Messages

3901

Trans-Am Camaros / Re: Ideas to share concerning 1:18 '67-'69 GMP Penske Donohue Camaros.

« on: June 30, 2011, 05:13:28 PM »

I just received this 1967 Bryar Trans-Am photo which shows a hint of a bar (by Donohue's shoulder) running between the two uprights of the main hoop of the roll cage. Therefore, the line I indicated in yellow above would seem to be appropriate to the design of the cage.


Photo by Ron Lathrop

3902

Trans-Am Camaros / Re: Original T/A racing photographs, late 60's & early 70's

« on: June 29, 2011, 07:11:16 PM »

Thanks, Tim. Even though blurry that one picture looks like Frank Search's '68 Camaro spinning in front of Dick Hoffman's '67 and Gerry Gregory's '69 at the '69 Riverside Trans-Am.

Here are a couple of photos of Mark Donohue's Camaro at the '67 Marlboro Trans-Am.

3903

Trans-Am Camaros / Re: Ideas to share concerning 1:18 '67-'69 GMP Penske Donohue Camaros.

« on: June 29, 2011, 05:41:38 PM »

This photo of the second '67 Penske Camaro, while not the same car, shows that they did not make the forward bar of the roll cage run straight down to the floor. Note that the lower part of the forward bar goes through the floor and is welded to the subframe underneath. I am not 100% certain this is how the Marlboro car was done. I don't think it was. I think it was attached to the inner rocker panel area. Again, the black interior of the 1st Penske car makes it difficult to tell.


Photo by Craig Fisher

3904

Trans-Am Camaros / Re: Ideas to share concerning 1:18 '67-'69 GMP Penske Donohue Camaros.

« on: June 29, 2011, 05:21:55 PM »

I have reattached your photo with some editting. The legs I have colored green should not be used, although I understand that it doesn't appear to be logical. I will support that with a different photo. The yellow line is a bar that may or may not be there. I suspect it is but don't know that for a fact as it is very hard to see everything in an all-black interior. I still have some other photos to review. What I do know is there is nothing above that yellow line in terms of a cross-brace. The bars that I drew a thin blue line on are lower than this. I posted a couple of other photos in the "Original T/A racing photographs" thread and you can see that the front/top cross bar is so low that it almost gets in the way of the rear view mirror.

3905

Trans-Am Camaros / Re: Trans-Am Press Kits

« on: June 29, 2011, 03:28:26 AM »

Here are a couple of samples from Frank Dihartce of two Camaro press kits in his collection. He's going to try and make some complete copies for us. Thank you, Frank!

3906

Trans-Am Camaros / Re: Original T/A racing photographs, late 60's & early 70's

« on: June 29, 2011, 02:50:01 AM »

I didn't phrase that very well. I don't believe that he did the filming for the entire movie, just the part that was on the track at Riverside.

3907

Trans-Am Camaros / Re: Tracks of the '66-'72 SCCA Trans-Am series

« on: June 28, 2011, 07:58:22 PM »

Crow's Landing  (about 20 miles SSW of Modesto, CA) was the site for the one-time-only "Modesto" Trans-Am on Sept, 10, 1967. It was a 250 mile event held on a Naval Air Station runway and the concrete airstrip was really abrasive on the tires. I'm not sure this event would have happened without Gallo Wine putting up some sponsorship money. With tracks like Watkins Glen and Mt. Tremblant trying to get on the '67 Trans-Am schedule but tracks like Crow's Landing and Green Valley, TX (a drag strip with a return road) being on the schedule instead, it makes you wonder what was going on in the minds of the people in charge of SCCA that year.





Article from 1967 issue of Competition Press & Autoweek
(Courtesy of Ron Lathrop)

3908

Trans-Am Camaros / Trans-Am Press Kits

« on: June 28, 2011, 07:05:04 PM »

Anybody have some old press kits from the '72 and earlier era that they would care to share? Vic Laskorski sent me these two images he saved off ebay of a 1970 Craig Fisher/Todco Racing press kit. He unfortunately didn't win the auction so these are as good as are available so far. If somebody has this press kit (or others), I know we all would appreciate seeing larger images posted.

3909

1968 - Orphans / 8L330898 - L48 engine block

« on: June 28, 2011, 06:08:24 PM »

A friend of mine has a bare engine block out of a '68 SS350 with that VIN on it. MU code. PM me if you own this car.

3910

Trans-Am Camaros / Re: Original T/A racing photographs, late 60's & early 70's

« on: June 28, 2011, 03:49:48 PM »

He says they are clips from a movie called "Ford Flat Out". Maybe this is the one Dick Hoffman did the filming for at Riverside? Here are a few more from the same movie.

3911

Research Topics & Reports / Re: Research help needed, 68 front drum style, finned vs unfinned

« on: June 28, 2011, 03:09:53 PM »

Thanks for the data. Can you let me know if there are any casting numbers on these finned front drums of yours?

3912

Trans-Am Camaros / Re: Original T/A racing photographs, late 60's & early 70's

« on: June 27, 2011, 04:13:18 PM »

Some photos courtesy of Tim Lopata. They are frames captured from a Trans-Am film he has.
These two are of Robert Barg's Z-28 Camaro during the '69 Trans-Am season.

3913

Trans-Am Camaros / Re: Tracks of the '66-'72 SCCA Trans-Am series

« on: June 27, 2011, 05:27:06 AM »

Watkins Glen  is a great track with a lot of wonderful history. Besides being the home to the U.S Formula 1 Grand Prix
for a number of years it also hosted the Trans-Am cars beginning in 1968. They had tried to get an official Trans-Am
race for the '67 season but it didn't get officially sanctioned by the SCCA so they ran their own "Trans-Am type" event
which did not count toward the official Trans-Am championship. Nowadays, a research center/racing archive  has been
established in Watkins Glen that is a great resource for the racing historian.

3914

Trans-Am Camaros / Re: "Inside the Cars of the Trans-Am" and other articles

« on: June 26, 2011, 10:39:03 PM »

Here's a small story on Ron Grable's '67 Dodge Dart. In '67, it was not a common thing for cars to
have a full roll cage and one where the seat was connected to the cage. Ron was ahead of the curve
in that regard. He was not far enough ahead to incorporate a fuel cell, however. Ron and Bob Tullius
were the only two in the nation making a serious try with Chrysler products in '67. Chrysler pulled out
of direct corporate involvement in Trans-Am after '66 and did not return until the '70 season.


1967 Modesto Trans-Am program

3915

Trans-Am Camaros / Re: Tracks of the '66-'72 SCCA Trans-Am series

« on: June 26, 2011, 10:12:38 PM »

Lime Rock Park  in Lime Rock, Connecticut is another of the shorter tracks on the Trans-Am circuit back then. This was
considered the home track for driver Sam Posey and he lived nearby in Sharon, CT. I believe he still does. Skip Barber
was another Lime Rock local. Skip raced a red Z-28 Camaro in '68.

The track runs clockwise in the aerial photo below.