping to begin mockup on the A within the next couple months after I collect front end pieces and a q/c diff.
After that,the A/FX car will get floor pan and shock tower surgery and hit the rotisserie.
So I will pm you pics of the completed car if you like,but it definitely goes against the grain to post it here.

Scott


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And the A is going to be fenderless,so it would really be more of an A/A car than a gasser.I just don't like fenders on A's.We've owned 4 of them,and only put fenders on the first one.All fenderless after that.


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And all mine have the big tires out back.


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I went the 4 speed route on my Falcon because I truly missed shifting gears with a clutch! All my hotrods have ended up manual shift automatics for the last 40 years. Not sure why, as I always wanted to get back to the 4 speed cars that I had in the 60's and early 70's.
When I started gathering parts for the Falcon I made the decision that no matter what it took, I was going to go 4 speed, even if I had to go hydraulic throwout for the clutch operation. I ended up finding a great deal on a rebuilt Super T10 with linkage, and somehow figured out how to rework a factory Z bar and make it fit the Chevy bellhousing and stock Falcon's pedal. It sure is fun to be shifting gears manually again, even if it's a lot slower than my other cars with automatics!

 

I agree that his text sometimes seems like it was lifted from the pages of a newspaper,rather than something that was written by a car guy.
It's those photos that totally got me!The side profile of the "Agitator" is the one that really got me.My Aunt's brother found that car and did it up as a street car.It kinda broke my heart when I found out what it had been in it's previous life.


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moon rocket ... i get the / your front tires...
just sayin...

 

There is absolutely nothing that is as much fun as a 4-spd car,is there?
Mine are all 4-spd too,but my A is a 4-spd Hydro....still has 4 gears and a clutch,but it's not going to be as much fun to shift.
And once you get the linkage fine tuned,you can shift so fast it sounds like an automatic anyway...


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Maybe you can, but it seems I've lost the touch I had when I was 40 years younger!

 

I found when I was first assembling my o/t 66 Ford that keeping tension in every part of the linkage made a huge difference;any slack screwed up the entire program,and made shifting feel sloppy,or the clutch pedal feel vague or slow.


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Lmao!I hear ya Brother!
I found that things really improved after I installed a solid motor mount on the driver's side.It stopped the motor from flexing and moving in the frame and kept the linkage much more stable when under power,so that you didn't lose so much in translation between your static settings vs how the linkage was able to function when the motor was roaring and trying to twist the car up.


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I think I've maybe got the opposite problem. My linkage was fully rebuilt when the transmission was rebuilt. It's like new, and absolutely no slop or slack in it anywhere. It feels very firm, and shifts great under normal driving, but I can feel it has enough drag from all the bushings, etc. being new, and I think it needs to be used a lot to free up the drag of all new pieces.
I've contemplated pulling it apart piece by piece and lubing everything up to see if that helped, but was waiting for winter when I'll move it to the backyard and begin winter upgrades.

 

I have solid steel motor mounts on both sides! Learned the hard way after breaking too many motor mounts on my OT '71 427 Camaro back in the 70's.

 

That sounds like a good plan.Does your shifter linkage have the nylon bushings or steel...?


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I love my 4 speed. My off topic car is over 2 seconds quicker in the 1/8 mile than my Gasser but the Gasser is more fun and takes more talent to drive because it's a 4 speed.

 

They are nylon, but I was also thinking about going to bronze if I can find them. It's also got oversized 1/2" shifter rods to eliminate flex.

 

The 4-speed definitely has a way of separating the men from the boys once the money is on the line,doesn't it...?


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I have the metallic ones in mine,and I would never switch back.Very solid,direct feel.Give them a try while you have it apart this winter to lube it.I think you're gonna be shocked how much difference it will make in feel.


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Holy shit.Did you just say 2 full seconds quicker in the 1/8th!?!?!?

And Quain,weren't you the guy who clipped the wall at Grand Bend a few years back,never even lifted,then went on to win that round....?I might be thinking of another car,but for some reason I'm thinking that was you.It was the year Romine and Millican ran the T/F final out the back door all slippery and crossed up and looking like the devil hisself was chasin em!

Scott


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a 1939-42 Studebaker Tudor sedan would be my pick, I like the '41 nose the best. These cars (coupes included)are much lighter than the look. I screwed up just a few years ago and passed on a '41 Tudor Sedan, an older restoration "driver" for $7500. Putting the "proper running gear" in it seemed like to much of a project, so I bought a 68 Buick Sport Wagon..,now I'm putting an engine in it..,JACKASS!

 

I recently saw a write up on a Stude coupe with later model Olds 455 power that had been a gas class competitor for years.It was pretty force looking.Cant recall the exact times,but like you say,once they are gutted there really isn't much to them,is there?

Scott


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We had an old Liberty/Nash five speed in it, but it wasn't as fresh as the eBay add had indicated..,SURPRISE, so we put a Richmond Street five speed in it for a bit. You absolutely cannot speed shift one of these 1st to 2nd,with all the syncro lugs on it, the 2-3, 3-4, & 4-5 shift isn't too bad. We now have a new Jerico 4spd with all the bells & whistles to go with our new engine. If everything turns out right, we'll be able to make the tow out from Cali to hang out with the "Carolina Crash Box Crew", sometime next year.

 

I started a thread awhile back on these cars. If you use the search option and type Studebaker Gassers, you should be able to find it. There are some good picks on there. Many for years have referred to the Stude coupes/sedans as the poor mans Willys.

 

That sounds like a lot of fun!I hope to have my A ready for next year,but it's looking doubtful at this time.Its more of an Altered,cause its going to be running fenderless,so I doubt if it would be a good fit for the Carolina Crew anyway...I will definitely hit a few events throughout Michigan/Ohio/Ontario if I can though!


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Thanks Man,I will dig into that one!


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Check out his thread here on the HAMB. Probably the same car you're talking about:
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=762379&highlight=balls+of+fire

 

Thanks! I'll try them. Hopefully I can either find them new to fit my linkage, or turn them out on my cheap import lathe.

 

They used to sell ten at speed shops in"Hurst Pit Packs",but when was the last time anybody saw a speed shop in their neck of the woods..?
I guess they would be available online.I just really miss being able to pop in the door and buy parts from actual human beings who make a living from selling them,and who are happy to provide tuning/troubleshooting/installation assistance if you're stuck.
Well,I got pretty ranty about one of my favorite subjects in a hurry there,didn't I..?Sorry about that.I just miss the local speed shops.


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