Between 485 & 705 SQ/FT Bob Heine's Auto Emporium

[jon72vega]

Time flies when you're having fun. Each day I go into the garage and work on the Corvette until I'm raining sweat. Turns out that's less than an hour of light work. I'm making progress but annoyingly slow. At least I found the wrench and socket I dropped.

Liane made an appointment with a Sports doctor (orthopedic) to get a cortisone shot in her right hip. It has been bothering her for a while and every time our Primary Care and her Pain doctor give her a shot it doesn't help like it should. Our Primary Care used this Sports doctor to give him a shot in his shoulder and he raved about how well it worked. Saw the doctor on Monday and it turns out he's really good and really popular. He's also in a wall-in orthopedic center so we waited in the lobby torcher chairs for quite a while. An X-ray later and a diagnosis of osteoarthritis in the right hip and bursitis in the left one and she was ready for the shot(s). Medicare requires 48 hours between diagnosis and the shots so we were back today. In and out in a half hour.

The shots were painless but only until the novocaine wore off. While Liane napped I vacuumed the interior and cleaned and dressed the vinyl, rubber and plastic bits on the PT Cruiser. Washed and dried the outside and pressure cleaned the iguana $hit off the front walk. Hopefully the road kill iguana in the front swale was the culprit. Came in the house and changed out of my a soaking wet shirt and pants. At least my socks didn't get soaked -- oh, I wasn't wearing any so only my canvas shoes were soaked. Had a glass of W8 and went inside. Came out to get the mail and was greeted by a nice sunset.

That's a gorgeous sunset!

 

[madison069]

Dan, food trucks in the US are the same. Not the huge box vans with standup headroom you see on TV. A pickup with a stainless box on the back is the quintessential construction site food truck. Driver gets out, opens the side of the box and handsd you what you request. My job at North American Winfield Door in 1963 had a coffee and donut truck arrive in the parking lot for morning and afternoon breaks and a different truck with burgers, hot dogs, sandwiches and drinks came around noon.

Back in Texas, we had a little old Mexican lady who drove her little Nissan or Toyota truck into the yard with 3 ice chest. Two held homemade burritos and one held ice and cokes of different flavor. (What others call soda we just called it cokes and said what flavor we wanted)

I miss those little trucks here in Pennsylvania.

 

[madison069]

Alan, it was a good day. Liane was hurting yesterday but today she had me out in the gardens moving pots. If she gets relief for a few months it would be wonderful. On a positive note, after her experience with the robotic surgery to remove her renal tumor she is less afraid of a robotic hip replacement. I believe she watched one of the early ones that involved drills, chisels and mallets.

Robots doing surgery, only experience I have is a gall bladder removal that involved a robot. No issues other then my ******* thinking I could drive to the store in my manual transmission truck the day after the surgery. I learned how many stomach muscles I used while pushing the clutch in that day.

 

[Squankum]

Robots have come so far in just one generation!

P.S. Not sure if this is a repeat, if so, sorry.

 

[Bob Heine]

There you go Bob

In case you missed it

Rian, you have a great unobstructed view across the farm. Our sunrises peek through the jungle in our back yard.

Bob, sounds like a productive day. All the best to Liane, my dad had a hip replacement but because of other issues he couldn’t have general anaesthetic just a epidural, he said he counted about 200 light hammer taps and reckoned we should have offered the guy a job in the workshop.
But he was off his head on drugs

Great sunset.

Steve

Steve, I feel lucky to be out for most of my surgeries. A few of my eye surgeries were done with local anesthesia and the sound of stitches and needles going in the eyeball was gnarly.

That was a really unusual sunset that made my day.

That's a gorgeous sunset!

Jon, I've seen quite a few gorgeous sunsets in my life. Very few captured with a camera.

Back in Texas, we had a little old Mexican lady who drove her little Nissan or Toyota truck into the yard with 3 ice chest. Two held homemade burritos and one held ice and cokes of different flavor. (What others call soda we just called it cokes and said what flavor we wanted)

I miss those little trucks here in Pennsylvania.

Cody, I believe a lot of the best food on the planet is served from tailgates. Best fried Ipswich clams I've ever had was from Ceil's Clam Shack, a tiny trailer parked near the bridge in Hampton Beach, New Hampshire. She was there first thing in the morning and left when she ran out of clams. Not my typical breakfast but I didn't want to miss out.

Robots doing surgery, only experience I have is a gall bladder removal that involved a robot. No issues other then my ******* thinking I could drive to the store in my manual transmission truck the day after the surgery. I learned how many stomach muscles I used while pushing the clutch in that day.

Cody, I had my appendix removed and a hernia repaired the old fashioned way. I regretted sitting up the next morning. The hernia surgery included mesh that felt like woven razor wire for quite a few days. I vividly remember crawling to the bathroom on hands and knees. Makes you really appreciate the partner who passed a person.

 

[Bob Heine]

Robots have come so far in just one generation!

P.S. Not sure if this is a repeat, if so, sorry.

@Squankum, I'm glad my robots didn't have to go to the toilet. They were probably taking Balance of Nature hardware supplements.

 

[Grizz1963]

Bob
My religion is underscored by what I see, hear, experience in so many ways.
And I would be happy with your views if that is what I got.
Your monster fruit and dead iguanas are all confirmations of the incredible life we live.

Life is good.

And I thank my “insert your own diety/god here” every day for the life that I am living.

 

[Grizz1963]

PS. Going even more deeply emotional…. The women and men who make up this place add to the feeling of a good life being out there for all of us. Even on the days that seem a challenge.

 

[BobLon]

Couldn't agree with the last two posts more.
BobL.

 

[Bob Heine]

Bob
My religion is underscored by what I see, hear, experience in so many ways.
And I would be happy with your views if that is what I got.
Your monster fruit and dead iguanas are all confirmations of the incredible life we live.

Life is good.

And I thank my “insert your own diety/god here” every day for the life that I am living.

Rian, as I walked to the shed today I passed a shelf full of orchids in bloom. I've done nothing but give them a shady spot to bloom. I thank my invisible friend for everything he does.

At some point all my memories will fade away but I truly treasure having them.

PS. Going even more deeply emotional…. The women and men who make up this place add to the feeling of a good life being out there for all of us. Even on the days that seem a challenge.

I appreciate this forum for all the shared knowledge. The people who share their time here feel like lifelong friends.

To me, every day is a gift. Even the flaming bag of poop ones.

Couldn't agree with the last two posts more.
BobL.

BobL, we're in full agreement there.

 

[oldironfarmer]

We're pulling for Liane to see a speedy and vindictive improvement.

 

[madison069]

Cody, I believe a lot of the best food on the planet is served from tailgates. Best fried Ipswich clams I've ever had was from Ceil's Clam Shack, a tiny trailer parked near the bridge in Hampton Beach, New Hampshire. She was there first thing in the morning and left when she ran out of clams. Not my typical breakfast but I didn't want to miss out.

Cody, I had my appendix removed and a hernia repaired the old fashioned way. I regretted sitting up the next morning. The hernia surgery included mesh that felt like woven razor wire for quite a few days. I vividly remember crawling to the bathroom on hands and knees. Makes you really appreciate the partner who passed a person.

I used to buy my giant shrimp from a guy with a cooler in the Home Depot Parking lot in Houston, TX. I would go early on Saturday mornings to get 2 lbs. of those giant shrimps for $5 a pound. He said he bought his shrimp at the local dock for $2 a lbs. and would sell them for a little extra coin. I was happy to pay it because they were fresh and huge, so they made very nice grilled skewers meals.

Then on the weekdays there used to be a food truck in Houston that had rows of half 55-gallon drum grill setups in front of his truck where they cooked chicken on the grills. you got a half of a chicken, rice, beans, corn tortilla and a coke for $10. I would grab one and have 2 meals out of that chicken and man the season he used was really good. I never could replicate the taste. Only thing was, you had to drive a little bit to find him because he had to move every month to a new spot due to legal reason lol.

Then there are the back-alley tamale deals that resembles a drug deal environment that would have a little Mexican lady selling dozens of tamales for $5-8 dollars out of her ice chests. They were worth taking the risk of getting robbed going for those tamales. I know how to make tamales, I rather pay the ladies who likes that job.

Here in PA I've been venturing into the Latino culture of Pittsburgh and found sources for Empanadas made in a family's home. I would test her the order size and I'll go to her house on Sunday to pick up my order for a Sunday lunch. Very good and the fresh pickled cabbage side that she makes is a good palate cleanser!

There are some nice street taco places here in Pittsburgh. Only issue is I have to drive 30 mins to get to them, so they are weekend only treats also. I just haven't found anything locally that I enjoy like I do the tacos.

PA's cruisine is more about pasta, bread, and potatoes, so for someone who's used to the spices of the south it's just bland and hard for me to get excited about.


As for the surgery, I recall I drove the truck to the grocery store and when I got there, which was only 2 miles from my house but there was 9 clutch depressions during that trip, I had to hold onto the buggy for support. I ended up sitting on the bench for a little bit before I could continue getting some basic grocery for the weekend. Luckily, I didn't pull any stitches, but I ended up staying home the rest of the weekend and was able to go back to work on Tuesday since I had a desk job.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

Shorty, with or without clothes I don't believe I'll be doing any yoga. My nightmare is doing this, intentionally or unintentionally.

I've been out of town over the weekend so not back to your thread, Bob. Missed a few things.

When I read your comment above my first thought was, "Bob, you most likely ALREADY lived the nightmare of doing this^^ when you had your train accident and maybe worse!"

I've seen people do this and I can never get over the feeling it is incredibly WRONG to be able to do something like this. Makes me wonder if someone who can and did this in their youth.....what is their body like in old age?

 

[Bob Heine]

We're pulling for Liane to see a speedy and vindictive improvement.

Thanks Andy!

I used to buy my giant shrimp from a guy with a cooler in the Home Depot Parking lot in Houston, TX. I would go early on Saturday mornings to get 2 lbs. of those giant shrimps for $5 a pound. He said he bought his shrimp at the local dock for $2 a lbs. and would sell them for a little extra coin. I was happy to pay it because they were fresh and huge, so they made very nice grilled skewers meals.

Then on the weekdays there used to be a food truck in Houston that had rows of half 55-gallon drum grill setups in front of his truck where they cooked chicken on the grills. you got a half of a chicken, rice, beans, corn tortilla and a coke for $10. I would grab one and have 2 meals out of that chicken and man the season he used was really good. I never could replicate the taste. Only thing was, you had to drive a little bit to find him because he had to move every month to a new spot due to legal reason lol.

Then there are the back-alley tamale deals that resembles a drug deal environment that would have a little Mexican lady selling dozens of tamales for $5-8 dollars out of her ice chests. They were worth taking the risk of getting robbed going for those tamales. I know how to make tamales, I rather pay the ladies who likes that job.

Here in PA I've been venturing into the Latino culture of Pittsburgh and found sources for Empanadas made in a family's home. I would test her the order size and I'll go to her house on Sunday to pick up my order for a Sunday lunch. Very good and the fresh pickled cabbage side that she makes is a good palate cleanser!

There are some nice street taco places here in Pittsburgh. Only issue is I have to drive 30 mins to get to them, so they are weekend only treats also. I just haven't found anything locally that I enjoy like I do the tacos.

PA's cruisine is more about pasta, bread, and potatoes, so for someone who's used to the spices of the south it's just bland and hard for me to get excited about.


As for the surgery, I recall I drove the truck to the grocery store and when I got there, which was only 2 miles from my house but there was 9 clutch depressions during that trip, I had to hold onto the buggy for support. I ended up sitting on the bench for a little bit before I could continue getting some basic grocery for the weekend. Luckily, I didn't pull any stitches, but I ended up staying home the rest of the weekend and was able to go back to work on Tuesday since I had a desk job.

Cody, we had Tom's Place in Boca Raton, one of the great barbecue joints in the country back in the day. Tom Wright opened his first restaurant in 1977 at the southeast corner of Glades Road and Dixie Highway. He was a haute cuisine chef at the Boca Raton Resort and Hotel who had to quit because of some serious phlebitis in his legs. He bought the run-down tiny concrete building, painted it and built a hickory fired oven inside. There were about four tables (for four) inside and a walk-up window outside. The smell coming from the place was a traffic hazzard and on the weekends there were lines of luxury vehicles parked along Dixie Hightway. Chauffers from some of the cars were waiting at the window for huge party orders. Thursday nights you could get a conch fritter made in an 8-inch cast iron pan.

When they widened Glades Road and Dixie Highway, the City of Boca Raton loaned Tom the money to buy a bigger piece of property on the corner and erect a fancy new restaurant. The parking lot only held about 50 cars so he had to move to a bigger place a few years later. Tom died in 2006 but I can still buy a bottle of his world famous BBQ sauce locally but Amazon doesn't have it at the moment:

https://www.amazon.com/Toms-Barbeque-Sauce-Florida-Style/dp/B0CLKL7ZBN?tag=atomicindus08-20

Riding a mini bike in the field behind our house in New York I discovered a Viet Cong pit hidden in the track. Having locked my hook on the left hand grip, I went over the handlebars and landed on my right shoulder. It didn't hurt bad that Sunday night so I got up and went to work as usual. By lunch time I couldn't move my shoulder in any direction without seeing stars. Left work and got in the Triumph Herald. I was able to start it and get it in reverse. Passing out from shifting through the four forward gears seemed like a bad idea so I put the car in third and slipped the clutch to get rolling. Timed the lights (to the annoyance of those following me) and took a route that minimized the number of turns. Steering with my knees worked but scared the **** out of me. Made it home, Liane took me to the family doctor and he gave me a cortisone shot in the shoulder. I was able to go back to work the next day.

Similar thing happened when I broke my elbow. I could pull on the joint relatively pain free but compression gave me the star show. Driving a co-worker to an off-site building, he asked why I didn't park in several spots close to the entrance. I told him I could only make right turns. He was able to get a ride with someone else for the return to the office.

Like you I went back to work the Monday after my surgery (appendectomy). I wasn't feeling great but hey, it's a desk job. Next morning I woke with a 103°F fever so Liane called the doctor's office. They saw me right away but my temperature was just over 106°F by the time I got there. Different surgeon looked at my wound and said he couldn't open me up in the office and sent me across the street to the Emergency Room. Turned into a rinse and repeat procedure with the wound packed and required healing from the inside out. And no lifting (probably only a month but it seemed like the rest of my life).

I've been out of town over the weekend so not back to your thread, Bob. Missed a few things.

When I read your comment above my first thought was, "Bob, you most likely ALREADY lived the nightmare of doing this^^ when you had your train accident and maybe worse!"

I've seen people do this and I can never get over the feeling it is incredibly WRONG to be able to do something like this. Makes me wonder if someone who can and did this in their youth.....what is their body like in old age?

Dan, the major injuries were to my left arm and head. Something went through my chin and took out a bunch of teeth. Something whacked me on the right side of my head and one of the fractures left me with a severed nerve and permanent double vision. My scalp on the top of my head was peeled back so the orthopedic surgeons stitched it back on with enough cowlicks to win a role in the Little Rascals.

My backaches are trivial so I suspect I didn't do that pose under the train.

 

[y'sguy]

Thank you, Bob and Madison 069 for yet another great story to read for our morning's wake-up call. This brings back fond memories of when my dad was transferred to Houston. At this time I recently graduated from college and drove my '55 Thunderbird down to see them for Christmas break. I recall it was about a 10-hour drive for me along with my white and grey Alaskan Malamute, Rocky.

I met up with my friend, Ron who had left for graduate school in Oregon a year earlier. We used his roof racks and surfboard on my Bird, and went surfing in Galveston. Not the best surf I might add, but it was a fun adventure. The best part was the 5 gal. bucket of shrimp that we bought there and brought back to my parent's house for a fantastic array of shrimp meals for the next days of our break. I love shrimp and have it every chance I get. I have a business meeting today and already planning this choice.
I will dig up some pics if I can find them and drop them back in later. Gotta go get ready for lunch!

 

[Bob Heine]

I love shrimp and have it every chance I get.

Alan, I'm with you. A trip to the Sydney fish market was a regular weekend event. We'd buy something that took a while to eat so we wouldn't eat all the shrimp in one sitting.

 

[Bob Heine]

"And now for something completely different..." [Monty Python's Flying Circus]

I didn't realize it at the time but 1970 was a watershed year in AA/FD (Double A Fuel Dragster) racing. On March 8, 1970 Don Garlits was running Swamp Rat XIII (13) with a prototype two-speed transmission. His crew couldn't completely fill the transmission with oil in time to get Don to the starting line. That mistake resulted in one of the most horrifying accidents in the sport:

The story is told here:

https://www.motortrend.com/news/big-daddy-don-garlits-restores-swamp-rat-13-the-dragster-that-almost-killed-him/

In 1970, nearly all dragsters had the engine in front of the driver. Supposedly it helped the driver keep the machine aimed straight down the track, using the engine like a rear gun sight. The rear engine design gave the driver an up close and personal view of the track, which I understand is scary. The reason I bring this up is a forgotten roll of slide film I shot at New York National Speedway in 1970 that I scanned yesterday.

We were living in Wappingers Falls, NY at the time and visiting our parents on Long Island the weekend of July 10-12. When I learned the Bakersfield (CA) Smokers car club's 12th Annual United States Fuel and Gas Championship was being held that weekend, I took our '68 GTO to the track, promising Liane I wouldn't race it.

I don't remember the exact camera I had back then but I'm absolutely sure it was a really cheap fixed focus 35mm camera, resulting in a roll of very boring photos. I'll share a couple to show how primative these cars were.

By 1970 the AA/FD dragsters were making relatively smokeless runs down the quarter mile, thanks to two innovations, the wrinkle-wall slick and the slipper clutch. The slicks ran with very low tire pressure but had higher pressure tubes inside to keep the tire from flying off. They didn't use

Back then very few AA/FD had transmissions of any kind. A few had reversers so they could do a burnout and then back up to the starting line without assistance. I don't think any of the dragsters at this event had reversers in them so skinny crew members would run after the dragster and push it back to the starting line.

Those AA/FD dragsters also had no starters and the portable blower pulley starter hadn't been invented. The crew used a vehicle with a push panel on the front bumper. The Beachcomber team used what appears to be a matching Datsun pickup to push their beautiful machine fast enough for a bump start. The teams used the return road for the starting procedure and then followed the dragster down the track to return it to the pits.

TV Tommy Ivo took it a step further, using a brand new Cadillac Coupe DeVille painted the same candy apple red as his dragster.

This event was four months after Don Garlits destroyed his feet but his car was there. Don didn't go fancy but he sure went fast. I found this photo of his repaired Swamp Rat 13 at the event:

I wasn't paying a lot of attention to two cars that day. One was Bernie Shaker's and I did get a photo of it even though I was concentrating on the car in the far lane. This was one of the very few competitive rear engine dragsters and it had a huge influence on the Swamp Rat XIV (14) Don Garlits was building that year. It didn't win but it was an omen of what would come really fast -- front engine dragsters all but disappeared from competition in the next two years.

I found a better picture of the car:

The other rear engine car was Duane Ong's, which had vertical stabilizers instead of a horizontal stabilizer.

I don't remember all the big name teams at the event but I know Chris Karamesinis and Ray Godman, aka Tennessee Bo-Weevil were there.

 

[Geoff289]

"And now for something completely different..." [Monty Python's Flying Circus]

I didn't realize it at the time but 1970 was a watershed year in AA/FD (Double A Fuel Dragster) racing. On March 8, 1970 Don Garlits was running Swamp Rat XIII (13) with a prototype two-speed transmission. His crew couldn't completely fill the transmission with oil in time to get Don to the starting line. That mistake resulted in one of the most horrifying accidents in the sport:

The story is told here:

https://www.motortrend.com/news/big-daddy-don-garlits-restores-swamp-rat-13-the-dragster-that-almost-killed-him/

In 1970, nearly all dragsters had the engine in front of the driver. Supposedly it helped the driver keep the machine aimed straight down the track, using the engine like a rear gun sight. The rear engine design gave the driver an up close and personal view of the track, which I understand is scary. The reason I bring this up is a forgotten roll of slide film I shot at New York National Speedway in 1970 that I scanned yesterday.

We were living in Wappingers Falls, NY at the time and visiting our parents on Long Island the weekend of July 10-12. When I learned the Bakersfield (CA) Smokers car club's 12th Annual United States Fuel and Gas Championship was being held that weekend, I took our '68 GTO to the track, promising Liane I wouldn't race it.

I don't remember the exact camera I had back then but I'm absolutely sure it was a really cheap fixed focus 35mm camera, resulting in a roll of very boring photos. I'll share a couple to show how primative these cars were.

By 1970 the AA/FD dragsters were making relatively smokeless runs down the quarter mile, thanks to two innovations, the wrinkle-wall slick and the slipper clutch. The slicks ran with very low tire pressure but had higher pressure tubes inside to keep the tire from flying off. They didn't use

Back then very few AA/FD had transmissions of any kind. A few had reversers so they could do a burnout and then back up to the starting line without assistance. I don't think any of the dragsters had reversers in them so skinny crew members would run after the dragster and push it back to the starting line.

Those AA/FD dragsters also had no starters and the portable blower pulley starter hadn't been invented. The crew used a vehicle with a push panel on the front bumper. The Beachcomber team used what appears to be a matching Datsun pickup to push their beautiful machine fast enough for a bump start. The teams used the return road for the starting procedure and then followed the dragster down the track to return it to the pits.

TV Tommy Ivo took it a step further, using a brand new Cadillac Coupe DeVille painted the same candy apple red as his dragster.

This event was four months after Don Garlits destroyed his feet but his car was there. Don didn't go fancy but he sure went fast. I found this photo of his repaired Swamp Rat 13 at the event:

I wasn't paying a lot of attention to two cars that day. One was Bernie Shaker's and I did get a photo of it even though I was concentrating on the car in the far lane. This was one of the very few competitive rear engine dragsters and it had a huge influence on the Swamp Rat XIV (14) Don Garlits was building that year. It didn't win but it was an omen of what would come really fast -- front engine dragsters all but disappeared from competition in the next two years.

I found a better picture of the car:

The other rear engine car was Duane Ong's, which had vertical stabilizers instead of a horizontal stabilizer.

I don't remember all the big name teams at the event but I know Chris Karamesinis and Bob Godman, aka Tennessee Bo-Weevil were there.

You're talking my language now Bob. I've been a drag racing fan since being introduced to the sport at the age of 11 by some English migrant kids at my primary school who had some American magazines and had seen some yanks in action in their home country before migrating here. It took me until I was nearly 15 to persuade my Dad to take me to the drags. When we got home he told Mum he thought I had it out of my system now. How wrong he was.

There had been back motor cars virtually since the inception of the sport., Tony Nancy brought one down here in 1966. They all tended to be pretty evil handling though and the front motor configuration became the norm by the late 50's and through the '60's. Some persisted and Dwayne Ong that you mentioned notably won an AHRA major event the year before Garlits break through, the first ever back motor car to win a major event.

The trick to solving the spooky, darty handling issue was to slow down the steering ratio so small movements of the butterfly didn't make such large movements of the steering angle of the front wheels. This is generally credited to Garlits but it was actually his crew member who came up with this fix. This was either Tommy Lemons or Herb Parks, both long time associates of Garlits, but I can't immediately recall which one of them it was. The rest is history.

Don "the Beachcomber" Johnson who you mentioned toured here around 1970 but i didn't get to see him. The Tennessee Bo Weevil was Raymond Godman, not Bob, although Bob is much better name. He didn't drive it himself as he was confined to a wheelchair as a result of a sniper's bullet while in the service of his country in WW2 but tuned the car.

 

[OutlawDrifter]

Bob, much like the pilots/test pilots of WW2 and their flying hotrods, those early dragsters took some large huevos to pilot!

My dad's 1948 English Ford Anglia was a handful with a 406FE out of a 63-1/2 fastback Galaxy. It ran lower 10s around 140mph, once you hit about 100mph it was all you could do to keep it from floating into the other lane. If you were quick enough on the 1-2 shift you could hang the front tires in the air all the way through 2nd gear!

Edit: Thought I'd add I got to meet Don at the track in Topeka many years ago, nice guy, signed autographs for HOURS.

These are some of the last pics of the car before we stripped it and it went to CA to be turned into a hotrod.

 

[Geoff289]

Bob, much like the pilots/test pilots of WW2 and their flying hotrods, those early dragsters took some large huevos to pilot!

My dad's 1948 English Ford Anglia was a handful with a 406FE out of a 63-1/2 fastback Galaxy. It ran lower 10s around 140mph, once you hit about 100mph it was all you could do to keep it from floating into the other lane. If you were quick enough on the 1-2 shift you could hang the front tires in the air all the way through 2nd gear!

Edit: Thought I'd add I got to meet Don at the track in Topeka many years ago, nice guy, signed autographs for HOURS.

In the late '60's here a guy put a big block chev in an even smaller car, a Mitsubishi Colt. It also didn't go too straight. Note that its actually street registered.

 

[hewey]

Some great drag history Bob, thanks for sharing.

 

[Grizz1963]

In the late '60's here a guy put a big block chev in an even smaller car, a Mitsubishi Colt. It also didn't go too straight. Note that its actually street registered.

WOW!!!

I grew up in South Africa and these were fairly common in the 70’s

Sedan, wagon and pickups were a dime a dozen. And the fastback shape above as well.

I think they all dissolved or were driven to destruction.

 

[Squankum]

The trick to solving the spooky, darty handling issue was to slow down the steering ratio so small movements of the butterfly didn't make such large movements of the steering angle of the front wheels.

I'm guessing more wheelbase helped, too? (In classes that allowed such things.)

 

[Lyndon]

In the late '60's here a guy put a big block chev in an even smaller car, a Mitsubishi Colt. It also didn't go too straight. Note that its actually street registered.

Oh my giddy aunt! The car I drove after getting my licence was one of those Colts, in the same red. I'll have to find a photo. Dad had bought it from a co-worker in the public service who was also heavily involved with CAMS (Confederation of Australian Motor Sports). However, it was designated an SS, and only a few years ago (after an article in Unique Cars if I remember correctly) I found out that there were only 7 SS versions imported to Australia. The SS had twin carbs, a close range gearbox and better suspension. It got to 100mph very quickly but that was top speed (ask me how I know). All 4 of us kids learnt to drive in it, and me and Mum crashed it once each (guy pulled out of a T intersection on me). But Dad had it repaired both times. I loved that car - and Dad junked it before telling me. It would have been restored if I had it now, and would have been a real rarity. Colin Bond rallied one too, and it was used for Mitsubishi advertising..... here's the ad from Modern Motor, November 1969 after Colin won the Australian Rally Championship something in one:



WOW - that's all.

Lyndon

 

[Bob Heine]

You're talking my language now Bob. I've been a drag racing fan since being introduced to the sport at the age of 11 by some English migrant kids at my primary school who had some American magazines and had seen some yanks in action in their home country before migrating here. It took me until I was nearly 15 to persuade my Dad to take me to the drags. When we got home he told Mum he thought I had it out of my system now. How wrong he was.

There had been back motor cars virtually since the inception of the sport., Tony Nancy brought one down here in 1966. They all tended to be pretty evil handling though and the front motor configuration became the norm by the late 50's and through the '60's. Some persisted and Dwayne Ong that you mentioned notably won an AHRA major event the year before Garlits break through, the first ever back motor car to win a major event.

The trick to solving the spooky, darty handling issue was to slow down the steering ratio so small movements of the butterfly didn't make such large movements of the steering angle of the front wheels. This is generally credited to Garlits but it was actually his crew member who came up with this fix. This was either Tommy Lemons or Herb Parks, both long time associates of Garlits, but I can't immediately recall which one of them it was. The rest is history.

Don "the Beachcomber" Johnson who you mentioned toured here around 1970 but i didn't get to see him. The Tennessee Bo Weevil was Raymond Godman, not Bob, although Bob is much better name. He didn't drive it himself as he was confined to a wheelchair as a result of a sniper's bullet while in the service of his country in WW2 but tuned the car.

Geoff, I'm more than pleased to trigger memories of our childhood.

While my father had no interest in cars or motorsports, I had two uncles who were. My mother's sister married a Socony Mobil truck driver. On our way back to New York (when I was 10) we stopped at Uncle LaVerne's place in Wisconsin and he took my father, me, my brother and his son Ron (year younger than me) to a race at the local dirt track. There were midgets (not the people kind) and stock cars. The Southern California scene I'd witnessed seven weeks earlier set the hook and the dirt track races reeled me in. I was a confirmed gearhead.

My fathers brother Harvey was an architect and volunteer fireman. Uncle Harvey drove a red 1950 Ford convertible and let me ride on the folded down top behind the back seat. His destination was the local ice cream parlor, which was fine with me. He also let me ride on the back of the fire station's modified hose truck. The truck was built to compete in the Long Island fire team competitions. The Auburn engine that replaced the F1's Ford flathead had not been powerful enough so they swapped a 50 Cadillac V8 into it. Like the other fire trucks, the hopped up hose truck ran open exhausts.

The Holbrook (Long Island) fire department still has the old girl along with a more modern and much faster competition 'truck.'

Uncle Harvey also replaced his sailboat with a Packard straight eight powered JC Higgins speedboat. My only photo of the speedboat shows how close my father (about to be pulled overboard) and his brother were.

After getting married, Harvey traded the Ford in for a '53 Plymouth convertible (flathead 6) and the JC Higgins in for a '56 Owens 23' cabin cruiser. I was a little disappointed until Uncle Harvey opened the engine cover and turned on the bilge blower. My faith was restored. because that Owens came with a Chevy V8 and the rocker covers said Corvette.

It's bad luck to re-name a boat so the Champagne Lady was replaced a few years later with a 26' Owens. It's amazing how much three feet in length increases the interior of a cabin cruiser.

My brother **** hated the noise of the hose truck and boats but I couldn't get enough of those noises. Imagine my joy the first time I heard a Double A Fuel Dragster.

Bob, much like the pilots/test pilots of WW2 and their flying hotrods, those early dragsters took some large huevos to pilot!

My dad's 1948 English Ford Anglia was a handful with a 406FE out of a 63-1/2 fastback Galaxy. It ran lower 10s around 140mph, once you hit about 100mph it was all you could do to keep it from floating into the other lane. If you were quick enough on the 1-2 shift you could hang the front tires in the air all the way through 2nd gear!

Edit: Thought I'd add I got to meet Don at the track in Topeka many years ago, nice guy, signed autographs for HOURS.

These are some of the last pics of the car before we stripped it and it went to CA to be turned into a hotrod.

Marc, as scary as those AA/FD dragsters were, I was more impressed with the Gasser-class cars. S&K speed shop that did the machining on my 235 Chevy stovebolt 6 engine campaigned an Anglia from that era. While the vast majority of the cars racing at the Islip Speedway and Westhampton, Long Island tracks had manual transmissions, the S&K car had an automatic. Not just any automatic, it was a dual range 4-speed Hydramatic rather than the 2-speed powerglide. The best stick drivers kept their foot to the floor when they shifted and were hard to beat. The drawback was a missed shift was really really expensive. Back in those days, racers used re-capped tires From Marvin and Harry Rifchin (M&H tires) with soft rubber and no tread. The re-cap rubber was much wider than the stock tire so they put reinforcements under the outer edge, creating "Piecrust" slicks. S&K's Anglia had M&H re-capped whitewall slicks.

Turns out some GMC trucks running Small Block Chevy engines had Hydramatcs. I acquired a GMC Hydramatic after my accident so I could put it, along with a '58 Chevy V8 engine in my '55 Chevy hardtop convertible. SWMBO nixed the project when my father gave us his worn-out '62 Rambler Classic station wagon.

In the late '60's here a guy put a big block chev in an even smaller car, a Mitsubishi Colt. It also didn't go too straight. Note that its actually street registered.

Good Grief Geoff! I thought Fiat Topolinos were small. Like the Citroen 2CV, the Fiat Toplino engine fit in that tiny compartment up front.

Most of the Fiat Topolino gassers put the front wheels forward of the body.

The little car/big engine award goes to this Allison V12-powered Isetta BMW.

Some great drag history Bob, thanks for sharing.

My pleasure Hewey! Thanks for stopping by.

WOW!!!

I grew up in South Africa and these were fairly common in the 70’s

Sedan, wagon and pickups were a dime a dozen. And the fastback shape above as well.

I think they all dissolved or were driven to destruction.

Rian, it's sad so many quirky and low-priced vehicles went that way.

I'm guessing more wheelbase helped, too? (In classes that allowed such things.)

@Squankum, you're absolutely right. The dragsters in NHRA are limited (?) to 300-inch wheelbases. That's Freightliner/Kenworth/Peterbuilt territory.

Oh my giddy aunt! The car I drove after getting my licence was one of those Colts, in the same red. I'll have to find a photo. Dad had bought it from a co-worker in the public service who was also heavily involved with CAMS (Confederation of Australian Motor Sports). However, it was designated an SS, and only a few years ago (after an article in Unique Cars if I remember correctly) I found out that there were only 7 SS versions imported to Australia. The SS had twin carbs, a close range gearbox and better suspension. It got to 100mph very quickly but that was top speed (ask me how I know). All 4 of us kids learnt to drive in it, and me and Mum crashed it once each (guy pulled out of a T intersection on me). But Dad had it repaired both times. I loved that car - and Dad junked it before telling me. It would have been restored if I had it now, and would have been a real rarity. Colin Bond rallied one too, and it was used for Mitsubishi advertising..... here's the ad from Modern Motor, November 1969 after Colin won the Australian Rally Championship something in one:



WOW - that's all.

Lyndon

Lyndon, a lot of people we know and love could care less about the things that make us happy. None of the cars I've owned have been that rare but if I were married to the wrong woman, I'd still have every car I ever owned. That's not a huge number but it would have prevented me from living in any of the homes we've ever owned.

I apologize for the stories I've repeated. It's my favorite thing to do to my relatives and friends, especially Liane.

 

[Geoff289]

Your photo library is a real treasure, Bob.

 

[bj383ss]

Bob your Uncle's boat sparked a memory for me. I have never heard anything better than a stock 283 sbc being started and idling through water manifolds across a crisp clear lake on a early Saturday morning! Even a cammed small block isn't the same. I think I have shared in my thread but my grandpa owned a 66' Chris Craft 25' Cabin Cruiser for a number of years. When I was 8 years old he finally had to pull the 283 and rebuild it. When he was done it was a 302ci, but it sounded just the same to me maybe a little bit throater.

The boat stayed in a slip at the marina. He only pulled it out when the hull need to be painted. They had a mechanic shop at the marina with a hoist to pull out engines. He had them pull it out and he brought it home to his machine shop.

Carla II 001 Lake Meredith 1974 by bjohnson388, on Flickr

Carla II 003 Lake Meredith by bjohnson388, on Flickr

Whitey 01 by bjohnson388, on Flickr

Of course the 64' Chevy C10 had a 327 he rebuilt as well with a 5/8 cam. It sounded pretty damn good too through glasspacks.

My favorite pic now is this one with several different ages of me piloting the boat.

37853_125989147446251_100001054990386_146573_3989221_n by bjohnson388, on Flickr

Bret

 

[John85259]

I remember going to Tom's BBQ restaurant a few times between 1982 and 1984. I have a memory of it being called "Tom's Soul Food" but maybe it only had "Soul Food" on the side of the building. The ceiling indoors was very low and had a couple ceiling fans with screens beneath them to save tall people from getting an unexpected hair cut or worse. Pretty good food. A few months later the building was gone and the restaurant moved to a different location for a little while. Maybe a year later it moved again to a location on Federal Highway close to Delray Beach. Maybe on the west side of the street? I worked at IBM on Yamato Rd. Used to play 3 wall racquet ball during lunch almost every day at the outside courts near the big circular pond. Moved to Charlotte, NC in 1984 and left the company in 1990.

 

[kaymccampbell]

@bj383ss , that's a Chris Craft Cavalier Futura. I can't remember how many of those I've seen with small floating debris punched right through the hull.

 

[shortykorte]

Bob
That’s for sharing a time when life seemed more real and slower. Like NASCAR and other race vehicles, the new fake looking hi tech doesn’t connect with me.

Bret
Thanks for another memory. When I was in California (late 80’s) a friend brought an identical Chris Craft to yours. Someone painted the beautiful wood interior. I camped out on the boat for a week removing the paint.

 

[RickP]

I apologize for the stories I've repeated. It's my favorite thing to do to my relatives and friends, especially Liane.

No apologies needed here!

I think most of us following your thread enjoy your stories -- and hearing them again is even better!

 

[Squankum]

Good Grief Geoff! I thought Fiat Topolinos were small. Like the Citroen 2CV, the Fiat Toplino engine fit in that tiny compartment up front.

I did not know that! Let me google...





Ah, with the radiator behind it. Which is a cromulent idea if you, say, are building a Saab in the 1950's in Sweden and summer heat really isn't an issue.


But other than Scandinavia in the winter, eh, maybe not a great idea. Then again, to have waste heat you first must have engine heat, and the smaller the engine and the less the power output...

 

[y'sguy]

Bob your Uncle's boat sparked a memory for me. I have never heard anything better than a stock 283 sbc being started and idling through water manifolds across a crisp clear lake on a early Saturday morning! Even a cammed small block isn't the same. I think I have shared in my thread but my grandpa owned a 66' Chris Craft 25' Cabin Cruiser for a number of years. When I was 8 years old he finally had to pull the 283 and rebuild it. When he was done it was a 302ci, but it sounded just the same to me maybe a little bit throater.

The boat stayed in a slip at the marina. He only pulled it out when the hull need to be painted. They had a mechanic shop at the marina with a hoist to pull out engines. He had them pull it out and he brought it home to his machine shop.

Carla II 001 Lake Meredith 1974 by bjohnson388, on Flickr

Carla II 003 Lake Meredith by bjohnson388, on Flickr

Whitey 01 by bjohnson388, on Flickr

Of course the 64' Chevy C10 had a 327 he rebuilt as well with a 5/8 cam. It sounded pretty damn good too through glasspacks.

My favorite pic now is this one with several different ages of me piloting the boat.

37853_125989147446251_100001054990386_146573_3989221_n by bjohnson388, on Flickr

Bret

I too have dreams of owning a boat similar to this. And I have owned many in my lifetime. However, at my age, I now get great enjoyment out of the simplicity and solidarity of my Alcort Sunfish sailboat. Our lake is an easy 20+ minute pleasant drive from my home. Low investment, easy to maintain, and ever ready to go when I am.

 

[Squankum]

Good Grief Geoff! I thought Fiat Topolinos were small. Like the Citroen 2CV

It's a strange world, Bob! You'll never guess what pulled out in front of me when I was driving this morning.

 

[Bob Heine]

Your photo library is a real treasure, Bob.

Geoff, thank you for the kind words. I am slowly scanning the old slides and prints so my great grandkids can see them.

Bob your Uncle's boat sparked a memory for me. I have never heard anything better than a stock 283 sbc being started and idling through water manifolds across a crisp clear lake on a early Saturday morning! Even a cammed small block isn't the same. I think I have shared in my thread but my grandpa owned a 66' Chris Craft 25' Cabin Cruiser for a number of years. When I was 8 years old he finally had to pull the 283 and rebuild it. When he was done it was a 302ci, but it sounded just the same to me maybe a little bit throater.

The boat stayed in a slip at the marina. He only pulled it out when the hull need to be painted. They had a mechanic shop at the marina with a hoist to pull out engines. He had them pull it out and he brought it home to his machine shop.

Of course the 64' Chevy C10 had a 327 he rebuilt as well with a 5/8 cam. It sounded pretty damn good too through glasspacks.

My favorite pic now is this one with several different ages of me piloting the boat.


Bret

Bret, the Owens boats didn't sell as well as the Chris Craft equivalents. I was a huge fan of Chris Craft speed boats and really really wanted to own one. All varnish above the waterline and a shape like no other. The one I wanted was a 1955-58 21-foot Capri with the single Chrysler Hemi -- like this one:

Working in Manhattan in 1964 I came across a boat in a window. It was a Riva Aquarama 28-foot speedboat with twin engines. It was twice the price of our first house. A restored one today is about the price of our current house.

A video of one cruising the Mediterranean reminds me how amazing those boats were.

I did find one I can afford, it's only $295.

It did not occur to me caring for a boat, especially a varnished one, is a lot of work. When we moved to Wappingers Falls, New York in 1966, the boating thing was a distant memory. Five years later we went boating with a neighbor on Lake George. I was hooked but my budget wouldn't cover a dream boat. I ended up with a Skee Craft 18-foot outboard.

Spent the winter of '71 inside a visqueen plastic boathouse, sanding, patching and repairing the wood that had looked OK the day I bought it.

Sold the boat to a TV repairman and bought a 302 Ford powered 19-foot fiberglass Century Raven that had a dozen pieces of teak decorating the gelcoat. Took less than an hour to oil all of it.

That V8 was muffled through the propeller so it was quiet until you got up to about 50 mph with the trim maximized for speed.

I remember going to Tom's BBQ restaurant a few times between 1982 and 1984. I have a memory of it being called "Tom's Soul Food" but maybe it only had "Soul Food" on the side of the building. The ceiling indoors was very low and had a couple ceiling fans with screens beneath them to save tall people from getting an unexpected hair cut or worse. Pretty good food. A few months later the building was gone and the restaurant moved to a different location for a little while. Maybe a year later it moved again to a location on Federal Highway close to Delray Beach. Maybe on the west side of the street? I worked at IBM on Yamato Rd. Used to play 3 wall racquet ball during lunch almost every day at the outside courts near the big circular pond. Moved to Charlotte, NC in 1984 and left the company in 1990.

@John85259, those were great times at Tom's Place. You could get beer but all he served was Budweiser and only in 16-ounce cans. He moved at least twice, as you describe and his kids have opened their own versions of Tom's Place. The second Tom's place was built next to the original site. Much fancier and bigger.

It's still there but it's a Chili Crab Chinese restaurant now. You're right about the third Tom's Place. It was an even bigger restaurant with lots more parking on the west side of Federal but still in Boca Raton. When that one closed, the owner tore it down and it has remained an empty lot.

@bj383ss , that's a Chris Craft Cavalier Futura. I can't remember how many of those I've seen with small floating debris punched right through the hull.

Kay, boating the Hudson was a wonderful and frightening thing. When we started using it in 1971 you couldn't see anything two feet below the surface. Four years later it was cleaned up enough to see down six feet. Pretty much all thanks to Pete Seeger and the Clearwater. Regardless of the clarity, everyone would eventually hit a submerged piece of flotsam. You watched for the tiniest little branch sticking up because it was often part of a really huge log. Uncle Harvey punched a huge hole in the JC Higgins but I think it was something close to shore on the Great South Bay.

Bob
That’s for sharing a time when life seemed more real and slower. Like NASCAR and other race vehicles, the new fake looking hi tech doesn’t connect with me.

Bret
Thanks for another memory. When I was in California (late 80’s) a friend brought an identical Chris Craft to yours. Someone painted the beautiful wood interior. I camped out on the boat for a week removing the paint.

Shorty, it really was a different time. You could actually recognize the cars at Daytona.

No apologies needed here!

I think most of us following your thread enjoy your stories -- and hearing them again is even better!

Thanks Rick. I appreciate that and when I get an eyeroll from the family I'll tell them you said it was OK,.

I did not know that! Let me google...





Ah, with the radiator behind it. Which is a cromulent idea if you, say, are building a Saab in the 1950's in Sweden and summer heat really isn't an issue.


But other than Scandinavia in the winter, eh, maybe not a great idea. Then again, to have waste heat you first must have engine heat, and the smaller the engine and the less the power output...

@Squankum, I think the 2CV and Topolino engines could be cooled effectively with the heater core from a Cadillac of those years.

I too have dreams of owning a boat similar to this. And I have owned many in my lifetime. However, at my age, I now get great enjoyment out of the simplicity and solidarity of my Alcort Sunfish sailboat. Our lake is an easy 20+ minute pleasant drive from my home. Low investment, easy to maintain, and ever ready to go when I am.

Alan, I'm in the "Make friends with someone who owns a boat" crowd these days. I'm happy to fill the tank (or at least contribute a C-note toward it). When we were into boating in New York it was a one mile drive from our house to the New Hamburg Yacht Club where we could launch the boat. I even had a mooring in the river so I could launch on Friday, use the boat all weekend and haul it out Monday for the mile drive home. It was a toss-up in time because it took almost as long to row the club dingy in circles (OK, I paddled) out to the mooring and bring the boat and dingy to the dock.

 

[sawduststeve]

I'm guessing more wheelbase helped, too? (In classes that allowed such things.)

Wheelbase I hear you say

Redirect Notice

A couple of brothers in know started Taz Racing, a drag race team with many various types of cars. Their car of choice Fiat 126’s with 650bhp Chevy v8’s.

Steve

 

[Bob Heine]

Wheelbase I hear you say

Redirect Notice

A couple of brothers in know started Taz Racing, a drag race team with many various types of cars. Their car of choice Fiat 126’s with 650bhp Chevy v8’s.

Steve

Steve, I've owned a few cars that would qualify as "Death Traps" but I never raced them. It scary when one of my cars gets a little sideways but at least all four tires are in contact with the pavement when it happens.

 

[Bob Heine]

When I was a working stiff, our cars were driven daily or almost daily. I always changed the oil every 3,000 miles, which happened about every 6 months. Now that I'm an unemployed old fart, our three cars rarely get driven.

According to the Factory Service Manuals (FSM) and Owners Manuals, I am not changing oil in my cars often enough. My '87 Corvette FSM says change engine oil and filter "Every 3000 mi (5000 km) or 3 mos" and I last changed the oil 77 miles and 3 Years 10 Months 21 Days ago. It looks like brand new oil. Not going to change it yet.

The 2004 PT Cruiser FSM says 2.4L Turbocharged engine says change engine oil and filter every 5,000 miles (8 000 Kilometers) or [6 Months] and I last changed it 1696 Miles and 1 Year 8 Months 15 Days ago. It looks like it's time for a change.

The 2011 Cadillac CTS-V FSM says to change the oil based on the Engine Oil Life System: "This vehicle has a computer system that indicates when to change the engine oil and filter. This is based on engine revolutions and engine temperature, and not on mileage. Based on driving conditions, the mileage at which an oil change is indicated can vary considerably. For the oil life system to work properly, the system must be reset every time the oil is changed." It has never indicated it's time to change the oil so apparently I'm OK with 418 Miles and 9 Months 21 Days. It's not as clear as the oil in the Corvette but it looks like I'm safe not changing it.

 

[kaymccampbell]

The 2004 PT Cruiser FSM says 2.4L Turbocharged engine says change engine oil and filter every 5,000 miles (8 000 Kilometers) or [6 Months] and I last changed it 1696 Mil

It looked like that an hour after you changed it. PTs seem to make dirty looking oil instantly. At least ours does, and has since new.

 

[Bob Heine]

Jasmine went a little nuts yesterday. She went out for a bathroom break and saw a relativeely small iguana. The lizard escaped by jumping into the aluminum downspout and trying to climb up to the gutter and then the roof. Jasmine attacked the elbow and ripped it open. Liane heard the commotion and pulled Jasmine back. I removed the elbow so she wouldn't stick her nose anywhere near the sharp jagged edges. Thinking it was safe, we let Jasmine out again and she made a beeline to the downspout. Once again she tore it apart and I could hear the iguana inside the downspout, scratching like crazy to escape out the top. Obvious next step was to remove the whole downspout. Looks like she has metal shears for teeth.

Without a downspout I expect this corner of the house will become a real mess.

I decided to get a rain chain to hang from the fitting on the gutter to keep the water from trashing the ground in the area.

I found a rain chain for $30 on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C5HQNSV3?tag=atomicindus08-20

The method of attachment looks pretty simple. I can get the mounting piece for $15...

...or I can dig out a stainless 1/4-20 bolt and acorn nut and thread it through a piece of copper tubing with a 1/4" ID. Turns out the bolt I found is the exact length to keep the gutter fitting from deforming.

Managed to get the mount installed and I'll be hanging the chain when it arrives later today.

[EDIT] The chain arrived and it only took a few minutes to install. I did remove five of the cups so they may get used elsewhere or saved for potential damage from Jasmine/iguana/storm or stupidity.