So does anybody have a good nice looking front engine chassis design that has a hope in hell of passing tech to race at a bracket type event? I’m not strictly looking to race old time or nostalgia events, and I don’t want a cackle car. Looking for design plans not to purchase an old pile of crap. thanks in advance.
I bought plans from S&W race cars. Their design is actually for a 200-in wheelbase car but with their input I shortened it to 145" wheelbase since I was going for a mid to late 60s look. Even built a hopefully period clone of a "lollipop" trailer to haul it I've never had an opportunity or real need to try to get it certified since I'm only bracket racing. I'm convinced that it would go through certification okay. It's a tick over a 6.50 second car on a 1/8 mile so it doesn't have to be certified. Other than one small change in the very back of the chassis by not putting a little bend in the lower rail that would have raised the seat I followed the plans and dimensions that their blueprint shows. I just didn't want the "high chair" look that was just too too modern to mimic the 60s look I was after. I completed the car in 2023. I started building it at the peak of COVID and at the time 4130 tubing was difficult to get in all the sizes and quantities I needed so I used DOM .120" wall tubing. That probably made the car weigh about 100 pounds more than it should have, but since we only bracket race in my mind it really doesn't make a difference. Lynn
being legal its not as bad as you think , alot of people think it is pain , and the truth is racing rules exist for a reason, ,get a nhra rule book and live by it ,, youll be safe , saftey equipment like drivetrain stuff is a must no matter how fast you are going , id personally look at like " racingjunk.com " and others you can find ,, normally you can buy a roller cheaper than you can build one just do your homework and research so you understand what exactly you are wanting ,, , lil dragsters and altereds are the best way to go fast inexpensively ,, just stay away from any overly nostalgic builds as they wont be legal wich in laymans terms means SAFE ,, the car shown above is perfect!!! and could be certified im sure ,, if you are feeling crafty https://www.markwilliams.com/13001.html is an option ,, fabricator john miss you dad
King Chassis can build you a car that is current rules legal and in my opinion, looks fantastic. Check out his FB page. My take is a car that won't certify has next to no value. Even if you're never going to run fast enough with it that it needs certified, you're going to want to sell it someday.
Mark Williams has a good set of front engine dragster blueprints. I believe they offer it in kit form too.
Questioning the octane of fuel , What was Oct on standard pump? Chassis Witch ever way you Go New or used , Make sue you are suited up So you fit, Think a head with engine trains combo Plan to use , oil pan Trains , Room for feet shoe & fire boots, When Straddling . Tire Height. & read up about Chassis Certifications Under stand how Certifications are used.
The chassis certifications are there for your protection. As my brother says "you are the first crash dummy at the accident". The safety equipment certs are the same. Keeping inspected and in code can be an inconvenience, but if you have ever been in a fire you know it's no joke. Some smaller tracks are not as vigilant as they should be on fire suit inspections. Sometimes even at places that should know better. If you follow such things you probably aware of two significant fires last week. It's can be the small stuff that gets you. Like can you actually reach the on board fire suppression lever with all of your actual safety equipment on. And do you race with the safety pin installed or removed. Have fun. Be safe.
Years ago, I changed out a cage on an altered from the Houston area. The tubing had so much rust that I was surprised. I had never seen that before. Tubing has a life span, specially 4130. Older cars can be ready for the trash bin so be careful if you go shopping.
Not a FED, and you would need to give up a bit of ease of maintenance, plus check to make sure it will pass tech. Talking about the Flying Brick II at 5900. https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/blues4u-photos-of-lars-2025.1336943/page-5#post-15643694
Buying an old chassis is always a gamble, unless it is for use as a cackle car. The sanctioning bodies mainly are concerned from the motor plate back, how the rearend housing is mounted, the cage and placement and diameter of braces. we are lucky to have an inspector that is a former Funny Car driver and a buddy, that is easy to work with. Here is my 98 incher that will cert at 7.50, when completed.
As a former employee at Standard Stations (company owned, not an independent dealer) 'back in the day', IIRC 'Chevron' was regular with a RON (research octane number) of 91, 'Supreme' was 96 RON and was adequate for compression ratios up to 10:1 or maybe a bit more depending on tune. 'Custom Supreme' was the good stuff at 101 RON and was for all the hipo motors with ratios 10.5:1 or higher. Here in the NW (west coast?) that was your only choice as none of the other majors had anything like it. There were a lot of muscle car owners upset when SOCal (now Chevron) discontinued it in '72 to make way for unleaded gas so they could re-task the tanks/pumps. I owned a '58 Ford in the late '60s with a '59 300 HP 352 (10.2 ratio) that would run OK on Supreme, but ran better on Custom Supreme with more timing. That is a staged photo as I seriously doubt that cammer would have run on regular...
Thanks Marty! That is exactly the type of car I would love to build. Would you have a drawing of it by chance? Or is it all sketched out on the garage floor like I usually do?
OK, RodStRace.....that's a cute little car a few posts back but just what is it and what kind of engine? Lynn
The link has more of @Blues4U 's pics. A slant six with 2 side drafts and zoomies. Follow the link to see more pics of it and give him some love for the pics. @dumprat For plans, there are a few places.I'd develop a list and call. It sounds like you want a 10.00 or slower cert, but any digger is going to have requirements. I'd also have a good grasp of the drivetrain subject to change when you talk to the places. Plans alone won't provide enough to buy tubing and go. Read thru @Marty Strode 's build thread. https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...hot-dragster-marty-strode-chris-kopp.1313966/ Drawing plans on the floor will work, provided you know all the rules and can follow them!
https://www.bing.com/search?q=front...+plans+site:www.jalopyjournal.com&form=FORUMR rules https://sfifoundation.com/drag-racing-chassis/ http://www.chassisfarm.com/kits-html/ https://www.markwilliams.com/chassis-prints.html https://neilparks.com/chassis-class.html Not plans, a kit https://www.swracecars.com/products...alia-pro-series-chromoly-dragster-chassis-kit
It's at @Chris Kopp's getting the body done, when it gets back I could make you a sketch. Simple car using early Ford front end. Getting someone local that could bend the tubes would be the way to go. Mine is a mix of 4130 and DOM tubing. You might want it a little longer, like 120" WB, I went with 98" because of copying the Top Banana, body wise.
From an artistic standpoint, the photo has a better composition with the car lined up in front of all three pumps. I agree, it probably would not run on regular ...unless the blower pistons were left in.
Thanks @Marty Strode and @RodStRace Yes a 10.00 and slower is likely what it would be. Cheap, fast and fun built with whatever I can find. Probably run something like a potvin blown 300 ford . Loud , obnoxious and cool. Just not really fast. More interested in doing than spending a bazillion dollars to look like John Force.
You won't even need the Potvin to go 10s with a 300. After I crashed my old nine-second Logghe altered I rebuilt it with a milder motor to run 10s (so I wouldn't have to periodically pay to re-cert it). Still loads of fun at nostalgia races even tho I only run it a couple of times a season.
That was my thought as I was building my FED. Just out to have some fun at the dragstrip when I have the opportunity to take the car out. My son-in-law is driving the car this weekend and just having to opportunity to share some time with him is worth the garage space. Lynn
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