Fastest Run By A Quincy Flathead 6 cylinder?

[Master Oil Racing Team]

OK Dean...here's the story. It was 1973. Bill Rucker, Sr. won both heats. Your Dad was very close on his heels which got him second place overall. He got behind Dan Kirts in the second heat and couldn't get around. I can't imagine that......not being able to get around Dan Kirts.. The article didn't say how they finished in their other respective heats, but they both had the same number of points. Probably swapping third place finishes. Not only did they have the same number of points, but they had identical overall times. It fell to who had the fastest heat, and that was your Dad in the first heat, so he got second and Dan third.

[David_L6]

Not only did they have the same number of points, but they had identical overall times. It fell to who had the fastest heat...

Now that had to have been a heck of a boat race to see!

[deanwilson]

Very cool to know, thanks Wayne!
I also was not there that year...was at camp or some such thing.

I saw those kind of races all summer though and there was usually 2-3 Kirts on 1100H, including Mel, probably the toughest.

[Joe J]

Dean:

For a 50 year old engine, it is still a good ride, even if I don't get to hold onto the throttle.

Joe

The last Stevens motor I saw race was probably 5+ years ago on Paul Fuschlin 1100R, still hauled the mail.

[Karen Cadle]

What Wayne mentioned in his post about the awesome sound of a Looper 6 is what I believe to be one of the main reasons for the "mystique" that surrounds this engine. I remember going to DePue in the late 60's and AT LEAST 5 or more miles away, probably 10, you could hear that "wail" when one was running. There has never been anything like that sound, before or since.

I never ran F Hydro, but I can only imagine what it must have been like to being overtaken by one of those monsters. If by luck you got out front of one on the start, you knew they were probably going to pull up on your rear on one straight- a -way or another, and to hear that sound coming up behind you must have been something. Probably best described as "BE AFRAID, BE VERY AFRAID".

I sure hope somebody finally gets that recording of one on BRF. The site will never be completely perfect till that happens.

Bill -- not sure if we know each other, but likely our paths have likely crossed, as Gene East would attest to.

Re: An open stack merc 6 banger... I can not tell you how many times that is how I found my way to the race course at DePue as I drove from Macomb. For more than "a couple of years" I pulled V-7 to DePue behind a green Pontiac Station Wagon; prior to that I was usually sleeping in the back of the blue Chrysler "box" station wagon.

From 1960 "something", until 1975 I witness many Ross Gibson/Bill Collins "blow ups"... due to a "too hot" fuel mixture... but Gene East, Frank Volker, Jack Kugler, Tim Chance, Sam Hemp will say "it sure enough is so"

Like everyone else in this "thread" I just want to hear an open stack 6 banger merc one more time...

Gentlemen... you all bring something to this "table"... now, find the enging and let's "start the engine", please.

sis

~sis

[John (Taylor) Gabrowski]

Everything said about the Flathead 6 and just how impressive it looks and there is no sound like it is expressing the true nature of it racing. In their heydays the class F Flathead 4s and 6s dueling and sounds burned into onlookers memories.

[Karen Cadle]

Everything said about the Flathead 6 and just how impressive it looks and there is no sound like it is expressing the true nature of it racing. In their heydays the class F Flathead 4s and 6s dueling and sounds burned into onlookers memories.

John, this is one of my favorites.

[John (Taylor) Gabrowski]

Back in the earlier 1960s and then the later 1960s that kind of class F Alky cabover hydro saw both the Quincy padded block 6 cylinder Alky Deflector engines and then later you would see Flathead 4s and 6s on them by the mid and later 1960s. From a new racer, me with his stock racing Merc KG9 and Ogier C-D stock hydro those Alky monsters were pretty overwhelming.

Karen is totally right that BRF needs a video and sound entry to make the BRF section on these more complete and awesome!

Almost every Quincy Flathead or Quincy-Merc padded block deflector I have restored has been fired up, tuned and in some cases run the once on Wayne Walgrave's class F 1971 Chaparral I have here but in the excitement no one even thought to have a video/sound camera!

[Mark75H]

Karen is totally right that BRF needs a video and sound entry to make the BRF section on these more complete and awesome!

Hosting on youtube and linking on BRF's forum is the way to go. Video files are beyond the size suitable for hosting on a discussion board.

[J-Dub]

Here is a project Dad and I are doing with our friend Ken. The plan is put on the back of the DeSilva I bought from Howard Anderson where this engine once resided. Take it to a FEW races, make some noise and TRY not to break it.
As I returned home today from Ken’s shop while picking up the elbows, horns, ignition, and other parts, my buddy Corey was at my house. After Corey nearly crapped his pants after seeing his first Looper, he was obviously impressed.
Yesterday, to make things simpler, I machined an adapter to use the tower Howard had used for his Konigs and 500 Yamato to fit the Mark 75/78/6-Looper so now we can run all these engines on the same tower and units.
Here is where it gets interesting… Corey now has Howards Capsule Hydro with the identical tower…
Have we done the math???

J-Dub