AHRA Drag Racing History Channel - Gassers!
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- čas přidán 12. 09. 2024
- Tony and I discuss the evolution and differences of everyones favorite Coupe and Sedan Race Cars... The Gasser! I'm sure we missed something or got some things incorrect, so please leave some comments with anything you feel missed the mark. We read them all!
My uncle trained as a machinist in the Navy in the 1960s. After his service, he got a job as a tool maker at a beryllium processing plant and, several years later, while still working at the plant, opened his own machine shop/speed parts store. He would get off work at the plant at 7am, sleep for a few hours, then go to work in his shop around noon. He catered mostly to circle track racers but many local drag racers also had him do their machine work. I still have a couple of the Isky Cams t-shirts with Ed dressed as a gangster with a cigar and "The Camfather" printed on the front and the name/contact info of my uncles shop on the back. The shop, which he closed in the late 80s, is where I learned to build engines. He retired from the beryllium plant in about 2005 or so.
Great video I own a 1962 Mercury Comet A/G Gasser. Thanks for the history on the gassers. love the video
Jack Kulp was an early gasser standout from the Pendel-Bristol area of Pennsylvania. Huge contributions in the 1950s and 1960s to both the gassers and dragsters. Became a mentor of mine along with Pete Shadinger, known for his D/Dragsters and inline-6 and an inline-8 (Buick) dragsters.
At 11:45 UT is talking about Tri-Five gassers without straight axles. I recently bought period-correct modified parts that lift 6 inches. I know it will look sharp when I add them to my 57 Two Ten.
I love the SEGA mindset! Respect, honor, and stay true to the era. Especially dig the mandatory H pattern shifting. I wish nostalgia dragster and funny car followed that criteria..
Don't forget the Morris Minor. I drag raced one of those for 10 years after buying it from my aunt who raced it for a lot longer.
Good information about gassers
I race a gasser. 41 Ford Tudor sedan, Squirrel B/G
I race with 5
different groups
across the country
I tried to make
the car with the 63 rules no trick suspension
Gassers WERE aloud to run automatic transmission
Most didn't back then because they weren't any good for strength
Wee Willie ran a hydro stick transmission in the late 50s through the 60s. It still has it today
The added pictures were an awesome touch! It's great being able to see what you're talking about. These videos are some of the first time I've heard of some of these specific types and configurations of car.
Ed iskedarian 100 yrs young congratulations.
Very interesting and informative! Oh, the sound is SO much better ;)
I'm already looking forward to the next episode of the series
Great stuff guys, Gassers forever. I was lucky enough to have grown up during the golden age (born in 1960) and remember all of it. Had a poster of "Pure Hell" on my wall. My older brother bought a Roadrunner in 68 when they came out (383 4spd) and took it home and immediately put on headers and a Holley and started taking it to CT. Dragway, Englishtown, and any track within a 300 mile radius, and of course street racing. (there is a statute of limitation on that one right? lol) Oh those were the days.
The Malco Willy's is sitting at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn Michigan. That car changed drag racing.
I'm definitely not clicking away from talk of gasser cars! as a youngster I was in love with gassers, especially the early round nosed Falcons. I had traded away the body of Jimmy Addison's Silver Bullet (Ugh) that was ran in the Metro Detroit area for an unfinished 1963 Falcon gasser (supposedly a B/G coupe) with a firewall that was at the end of the dashboard! Straight axle, tilt front fiberglass front end, 9" Ford in the rear but no roll cage or sub frame connectors and Zero brakes! When Logghe Stamping Company told me they would not fix the front axle for disc brakes because A) it was going to be a street car & B) I had intended on using a BB Ford (390) I sold the car.... I miss both of those cars!
i built dozens of model kits when i was a kid. i loved the nose-up gassers - anglia, thames, henry j and willys. love the photos. nice memories - takes me back to simpler times. thanks, guys, for this channel.
The gasser of today is a caricature of the idea of the gassers of yesteryear. Not a bad thing. People want to hang on to that age of larger then life characters that were the best of drag racing.
I hate the squat truck thing because now if I was to build a “gasser” style truck out of something like an S10 or a OBS Chevy everyone immediately thinks “oh you like that squat shit”… no this is a gasser.. :(
MP Modified Production, followed by Gs Gas Classes. MP has to stay within the brand. Gs were allowed cross MFG parts substitution, so Hemi in a Ford is OK.
B&M Hydrostick was a real runner in Gs classes. Try to find one now ...
Disagree on weight lighter for cross member and IFS. Do away with full cross member and IFS was at least 200# advantage, and it was off the front end. It also allowed full access to the oil pan and bottom end service w/o pulling the engine.
On the Era-Perfect vs traditionel is also best shown in the part, that a Modern Gasser is to radical to be an Era perfect A/Gas.
And an era perfect D/Gas, would be today be a street car or a Hot Daily Driver.
But also the early GAS car, could on the day, be bumped to altered and get there a.S.S handed to them, because the had, according to a tech guy, have no carpet, and came up against an Altered, with no interior and major set back. So there was same hardcore competition between E/Gas, as there was between A/Gas, because it made you more equal.
The 55 Chevy for instance, also made people struggle to stay on the same class, because, if there was a Chevy 409 under there hood, but a very Hot 301 came in, you either had to get beaten or put 8 batteries in the trunk, to become heavy enough to go a class down, and beat someone else.
And next week show up with a lighter car, to go head to head.
Good Stuff! I can't wait for the Heads Up Super Stock and how it was the beginning of ProStock!
Thank you for including a picture of Jack Merkel's Willys@ 19:17. I was introduced to Mr. Merkel at Englishtown in the pits. My friends were all running 67-70 Mustangs in different classes. A couple of the guys had engines built by him. He was well known as having won a national event in gas. Mr. Merkel took the time to speak to 14 year-old me, for a few minutes, something he didn't have to do. Very cool. Thanks for the great video and bringing back a great memory!
Never enough gassers.
AA fuel altereds please! Thanks Dallas and U.T.
It just started.. and I'm already Excited and Informed🤔...
Great times are here again
@Ø
I love this new channel! Keep up the fantastic work everyone. 🏁🔥🤘
Tony, I hope someday to meet you. I am from the same school that you're from... Tony ROCKS!
Awesome stuff guys! I dig the channel brings back lots of memories thanks!!
Funny the opel gt is mentioned. My friend has the last build original frank and linda Mazi opel. We have really had a hard time finding a group to race with because no one wants an opel running with them. So far it's exhibition or brackets. If anyone has ideas we are out of michigan.
Will it fit in the AHRA Nostalgia Modified Class? Have you check those rules? We are having an event Sept 17&18 for that class.
@@AmericanHotRodAssociation thanks for the info, I was just talking to Tom about where we could fit in. Looking forward to more on this channel, I have a 67 chevelle that ran in michigan that ran SS and in 68 as a pro stock, in I believe UHRA as the Hustler by Jim McNamara. My brother, cousin and I ran a D/gas 55 . Can't wait for some early pro stock and super stock history. Opel ran as an supercharged altered. Currently no blower. What is the web site for more info? Thanks
Enjoying the AHRA Channel 👍
Seen Ohio George’s willys in the henry ford museum. I believe the space kaddet car is amc powered
SEGA sounds like a cool group.
No intro music no graphics when the show comes on i mean if want people to watch it has to be a lil bit more exciting!!! I would it should remind me of a ESPN type of car show!!!
HA! ......I KNEW you would bring up the GASSER T-SHIRTS!!! I'm literally the same age as you Tony, and during grade school, if ya didn't have at least one T-shirt of a cartoon gasser with some crazy looking freak or monster driving, sticking up through the roof, you were a wimp, LOL!!! As kids, we used to drool over those damned cartoon gasser shirts, LOL. Our parents would get SO aggravated, because those were the only shirts we wanted to wear to school.
Excellent video. Thanks for doing this.
I got my shirt, stickers, and CD for my 3 year membership, in the mail. My wife and I have a daughter coming in November, and she's gonna grow up an AHRA kid. I want to show her a life, like I had in the 80s and 90s, where technology did not dictate a good time. Thank you for saving this organization. I am proud to be a member, as I am TOTALLY against being an NHRA member. #AHRA4LIFE
Thanks for your support! We are doing this for racers like you and your little one that want to have an affordable place to race in 20 years.
Speaking of "the camshaft wars", does anyone remember the Wolverine Blue Racer cams that were on the market years ago? I don't have any personal experience with them but, I know many people that used them back then. Like anything else, it seems like half of them swore by them and the other half swore AT them.
I guess you could call the “Carolina lean” trucks of today the modern gassers….mainly because their owners are loaded with gasses.
Great job guys! Love the content
Love those gassers … enjoyed watching them in the 70’s
Love the Gasser history. I think the reason they are still popular in the nostagia racing had a lot to do with the cartoons and the Rat Fink model cars by Ed Roth and others that caught our imagination as kids. Anybody I knew that started hot rodding when they could drive had stacks of CarToon magazines and a model car or three...
Great stuff! Love the history!
I dont think there was a strong date that gassers began. What organization actually was the first to have the gasser class?
Great vid good info I think it was only nhra but they had a rule besides the 24 in rule that was a frame or body could not be raised for weight transfer AHRA just said the motor could not be raised.
The Mallicoats bros Willys ran a turbocharged SBC they did run a turbocharged hemi in a 2nd gen barracuda gasser.
10% setback stock body chop-tops were allowed
Those gasser guys were daring and great video uncle tony . Ole George Montgomery and his son Greg still build engines here in huber heights Ohio . Before he sold the worlds wildest willies and malco gasser to museums george would tell stories about his racing and building his car just like any other gearhead sometimes ide ask a question that wouldnt get awnsered guess that stuff was secret.
I like this very informative
Thanks!
Love the content but I wish tony wouldn't try to steal the show so much and let the man talk without always cutting him off.
He does that to stay on point, Dallas tends to drift into other subjects a lot. I think the two work very well together.
I like rat rods , hot rods , muscle , nitro, gassers, street freaks ect 😎🤘🏁
Wont get tired of talkin Gassers.
An early model Chrysler Hemi ahh yes.
Hells yeah!
Good Dad!
Gasser begot A/FX begot F/C...😏