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Post by west on Jan 1, 2007 14:20:27 GMT -5
Nice team pics of Bay Shore on Memories. Note piece of I-beam hooked to front bumper of the c-rig even in those days.
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Post by unclekevie on Jan 2, 2007 10:20:06 GMT -5
I could be wrong but I would think the I beam was not to keep the front wheels on the ground. I think its purpose was to force the front end down in the brake and to balance out the weight of the men on the rear.
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Post by JUSMIK on Jan 2, 2007 15:57:24 GMT -5
Yea right and they had rubber hockey pucks on the bottom of the chassis to help it stop when it hit the ground..
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Post by unclekevie on Jan 2, 2007 18:15:35 GMT -5
Well Mike I don't really think there is anyone still around from then that we could ask. I do value your opinion as well as the opinion of your father. What purpose do you think they would have put that "ballast" on the nose for? Trying to use educated guesses on why anything was done could prove to be wrong and fruitless. The different opinions could none the less be interesting. Also it can be quite amazing how some of todays theories were in use in the 1930's.
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Post by JUSMIK on Jan 3, 2007 0:37:27 GMT -5
1937 Hudson Terra plane straight 6, 3200cc 80 to 100 hp weighed in at 23 26 hundred pounds , chop cut and rebuild a lot less.Add350 plus weight on rear step rail road rail on bumper to keep front end down on the track I am pretty sure that is what it was used for wheelie bars did not come out that early to be used by any motor sport .
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Post by twabster on Jan 3, 2007 2:53:19 GMT -5
Careful Mike, my idea has not been issued a patent yet. As the first one to post the idea, I oughta have the right to say keep it on the down low. And especially make sure outsider has no wind of this idea. lol
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Post by unclekevie on Jan 3, 2007 10:32:30 GMT -5
I agree with you Mike. Perhaps I didn't phrase it right. The railroad track ballast equalized the weight of the men on the rear step . An interesting fact for all the drill team historical buffs out there. Bay Shore's Hudson C Truck is the same Hudson C truck pictured under What About The C's on page 5, the 8th picture down as run by the West Islip Bar-X-Boys in the late 50's. At that point it was hemi powered. Chrysler came out with the hemi in the early 50's to power its heavy luxury cars and many drill teams took advantage of those "powerful engines".
Now for a history on hemi engines so one can understand how these trucks were powered over the years. The first Chrysler Imperial Sedan and Crown Imperial models were introduced in 1925. The 1926 model Imperial 80 was a high performance six cylinder intended to compete with Packard, Cadilliac, Lincoln and Pierce Arrow. For many years these engines came out of junk yards to power drill team trucks as they were all the big powerful engines used to propel the heavy luxury cars down the highways and byways of America from the 1920's thru the1950's. In 1928 the L80 Imperial with the 112 HP. "Red Head"engine was the most powerful US.production car manufactured. By 1931 the Imperial had a 8 cylinder with 135HP. In the 1930's Chrysler developed a supercharged and turbocharged upside down V 16 aircraft engine with a hemispherical cylinderhead design. It featured 2 spark plugsin the middle of each cylinder between the valves making for a uniform flame during combustion. This technology was put to use in 1951 when Chrysler came out with the 331 ci. FirePower Hemi with 180 HP. The next step for the Hemi was 354 CI. In 1957 came the Torque Flite automatic transmission and the "Hemi" was now 392 CI. and produced 325 horsepower. This engine was the choice of Drag Racers and Drill Teams alike. For 1962 Chrysler developed the 413 Max Wedge engine. It grew into the 426 ci. Max Wedge engine in 1962. In 1963 Chrysler started development on a new engine for Nascar stock cars for the 1964 season. It was based on the 426 wedge block but used the hemi design head and became known as the 426Race Hemi producing incredible record performances on Nascar's Superspeedways. In 1966 came the 426 street Hemi to satisfy Nascar's need for homoglation of a "stock engine". During the 1960's Ford and GM were guick to follow suit with some great engines. I hope this can enlighten some to how the powerplants for drill team trucks evolved over the decades as Detroit developed them. I hope I didn't tire everyone out!!!
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Post by JUSMIK on Jan 3, 2007 10:41:59 GMT -5
great history on the power plant it is even better when you can listen to it and see it on the speed channel on history of nascar .I just figured it would be to much to right down.
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Post by PPS1 on Jan 4, 2007 8:24:17 GMT -5
Actually there is one remaining member from that picture,Edgar Muir, who is the oldest Redskin still living since Frank Helbig recently died at over 100. I saw Edgar last nite as well as other members that raced on the Hudson in later years and they said the weight was added stricly to do just that, add weight. The Hudson was extemely light and weight was added where possible in the front and rear. Paul---Redskins
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Post by unclekevie on Jan 4, 2007 11:34:15 GMT -5
I talked to one of the old time Bar-X-Boys members about the weight bar on the front of the Hudson. In doing so I found out I was wrong in how it was powered. In the late 50's when West Islip got the Hudson from Bay Shore it was powered by a Cadiallac engine. It did not have a blower on it as many did in the late 50's and early 60's. It remained with Cadillac power it's entire life span in West Islip. What became of it is unknown. The 1939 Ford B truck that the Bar-X-Boys ran in the early 60's was Hemi powered. I would think as paulie said the truck was light and needed weight added. Later years the weight may not have been needed as heavier larger engines were installed.
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Post by skinforlife on Jan 4, 2007 20:06:15 GMT -5
Unclekevie cleared up a mystery. I had no idea West Islip got Bay Shore's Hudson. I remember seeing it when I was a kid at their old HQ, but never knew where it went. I believe their '45 Mercury ("Memories", 03/02) went to Flanders. Not sure if it was ever used for racing again. It was replaced by the Ford Econoline ("Memories", 09-04), but from what I understand, that vehicle was top heavy and difficult to control on the track. It's replacement, the "Cyclops", was actually built on the Econoline chasis.
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Post by Dan Laverty on Jan 22, 2007 14:19:07 GMT -5
Imagine having 31 members in uniform at a tournament. Holy Canoli!!!!
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Post by hnic04 on Jan 23, 2007 15:53:49 GMT -5
here's something maybe someone can verifiy... when i restored the westerners 50 "fordillac" i found a 200 lb lead weight on a bar underneath the hosebed in front of the rear step between the framerails... it slid from side to side, and when i asked 2 of the old timers who remember running the thing they said it was to keep a fishtail to a minimum if it happened. The weight would slide to the opposite side the rear was going and sometimes keep it sraight due to the crown on some of the roads they raced on back then...
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Post by Old Fart on Feb 2, 2007 13:08:00 GMT -5
A very nice picture this month: But aren't they missing a few people...??
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Post by Dan Laverty on Feb 5, 2007 12:27:17 GMT -5
yea yea, why wasn't Rollie in that picture?
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