MYSTERY MOTOR & Z-11
- Thread starter Blk61409
- Start date
In 1968-69 I raced a 68 Nova with a 327 for Bill McKay Chevrolet in Ft Worth, Texas. It was a successful car setting national records. The dealer decided to lease an empty Chrysler dealership about 3 blocks away and we built race cars for customers and collected others to sponsor. He bought a ZL-1 Camaro, sponsored Shay Nichols with another ZL-1, a 66 427 Chevelle owned by a friend of mine, and a funny car that did not do very well.
We used 1/2 of the facility and leased the other part to Gene Snow with all his funny cars, dragsters and Pro-Stock Mopar.
We bought the ZL-1 from Dick Harrell, one of our guys Grady Bryant had been a racing partner with Dick in New Mexico. I think it was $10,000 equipped with a Fiberglas front end and a blueprinted engine. Ran 10.30's as I recall initially.
We also hired one of Dicks mechanics to wrench on the Camaro. I did all the work on the independent of how the fender was lettered on the Nova, paint guy got carried away.
Nova ran 11.80's
Me putting the carbs on the crossram.
Since that stuff above is not 409, here are a few from another build.
White 61 Biscayne with a Z-11 top
OOPS, JUST RAN OUT OF SPACE FOR PHOTOS HERE, WILL SEND MORE.
We used 1/2 of the facility and leased the other part to Gene Snow with all his funny cars, dragsters and Pro-Stock Mopar.
We bought the ZL-1 from Dick Harrell, one of our guys Grady Bryant had been a racing partner with Dick in New Mexico. I think it was $10,000 equipped with a Fiberglas front end and a blueprinted engine. Ran 10.30's as I recall initially.
We also hired one of Dicks mechanics to wrench on the Camaro. I did all the work on the independent of how the fender was lettered on the Nova, paint guy got carried away.
Nova ran 11.80's
Me putting the carbs on the crossram.
Since that stuff above is not 409, here are a few from another build.
White 61 Biscayne with a Z-11 top
OOPS, JUST RAN OUT OF SPACE FOR PHOTOS HERE, WILL SEND MORE.
Attachments
Man what memories Pat. First trip Green Valley was Sept of 1960 (was in 11th grade) AHRA Nationals. We were running C/G-37 Chevy, then 2 years running B/Roaster and B/Stock. Last year racing was 1966 in AG/Dragster. Got marries in July of 66 and we blew the blown Olds at the nationals and just ran out of $$$$. That was when it was great. Met many of the old time racers. (Big Daddy and Art Malone) Remember Wayne Calvert's 55 Chevy. Too bad about Gene Snow, did not know until it all came out. Saw Sanderson win S/S in the light Blue 62 409. Races in Hobbs NM and saw Harrell's black 62 run many times. Believe Hobbs was the hottest track I have ever been to. Not a tree or a shade with in two miles. Spent many hours at Green Valley, "GOD" that was great back then!! Thanks for the pics and memories Pat.
W Head
59 Impala 409-2,4s
W Head
59 Impala 409-2,4s
Great photo of Dick Harrell and his daughter. One of my friends, Lloyd Barrow bought this car for $1500 from Don Hardy who had been involved with Teal & Therwanger.
After Lloyd raced it a while he sold it to another friend, Gene Smith that took it into the 10.50 et range. He absolutely destroyed the car, pulled the aluminum off gave it to me and scrapped the car.
Here is one of the Bill Thomas' fastback Novas that Fritz Callier ran out of San Antonio. A good friend of mine match raced him a lot, Bill Jarrett with an AFX Plymouth.
My friend with his 426 Hemi.
My Black 61 409 in 64.
The 65 Dodge A990 I could never outrun in finals!!!
SO I JUST BOUGHT IT!!
Me in my 1st 61!!
After Lloyd raced it a while he sold it to another friend, Gene Smith that took it into the 10.50 et range. He absolutely destroyed the car, pulled the aluminum off gave it to me and scrapped the car.
Here is one of the Bill Thomas' fastback Novas that Fritz Callier ran out of San Antonio. A good friend of mine match raced him a lot, Bill Jarrett with an AFX Plymouth.
My friend with his 426 Hemi.
My Black 61 409 in 64.
The 65 Dodge A990 I could never outrun in finals!!!
SO I JUST BOUGHT IT!!
Me in my 1st 61!!
Attachments
Great stuff, Pat! Thanks for sharing!
Very very cool. Love this stuff.
Pat,
Do you know any idea about the history on this 61? Did it come from Dick Harrell? Any idea what became of it?
Do you know any idea about the history on this 61? Did it come from Dick Harrell? Any idea what became of it?
Floyd Horton
Well Known Member
I have a pic of Castor and Bryant after Grady put the car over the fence in Tulsa. Sure messed up a nice race car.
On the white 61, what a story!!!
Remember what W head said about running out of $$$.
This was a car I built, on a run I destroyed the 4:88 rear end, and I mean destroyed. Hit 3rd gear, slicks grabbed, twisted both axles, tore off one bearing support from the positrac, twisted the axle housing and anything else physics could take over.
I decided to build the baddest 409 out there!!
Blue printed an 068 block, .060 over(a couple of sleeves from previous "incidents"). Z-11 heads, Crane cam .606 lift 346 duration, Schieffer aluminum flywheel, Zoom clutch, T-10, 2-AFB's, etc. Would run to 7500 RPM and already had tons of torque. Lightened entire valvetrain(big problem).
I put a 57 Pontiac rearend in with a 4:88 PT, put 10:20 M& H racemasters on, drilled the wheels, put sheet metal screws in the bead of the tires to keep them from spinning, ran 6lbs.
Next I took it out for a shake down run. Thanks to the genius move of using the latest lightweight, tuliped (ford) valves I promptly snapped one off, poked a hole in a piston, water comes in, bent a rod, cracked the block, valve head somehow worked its way through the intake onto the other side and began to dance around there. Made 2 holes in the bottom of the 2 Z-11 heads that I had from Frank Sanders.
In the midst of this I had been drafted and was trying to balance all this carnage and Uncle Sam!!
What a pain in the A_ _!!!
I had to sell the car for pieces to raise cash. I have no idea where it went.
Now, based on what W Head said we both ran out of money!!
I changed jobs, but found a Chevy dealer that wanted me to build a car for him, boy if he had known what had just happened! LOL LOL
The saga of the White Biscayne!!!
PS. At a different Chevrolet dealership I had built a couple of cars for the GM's son and the Parts Mgr's son, 57 265 with 2x4's, yes 57 265. And a 301 for a 56 for the GM's son.
Remember what W head said about running out of $$$.
This was a car I built, on a run I destroyed the 4:88 rear end, and I mean destroyed. Hit 3rd gear, slicks grabbed, twisted both axles, tore off one bearing support from the positrac, twisted the axle housing and anything else physics could take over.
I decided to build the baddest 409 out there!!
Blue printed an 068 block, .060 over(a couple of sleeves from previous "incidents"). Z-11 heads, Crane cam .606 lift 346 duration, Schieffer aluminum flywheel, Zoom clutch, T-10, 2-AFB's, etc. Would run to 7500 RPM and already had tons of torque. Lightened entire valvetrain(big problem).
I put a 57 Pontiac rearend in with a 4:88 PT, put 10:20 M& H racemasters on, drilled the wheels, put sheet metal screws in the bead of the tires to keep them from spinning, ran 6lbs.
Next I took it out for a shake down run. Thanks to the genius move of using the latest lightweight, tuliped (ford) valves I promptly snapped one off, poked a hole in a piston, water comes in, bent a rod, cracked the block, valve head somehow worked its way through the intake onto the other side and began to dance around there. Made 2 holes in the bottom of the 2 Z-11 heads that I had from Frank Sanders.
In the midst of this I had been drafted and was trying to balance all this carnage and Uncle Sam!!
What a pain in the A_ _!!!
I had to sell the car for pieces to raise cash. I have no idea where it went.
Now, based on what W Head said we both ran out of money!!
I changed jobs, but found a Chevy dealer that wanted me to build a car for him, boy if he had known what had just happened! LOL LOL
The saga of the White Biscayne!!!
PS. At a different Chevrolet dealership I had built a couple of cars for the GM's son and the Parts Mgr's son, 57 265 with 2x4's, yes 57 265. And a 301 for a 56 for the GM's son.
Yea............it looked great black........why did you color it Grey?????
Yea............it looked great black........why did you color it Grey?????
I would say........ from experience.......like when Pat spoke about building the 09 for the white 61 and blowing it up.....
I'm having the same problem.
Last edited:
