Guess the Classic FE Race Car

[HolmanMoodyStroppeGang]

Thanks Jay

You are the best.   and thanks guys for the emails and friendship.

I have prints and specs for the car, from then, and many details to share some day, but you can see some things I wanted to highlight

Yes, the canteen is an early 'puke tank'.  These cars could 'close in' the driver.  That means oil the goggles.  Prudhomme and a bunch of cool cats were all around the car a few weekends ago at Don Long. Many folks got together who are trying to help this project basically.  Baney's son, Roland Leong, Steve Gibbs, a lot of people.

Snake was telling us that after some runs, he would pull his goggles off, and hold them straight out with his arm extended, smile, and watch the oil just drip, drip, drip off of them. That was not that uncommon because most cars ran a pair of breathers on each valve cover. You could tell who was an AA/FC or AA/FD then by the dual breathers on each valve cover.

The amount of oil on the driver helped diagnose the condition of the engine between runs.

This is part of the saying..'She came back clean' after a pass.   If it came back clean the next round would be easier and maybe you might feel more confident stepping on it. (Increasing the power level). The more it was hurt, the more it usually oiled.

Remember, you qualified and managed the life of an engine for the entire race and left it together. You often did a leak down test if you suspected trouble.  Of course you read many other clues too.

This canteen connects to a clear plastic line, baffled, from the rear of each cover,  The amount and color of the oil in the clear tubes, and the amount that drained from the canteen after a run was also a diagnostic tool.

So compare this tiny puke tank to the huge ones today? Quite a difference.

Also, I wanted to show the reliefs on the upper edge of the block, to aid flow a bit. There is a lot to say there for some day.

The lower left ear on the back of the block has to be cut off at an angle and metal finished to fit between the rails. It looks cool but my shot was blurred

The width of the rails is barely enough to clear a remote oil filter adaptor on the block

Notice that this is a rare 3 pedal car.    Look and see something you never see on a rail or flopper

A pedal next to the gas?

Very rare deal only tested for a little while to help slow down this very fast car

This car was flying, cutting edge and ahead of the pack. It amazed people.  It amazed me and my guys.   That pedal was so that if Snake was busy whoa- ing her down....hit the chute lever, pull the fuel shut off, mounted on the rear end, mag switch off, hand brake it, his foot, since he had 'stepped off of it' (Lifted), was not busy, so he could smash the brakes

This pedal has a lever and pushrod connected to the hand brake.   He says that he wanted that because at times he was blinded by oil and wanted to stop the car,,,,imagine that.  Turn around and do it again.


And the master cylinder is a teeny tiny little 5/8' Girling,,,,that's all you need.   (Looking for a new one if you have one). It is about the size of a little 35mm film cannister.

The whole front of the block is held with one, Allen cap screw per side.   No front motor plate.   

The no front motor plate deal shocked people back then.  A bunch of guys used to do a big spectator ring, maybe 3 or 4 guys deep around this car at times.   And I can still hear guys going around and around about that.  "That engine is going to just rip out of that car !"   and so on

Truth is, and Snake and Don and all of us were discussing this, and Snake was very clear, 'You don't want that engine doing this', and he motions the rear motor plate flexing fore and aft.  'You can feel it and you don't want that in a car'.    2 -7/16 NC Allen bolts in shear are all you need at this power level.   I just wanted the chassis builder guys here to ponder it,

The intake is mag and pretty messed up. It is being mag welded and trying to be saved. 

I did a request about a year ago to see if any guys could help. So did a lot of people, including the Snake who flew here and there to hunt.  Snake no longer cares if it is a flat bottom of v bottom, so if any guys have something please email me

I have the exact intake, but it is going on a MALCO GASSER tribute.   It needs to be a rear pop off.

Please also notice this, the aluminum can.    Now we all did out one piece hydraulically formed steel scatter shields, burst plates and so on.  And many of you guys know that the nostalgia cars we spec'd and raced since the beginning, all, have to have certified Titanium cans.

This bellhousing is beautiful and all aluminum.  Clutch science was just evolving, clutch explosions were very common, so imagine how much 'guts' you had to have to lay your legs on each side of one ?

This car has an early 2 disc Schiefer clutch.  That has 2 powdered metal solid discs, 11 inches, a floater and a FORD pressure plate.  The plates were modified with 3 base or stall adjustments, and just 3 levers that you could add bolts, collars and nuts to. So that stock hat and pressure ring were getting revved to the moon between your legs?

And note, everybody saw people get killed or maimed from driveline failures then.  There are 2 magnesium plates on the sides of this car for that issue.

I add stuff like this to praise a lot of really brave guys.

Also...

This car needs a very rare shower head hat( Fuel injection scoop on top of the blower)

I only have one left. People call them a 'Garlits' hat

Do you guys have one?

OK, the early ENDERLE bug catchers had fins on top,, then a faster one came out in around 66 with no fins. 

It has 3 bosses on the left side, the barrel valve side, and you see 2 big rubber looking lines to the side.   They connect to custom made tubes. The tubes go through the side of the hat, then make a gentle 90 degree bend on a big radius.   At the end a brass shower head is soldered on, with 4 precise holes per shower head.   You ran 2, for 8 nozzles above the rotors

This was how all of the ENDERLE systems ran for blown gas, blown alky and blown fuel

This was just before the plate below the hat with 8 separated nozzles

If any of you guys have one, maybe email me? 

If you have seen one sell recently, give me a clue on the price

I am at HMStroppeVet@Gmail.com


Gotta work gentleman, have more details for later and a bunch of good pictures

We all got together and it was fun.  We put Long's grandson in a Funny Car and I fired it up with my bro, at night, in the middle of this gathering. It was fun to see a strong young man get those 'Nitro Eyes' as the thing cackled and pounded the ground.  I stared straight in his eyes, about a minute in to warming it, nodded, he nodded back and I burped her a little...loud.   Nodded at him, he nodded back.   Saw no fear.  So no anxiety.  That is good and also rare.

Don't think he got bit

(Bit) you go crazy and live for the sport

We''ll see.   If he did get ' bit.'....a bunch of folks would love to help him fly.

But back to the point, this car is a great example of how fast and dominant FE's were back when. They flat flew and sounded unique because the revved like mad out the back door(in the MPH traps). They hit a unique high note that you could hear up to 7 miles away around here.

Thanks

More for later


Amended--fixed spelling and sentences a bit, sorry

[jayb]

Tom M has sent me a few more pictures of the Shelby Super Snake in progress.  You will see from the photos that the shop is filled with some rather notable racing luminaries.  Enjoy the photos!

[HolmanMoodyStroppeGang]

Thanks Jay...I can try to explain a bit,

Picture one is Don Long, an old friend, Don The Snake and Roland Leong.  I am on the other side because we are sketching a special  oil filter adapter.   I got them a free billet SHELBY remote mount with is very strong, but we consulted a lot of magazines to re create a special magnesium piece.  The oil filter boss accepts a block of mag, with a std FE gasket.

The block is thick enough to just clear the narrow frame rails.  Inside the block, the passages are ball milled and shaped to send the pressure and scavenge forward and large enough to accept rubberized hydraulic line. AN Stainless braided was not the standard for a race car then.  Nor were hard lines on most things,

Picture 2 is Prudhomme and us getting a lead on a new teeny master cylinder.   The original Girling master is so small that they scared some people !  They are about the size of a 35MM film canister?  Tiny, but all you need.   That is Lou Banys grandson, his Grand pa sponsered the oriiginal car

Picture 3 is me to the left(yes my chick insists I tint my hair, who cares-ha ha), Snake, Lou Baneys Son, the big fellow , and we have this 7 page spec sheet from 1967 and we are discussing every little piece inside it.

A lot of us, including JAY, spent about a year trying to work with our friends to find this and that to make it perfectly correct

If I recall, me and Prudhomme are discussing my manifold and I had to tell him it cost a lot, and also this rare bugcatcher I have that is correct for the car.  Enderle made a Shower Head Hat then and that was real fast for a while.  I have one from one of our cars, that did 227 and set a record for a local track.   We were kind of negotiating on it. I ended up keeping both parts because he found a new hat and did the later style plate with 4 hat nozzles per side.  * under the hat, or injector, and one per port was the early 16 nozle system trick that really sped these cars up

This car flew with the early style Hilborn pump with only around 12 GPM.... The -2 had the cars running in the low 7s and around 220 MPH.   Next year the dash 4 came out and could get these old rails into the 6s and over 240 MPH.   They are good for about 16 Gallons per minute

Years later, we used the same pumps to run high 5s and over 250 MPH  in the nostalgia class

Shot 4-  Notice the special anodizing and wheel. Don has made those butterfly wheels forever and this one was special for the car

Also notice, dual brake action. You see the traditional lever on the left, you pull on it, but this car ran so hard Snake would get oiled in and have to shut off with little vision. His visor would be dripping with oil after a run he tells you....So, they added a foot brake that is hinged off of the same mechanism to help slow the car down in case of emergency or fire

Fire got a lot of old guys in bad trouble and was pretty common then.

Picture 5. This is a lovely level of craftsmanship to me.  Not the linkage that NHRA's Steve Gibbs delivered after polish and mounted.   A lot of stuff was getting mounted this evening.

Picture 6   8 3/4 '' CHrysler rear end and that loop is what you pulled to deploy the chute. And this car often ran at night so you had to find it without looking...

Picture 7- Racer and author Don Perata and Don Long.    I am outside getting ready to start a funny car to make a bunch of noise and celebrate the conclusion.   We put Don Longs grand kid in there. I have a fun 4 minute video of that with this gang smiling as we cackle it hard. I admit, since Gibbs, Don, Don P, Leong and many more were there, we loaded it up with a high percentage and more this and that, and it was loud.....

Picture 8 to end, shows the rest

We have a bunch more and a video.

So, next step was getting CARTER, who is in a walker basically, to paint it since he painted it back when......came out great

Next, the engine is almost all done, goes in the car soon

Thanks a lot