Innehållsförteckning för January 1960 från Hot Rod

One of the oldest names on the American automobile scene is Oldsmobile. This car was quite the thing to own soon after the turn of the century and somebody even got so enthused over an early runabout that they wrote a song called “In My Merry Oldsmobile.” The song is still heard occasionally, mostly as background for Olds TV commercials, and the car is still an important spoke in the Detroit wheel but quite a few changes have taken place over the years. By the time the late ’thirties rolled around and we personally started taking an active interest in automobiles, Oldsmobile had earned a reputation as a good, solid medium-priced car with quality trim and finish. It was certainly not intended to catch the eye of the college crowd…

Everyone knows that ice is for skating, ice-fishing, for cold drinks and, years ago, for ice boxes. But folks in Hudson, Wisconsin, some 30 miles east of Minneapolis, Minnesota, have another use for ice—racing. On the frozen surface of the St. Croix River which flows past Hudson, stock cars gather every Sunday afternoon for some of the most thrilling racing in the country—ice racing. On a one-third mile track covered with sand, the cars skid, slide and spin through their paces at speeds up to 60 mph—fast enough on a dirt track—real speed on ice! Sponsored by the Hudson Boosters Club, the races are held every Sunday afternoon as long as the ice lasts. Weather doesn’t affect the schedule, and races are never cancelled because of sub-zero temperatures or blizzards.…

SANCTIONED DRAG STRIP MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA Photos by Jock Clark SANCTIONED DRAG STRIP YORK, PENNSYLVANIA Photos by Bill Buehrl SANCTIONED DRAG STRIP DOTHAN, ALABAMA Photos by Wade Lowe SANCTIONED DRAG STRIP SYRACUSE, NEW YORK…

Going racing on an unlimited budget must be nice, but going the underdog route has its compensations, too — when you do win, the credit earned isn’t long in coming. That’s why the small bore (plus .040), stock stroke ’51 Chrysler-powered dragster run by Glenn Stokey and Joe Reath has gathered many a laurel in recent months. Starting out with an engine that the well-known “Jazzy” Nelson had discarded after using a clutch to saw off the bell housing, the team of 34-year-old rodders pooled its dry lakes, Bonneville and drags experience to show that there’s no fixed price tag on performance. Quickest elapsed time to date for the combo offers all the proof they need — try for 9.35 the hard way! Long Beach California…

San Rafael, California…

Jack Horsley of Miami, Florida, and son Jack, Jr., decided an excellent father-son pfoject for the summer of ’59 would be constructing a car to win the Sports Eliminator Award (Sports Car Graphic Magazine Trophy) at the fifth annual National Championship Drags to be held over Labor Day weekend in Detroit, Michigan. With the admittedly lenient sports car section of the official rule book in hand, they gathered parts and began the task. The success of the venture is entered in the results of the even — with Jade, Jr., at the controls, the “Consolidated Spl.” took “A’ Sports Class eliminations with a winning speed of 122.78 mph ant was judged Sports Eliminator with an elapsed time of 12.75 seconds. Miami, Florida…

Drag Racing’s i960 Rules Committee was composed of representatives from every section of the United States in an effort to better establish the standardization of class rules and safety regulations. Every practical means has been exerted to outline basic class requirements and safety regulations in a manner that will be easily understood by contestants and spectators. Numerous additions, deletions and revisions have been made to more closely coordinate the classes with ones pre-scribed by other drag organizations, to minimize the need for major construction changes and to correlate class competition in all parts of the country. It should be understood that while NHRA sanctions drag events throughout the nation, competition will vary between localities, hence the basic classes and the recommendations by NHRA that additional classes be added wherever competition…

Six men walked out of the study of Dr. Clifford Nelson, pastor of the Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, St. Paul, Minnesota. They had just completed a lengthy meeting in regard to organizing a teen-age auto club; not just any club, but one which would be an example for the whole city of St. Paul. Their goal was to organize the first city approved teenage auto club with a charter from that city. The group of six men were members of the Gloria Dei Church and the Optimist Club; not all Lutherans, but men of many different faiths as well as a personal interest as “a friend to the boy.” The men became an official governing board, three from the Church and three from the Optimists. The meeting place for…

DETERMINED TO DRAG Dear Sirs: This rod, photo enclosed, is my third and best attempt to date of a fast, safe, and durable bomb. I was about one-third through building at the time of a hunting accident which resulted in the amputation of my leg. After a six-month recuperation period I was, once more, out in our back yard tooling around. My parents and even some of my closest buddies thought that I should give up rodding due to my loss of limb but I fooled them all by making controls for a one-legger. My clutch and brake are at the left of the transmission and I devised a “stump” accelerator which works very well. This allows me to throw my gear changes with my right hand, rather than to…

CHARLESTOWN, RHODE ISLAND SANCTIONED DRAG STRIP Rated one of the best regional championship drag meets of the 1959 season, the Northeast’s “Big Little Go,” held at Rhode Island’s Charlestown Dragway, attracted contestants from Maine to Tennessee and produced class champions from almost every state in that region. Hosted by the Southern New England Timing Association, with cooperation of the New England Hot Rod Council, New England Timing Association and the Nutmeg State Timing Association, the event was considered a tremendous success in spite of the heavy New England “dew” that fell during the mornings of both days. To ensure the timing’s accuracy, Ollie Riley, drag racing’s “Mr. Timer” was on hand to certify top speeds and elapsed times. No complaints were ever aired in that department as the Cbrondek…

Whether it’s for competition, to be “in” with a fad. or just out of sheer, personal preference, the floor shift has become the overwhelming choice of the performance-conscious driver. Twenty years ago the steering column location for the gear selection lever was hailed as an advancement in convenience. Today, roddin’ minded motorists seem to figure that after two decades of time, steering column shifts still lack the “positiveness” that they demand—well then, back to the floor with it! Always alert to public opinion amongst those who buck the tide of mass acceptance, the speed equipment industry has once again leaped into the gap with a variety of D.I.Y. (do-it-your-self) kits that average $35 in price and one hour in installation time to accomplish this now much-desired relocation. Some make use…

Lackawanna, New York…

Modesto, California…

San Gabriel, California…

Detroit, Michigan Piloted by Herman Mozer of Detroit, Michigan, tire entry of the “Ram Chargers” club of that same city copped the “C” Altered Coupe and Sedan top speed during the ’59 “Big Go” with a speed of 109.75 mph. Although a record breaking performance in itself is enough to qualify a car as interesting, the “Sonoramic” entry of this group would earn that term even if it never left the line. Unusual to begin with in the choice of construction basis, a ’49 Plymouth 3-window coupe, the Ram Chargers’ claim to fame takes off from there in a blazing display of ingenuity. From the top of its towering air intake to the tips of its individual funnel exhausts, here’s a rod that didn’t have to say “thanks for…

Around even a well managed dragstrip, almost anything can happen—and usually does now and then. As dragstrip manager for the Dooahditty Dragway, I suppose I was getting complacent since everything had been going so smoothly for a long time. Weekends, the crowds of spectators had been beautifully well-behaved. The entrants in the various heats had been observing all the Dragway rules. None of the yoyo element had been showing up to mar our competitions, and life was romping along in a serene fashion guaranteed to take even an alert manager like me, Sam McSpindle, off his guard. And, then, Koomshaw T. Krinch happened to us. I was diligently dusting off the muralphoto of our strip president which hangs in a place of honor atop the Dooahditty Timing Society’s sturdy observation…

• CAR SHOW SANCTIONS • NEW DRAG NEWSPAPER • SPEED WEEK DRAGS NIGHT DRAGS AT DAYTONA during the big Speed Week activity may be cosponsored by NASCAR and NHRA, according to latest reports. Negotiations have been under way to combine the best efforts of both organizations in the presentation of a better than ever program of drag racing in Florida. Dates are February 8 through 14—seven exciting nights under the lights. ONE THING the organized sport of drag racing has long needed is a good, high quality publication devoted specifically to news coverage of the hundreds of drag events coast-to-coast. Some attempts have been made, but the principles of consistent editorial policy, creditable reporting and good writing have been sadly lacking in most cases. None of the major national magazines…

POLISHING-DEBURRING KIT This new kit is offered exclusively by Webco and includes the odd shapes and sizes of polishing wheels that are necessary when porting competition engines for power and performance. Mandrels are included to assist in replacement of different size wheels. High manufacturing standards claimed to insure precise dimensions, uniform textures. $5.95. Webco, Inc., 218 Main Street, Venice, Calif. NEW LOW-PRICED CART A new low-priced cart has been added to the line manufactured by Fox. All welding is done at the factory so only a crescent wrench and screw driver are needed to assemble this new cart. Called the Thunderbolt, it has been given rugged tests by Fox engineers, the manufacturer states. Fairbanks Morse internal expanding brakes used. $99.50 in kit form. Fox Go-Boy Carts, Inc. 1111 Galena St.,…

Never having been inside a four-cycle internal combustion || engine while it was running, I don’t really feel qualified to say anything about them as if it were the absolute last word. On the other hand. I don’t know anyone, with or without engineering degree, who has inhabited a combustion chamber while it was in use, so as far as practical experience along these lines is concerned we’re all in the same boat. Although that might be considered a handicap when writing an article of this nature, it hasn’t stopped anyone else so I’ll just go ahead and have my say. too. If you ever suffer from insomnia, a sure cure is to try and read what’s currently available in the way of information on cams—sines, cosines, tangents, etc., are…

Glenbrook, Connecticut…

Los Angeles, California…

White, Plains, New York…

Some guys are born speed mechanics. They can take a car that falls in any class at the drag strip, and with a little special engineering, tuning, construction and driving—and usually with a minimum of green stuff—can win trophies week after week against the best in their area. These fellows are few and far between. For every one of them there are a hundred of us “average guys” who have to use every means possible (this side of outright cheating I hope!) to take home two or three trophies a season. It would take a whole book to even begin to list the possible speed secrets that might help us here. But there’s one secret that comes before all the rest—(and it may be the most important of all). That…

In the motorcycle world 74 cubic inches is a handful, a really big mill, and the only brand that offers this many cubes is Harley-Davidson, with their luxury road model of ohv V-twin powerplant. An early exponent of the hemispherical combustion chamber, and very rugged in construction, the big twin is a natural attraction to draggin’ cyclists from “torquesville". Then comes the boring bar, the switch to 80-incher flywheels (from a flathead model now discontinued) for longer stroke, and the full application of hot rod techniques. We’re up to over 80 inches. That’s where Mr. Dragster tapers off, but it’s only the beginning for hungry quarter-milers such as Stan Dishong and Terry Hines of Vallejo, California. Basic engine cases, heads and valve gear are retained in modified form; the same…

“The material you have in your book of Hot Rodding is the most complete and authentic I have seen. Anyone interested in Hot Rodding should have these facts in this great book at their side.” — AK MILLER OVER 200 PAGES OF THE MOST EXCITING HOT RODDING MATERIAL EVER COMPILED IN ONE VOLUME! THE HOT ROD STORY—Learn how the sport of hot rodding actually began. Here is the history of its development, obstacles which blocked its growth. HOT RODDERS TACKLE THE WORLD’S ENGINES—How veteran hot rod enthusiasts get more power. An invaluable checklist of primary facts. THE TRUE FACTS ABOUT HORSEPOWER—in this chapter, learn how the terms torque and horsepower are determined, applied to your car. GETTING MORE HORSEPOWER FROM YOUR ENGINE—Facts on boring & stroking, porting, oversize valves, reground…

SELL—1940 Ford Opera coupe; immaculate shape, undercoated inside and out, soundproofed, carpeted, radio, heater, 471 GMC blown ’56 Buick engine, special Cad transmission for street or drag. $2200. Pete Robinson, 661 Loridans Dr. NE, Atlanta 5, Ga. Phone BL 5-6721. SELL—New grille for ’40 Ford Deluxe (part numbers 01A-8206-D and 01A-8207-D) $18. New right rear fender for ’40 Ford Deluxe $15. Tommy Traylor, 4050 Wynona, Houston 17, Texas. SELL—New Corvette close ratio 3-speed transmission for passenger cars ’55-’57 or Corvette. Doesn’t include floor linkage, will crate. Sacrifice for $85. Wallace Arends, Lamberton, Minn. WANTED—’32-’34 1/2-ton truck, T-Bird transmission, ’58-’59 Lincoln engine need not be complete. Will travel in New England states. Richard Topham, 134 Bellevue Rd., Quincy 71, Mass. SELL—’40 Ford Deluxe 2-door, excellent stock body and chrome. Copper paint,…