Someone always talks about what we did in the past when working on our cars. I thought it might be amusing to share some-

We use to take the spring arm off the old set of points and add it to a new set with the thought it would allow us more revs without point float. Never proved it worked but you had to watch the gap because the wear block took the abuse.

What did you try?

Ol'ford nutCentral Iowa

56 Vic w/292 & 4 spd.

Hi, yes great topic! also used to loosen pointspring contact nut and increase spring tension by  pulling slotted spring further along to increase tension then locking up nut, reduced point bounce but was hard on rubbing block, Ah! those were the days !! but taught you all about variables and widened your mechanical skills. 

While talking about old tricks but on 56 customline 3 speed transmission, i was probably 19 and would go through a gear box pretty regularly, youthfull destruction! some would jump 2nd gear or top or rip the teeth off 1st gear and i remember armed only with a jack and 1 stand, pulling trans in gravelly driveway, dismantling it on piece of cardboard and replacing bits and adding 2 selector hub detent springs, "the wire like circlips" to selector 2/3 selector hub to increase detent pressure, reassemble it all, take off up the street, give it heaps and if something else wasnt right, go straight back to oil puddle in driveway and do it again, i could pull that trans in no time eventually! now it take me twice as long just to change the oil!. Ah memories, although i cant remember what i did yesterday. regards bill.

  AussieBill            YYYY    Forever Y Block     YYYY

 Down Under, Australia

I remember

-Gary Burnette-

Had a switch tied into the alternator that I activated just as I got into the staging lanes.

Killed the alternator drag when going down the 1/4.

Not sure if it really worked but "Da Grump" did it so it was good enough for me.

Oldmics

If we are talking about the 1/4 miles marked on secluded roads, I did all sorts of silly things that may or may not have helped. Permanent changes were 4.27 rears from a station wagon with a T86 and Hurst mystery shifter, exhaust cutouts, .060 over with steel head gaskets, on the high end of the spectrum for rod and main clearance and shims under my valve springs and 14" tires. If it was a rather cool night and I was headed for a drive in restaurant where I knew I would probably be challenged, I would take my fan completely off and pull the field wire off the regulator. I would put about 60 psi in the front tires and about 26 in the rear and then throw some moth balls in the gas tank. My biggest problem was keeping input shafts, cluster gears and low/reverse sliding gears in my transmission. I never figured out an easy way to replace an O/D transmission with a Hurst shifter on it. But that problem went away after I got married.

Kenneth

Fredricksburg, Texas

There was talk around here about a '57, in Kentucky I think, that was hard to beat on the street.  Seems he always wanted to race with the top down on his retractable.  All that steel in the trunk sure did wonders for traction with bias street tires.  Myself, if I ever did any street racing, always tried to arrange for the guy who counted down 1,2,3 to ride in the other car.  Once we were rolling, the extra weight in the other car was a help to me.

John - "The Hoosier Hurricane"

I remember going out to our quarter mile marked off on the alternate hiway 89. Back then very little traffic. I would go out with a little over a quarter tank of 105 octane and uncap when I got there then "power time" it. Some guys would put mothballs in their gas and shoot some starting fluid in the tank.

Bud in Northern Arizona on route 66 in Winslow (standin' on the corner)

If you're American, buy American

631/2 Galaxie 500XL 406   55 T-Bird

My day was only 25 - 30 years ago but we did the moth ball thing too. Everyone was cutting out "Cats" and taking off air pumps, I just loved it when guys would turn the air cleaner lid over to get that throaty sound.  (I think I did it to Moms Buick ) One of the funniest things I saw out at 320 (the marked off country road) was a guy that had a pretty hot Monza but could never get it to hook up so he got "Duke", a very large individual, to ride in the back for traction.   I thought you wanted the car to be lighter.  Ha! Maybe not "Old time speed tricks" but we thought they were. High school, what fun.

   God Bless.   Tim                           http://yblockguy.com/

350ci Y-Block FED "Elwood", 301ci Y-Block Unibody LSR "Jake", 312ci Y-Block '58 F-100, 338ci Y-Block powered Model A Tudor

tim@yblockguy.com  Visalia, California    Just west of the Sequoias

Guys, great stories and very funny! i can relate to the fun we had growing up at those times, but laughed aloud when crenwelge worked out how to stop blowing gearboxes; Getting married!!! I,m still chuckling. but cant work out how the moths got into your gastanks????????????????? 

  AussieBill            YYYY    Forever Y Block     YYYY

 Down Under, Australia

Some friends of mine from St. Louis went to a little used highway, painted "Start", "Finish", and lines a quarter mile apart.  The cops kept watching there while the guys raced somewhere else.

John - "The Hoosier Hurricane"