Best Modified racer?

Bob Rice · 06-27-2007, 11:57 AM

Okay, we?ve been through the best Super Stock and Junior Stock racers. How about the best Modified racer? Of course my vote goes to Garley Daniels and his C/SM Chevy II. I?ll have to add Larry Kopp and Cotton Perry also. Let the fun begin.
Bob Rice

Ed Carpenter · 06-27-2007, 12:15 PM

I saw Paul Mercure in Michigan in the late 70's early 80's when I was a kid and he was awesome in that Checkmate Camaro. I think he ran D/MP. He was outrunning everybody.

Ed Carpenter

66 Chevy II

SS/H

Todd Bailey · 06-27-2007, 01:26 PM

Oh boy.....This should be a fun one!!!

Where to start.....Dave Hutchens could rank up there with the roadster and the Opel. After Tony Christian acquired the ex-Reher-Morrison Vette, he went on a tear on the National event trail with six wins? David Nickens can't be overlooked. Billy Mansell would have probably have had a great career if he had not left us unexpectively due to his tragic highway accident. Two National event wins in a short time while his future was looking very bright.

Ed Wright · 06-27-2007, 01:39 PM

How far back do you want to go? Carroll Caudle, Raymond Martin, Bobby Cross in David & Buddy's Maverick ("The Real Boss 302!"), Lee Shepard in his ChevyII wagon, The WOP Shop cars, later Mike Edward's B/SM Maverick (made my life miserable) ....jk

Bob Don · 06-27-2007, 02:24 PM

How about Arlen Fadely (B/SM Maverick) or Bruce Sizemore (I/G Pinto)? Northeast guys would remember Brian Gillis (B/G Nova) and Bobby Spirito ("Daddy's Dollar" F/G Camaro).

Mark Yacavone · 06-27-2007, 03:30 PM

Ralph Ridgeway . Godfather of the SBC tunnel ram

bill dedman · 07-01-2007, 12:04 AM

I think my choice might pre-date "Modified Eliminator." But, it was a Gasser, nonetheless, and would have run "Modified" at a later date.

Pittman/Edwards's B/GS and C/GS '41 Willys coupe was the car that showed Stone/Woods/Cook how to "do it."

They were among the first to make a supercharger work in a "door car" and surely one of the first teams to use an automatic transmission exclusively, in a blown car with serious horsepower.

Their Willys always had Oldsmobile power, and a Dual-Range '52 Olds HydraMatic transmission. The held the record in B/GS more often than not, and when they ran B, (which was most of the time) they were seldom outrun... and ran perilously close to the times being turned in "A", which carred two pounds less per cubic inch.

They were innovators and among the first to figure out that for a hydro car to e.t. like it should, it was critical not to have ~any~ wheelspin.

They once had a '41 Willys coupe that weighed 3,600 pounds....

ZERO wheelspin, with that kind of ballast, for sure.

Their cars were featured in the Engle Cam ads and the B & M Hydro ads so much that it got boring.... except that they were just so dominant in their class, you wondered who was going to be able to knock them off.

Stone/Woods/Cook took Pittman/Edwards "recipe" (Hilborn-injected 6:71 on top of a late model Olds, hooked to a hydro, in a Willys coupe) and ran amuck in A/GS for several years with only Ohio George Montgomery and Big John Mazmanian giving them much trouble.

Ultimately, Stone/Woods/Cook garnered all the publicity in the Drag News "Gasser Wars" ads, but personally, I don't think any of that would have happened if not for the trail-blazing efforts of Pittman/Edwards in the years before.

They just about "invented" Blown Gassers.... fast ones, anyway...

That all took place between 1958 and 1966, BTW.

Bill, in Conway, AR

76 RACER · 07-01-2007, 01:02 AM

Come on,if you want to talk GASSERS you have to put the little fat guy on top from Dayton,Ohio. Got to hang out there before I was even a teenager. A neighbor worked for George a few nites outta the week. The Willys with a Cadillac engine was before my days. Remember it well with the sbc and was at Kil-Kare the day he tested with the Ford SOHC engine. I remember the older guys there joking with him saying he needed to put the sbc back in it because the SOHC didnt have enough power to spin the tires. Thats why he was standing it on the bumper every pass.

bill dedman · 07-01-2007, 11:20 AM

You're right about Ohio GEORGE (Montgomery.) He showed Stone/Woods/Cook the way home nearly every time they got together.

But, the Pittman/Edwards B and sometimes C car was racing nearly every week (mostly at San Fernando and San Gabriel, and getting lots of coverage in Drag News, plus they raced the year 'round, something you just can't do in Ohio...

No doubt about it, Ohio George was a HUGE influence because of his unprecedented success and innovative ways. His cars were ALWAYS really, really fast (I remember the earlier Cadillac-powered car and its "Moon disks.")

I think that Pittman/Edwards were slightly ahead of him, chronoligically, but he (Ohio George) was VERY successful, having turned back the vaunted S/W/C car in most of their encounters, and with a small-block Chevy, to boot...

Maybe it was because Drag News was a West Coast (L-A area) publication, but Pittman/Edwards were in there constantly, with class winner results from San Gabe, San Fernando, Long Beach, and the many other L-A area drag strips in the period around 1960. They seemed to race every week, somwhere, and almost always won, so had many imitators. Such was their influence.

Thanks for bringing up Geroge Montgomery, though, His win/loss record is probably about the most formidable in Gasser history; he didn't get beat much; that's for sure!

The great bulk of the Supercharged Gassers from that era ran 4-speed Hydros, and I think Pittman/Edwards, and Ohio George (who both ran Dual-Range Hydramatics) wew probably responsible for a lot of those cars using the hydro drivetrain. There were a few exceptions, but the outrageous torque production in these blown cars would literally eat up a B/W T-10, and there weren't a lot of options, 'til the T-Flites and Turbo 400s came into vogue, later.

Before those cars (the supercharged gassers) showed that automatics could work in a high performace environment, nobody took them seriously. B & M, and some others like them (Vitar, Bee Line, and a place in Chicago, whose name escapes me right now) changed all that. And, it changed the sport.

76 RACER · 07-01-2007, 03:28 PM

If my memory is correct George had the very first spool in 1959. Look at the scoops the A/FD are running. The tall partially round narrow ones. George ran that style of scoop in the 60's. George also built all of his cars.

06-27-2007, 11:57 AM	#1
Bob Rice Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: New Bern, NC Posts: 617 Likes: 0 Liked 1 Time in 1 Post	Best Modified racer? Okay, we?ve been through the best Super Stock and Junior Stock racers. How about the best Modified racer? Of course my vote goes to Garley Daniels and his C/SM Chevy II. I?ll have to add Larry Kopp and Cotton Perry also. Let the fun begin. Bob Rice

06-27-2007, 02:24 PM	#5
Bob Don VIP Member Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Greater Boston Posts: 1,495 Likes: 1,114 Liked 900 Times in 191 Posts	How about Arlen Fadely (B/SM Maverick) or Bruce Sizemore (I/G Pinto)? Northeast guys would remember Brian Gillis (B/G Nova) and Bobby Spirito ("Daddy's Dollar" F/G Camaro). Last edited by Bob Don; 06-27-2007 at 03:55 PM.

06-27-2007, 03:30 PM	#6
Mark Yacavone Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Miles From Nowhere Posts: 7,809 Likes: 2,900 Liked 5,113 Times in 1,948 Posts	Ralph Ridgeway . Godfather of the SBC tunnel ram __________________ "We are lucky we don't get as much Government as we pay for." Will Rogers

07-01-2007, 12:04 AM	#7
bill dedman VIP Member Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Conway, AR Posts: 1,739 Likes: 0 Liked 6 Times in 4 Posts	Re: Best Modified racer? I think my choice might pre-date "Modified Eliminator." But, it was a Gasser, nonetheless, and would have run "Modified" at a later date. Pittman/Edwards's B/GS and C/GS '41 Willys coupe was the car that showed Stone/Woods/Cook how to "do it." They were among the first to make a supercharger work in a "door car" and surely one of the first teams to use an automatic transmission exclusively, in a blown car with serious horsepower. Their Willys always had Oldsmobile power, and a Dual-Range '52 Olds HydraMatic transmission. The held the record in B/GS more often than not, and when they ran B, (which was most of the time) they were seldom outrun... and ran perilously close to the times being turned in "A", which carred two pounds less per cubic inch. They were innovators and among the first to figure out that for a hydro car to e.t. like it should, it was critical not to have ~any~ wheelspin. They once had a '41 Willys coupe that weighed 3,600 pounds.... ZERO wheelspin, with that kind of ballast, for sure. Their cars were featured in the Engle Cam ads and the B & M Hydro ads so much that it got boring.... except that they were just so dominant in their class, you wondered who was going to be able to knock them off. Stone/Woods/Cook took Pittman/Edwards "recipe" (Hilborn-injected 6:71 on top of a late model Olds, hooked to a hydro, in a Willys coupe) and ran amuck in A/GS for several years with only Ohio George Montgomery and Big John Mazmanian giving them much trouble. Ultimately, Stone/Woods/Cook garnered all the publicity in the Drag News "Gasser Wars" ads, but personally, I don't think any of that would have happened if not for the trail-blazing efforts of Pittman/Edwards in the years before. They just about "invented" Blown Gassers.... fast ones, anyway... That all took place between 1958 and 1966, BTW. Bill, in Conway, AR __________________ Bill Last edited by bill dedman; 07-01-2007 at 12:09 AM.

07-01-2007, 01:02 AM	#8
76 RACER Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 247 Likes: 0 Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Best Modified racer? Come on,if you want to talk GASSERS you have to put the little fat guy on top from Dayton,Ohio. Got to hang out there before I was even a teenager. A neighbor worked for George a few nites outta the week. The Willys with a Cadillac engine was before my days. Remember it well with the sbc and was at Kil-Kare the day he tested with the Ford SOHC engine. I remember the older guys there joking with him saying he needed to put the sbc back in it because the SOHC didnt have enough power to spin the tires. Thats why he was standing it on the bumper every pass.

06-27-2007, 12:15 PM	#2
Ed Carpenter Live Reporter Join Date: May 2006 Location: Dripping Springs, Tx Posts: 2,709 Likes: 186 Liked 520 Times in 132 Posts	I saw Paul Mercure in Michigan in the late 70's early 80's when I was a kid and he was awesome in that Checkmate Camaro. I think he ran D/MP. He was outrunning everybody. Ed Carpenter 66 Chevy II SS/H

06-27-2007, 01:26 PM	#3
Todd Bailey Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Houston Posts: 311 Likes: 29 Liked 31 Times in 16 Posts	Oh boy.....This should be a fun one!!! Where to start.....Dave Hutchens could rank up there with the roadster and the Opel. After Tony Christian acquired the ex-Reher-Morrison Vette, he went on a tear on the National event trail with six wins? David Nickens can't be overlooked. Billy Mansell would have probably have had a great career if he had not left us unexpectively due to his tragic highway accident. Two National event wins in a short time while his future was looking very bright.

06-27-2007, 01:39 PM	#4
Ed Wright Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Sand Springs, OK Posts: 8,132 Likes: 896 Liked 390 Times in 170 Posts	How far back do you want to go? Carroll Caudle, Raymond Martin, Bobby Cross in David & Buddy's Maverick ("The Real Boss 302!"), Lee Shepard in his ChevyII wagon, The WOP Shop cars, later Mike Edward's B/SM Maverick (made my life miserable) ....jk

07-01-2007, 11:20 AM	#9
bill dedman VIP Member Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Conway, AR Posts: 1,739 Likes: 0 Liked 6 Times in 4 Posts	Re: Best Modified racer? You're right about Ohio GEORGE (Montgomery.) He showed Stone/Woods/Cook the way home nearly every time they got together. But, the Pittman/Edwards B and sometimes C car was racing nearly every week (mostly at San Fernando and San Gabriel, and getting lots of coverage in Drag News, plus they raced the year 'round, something you just can't do in Ohio... No doubt about it, Ohio George was a HUGE influence because of his unprecedented success and innovative ways. His cars were ALWAYS really, really fast (I remember the earlier Cadillac-powered car and its "Moon disks.") I think that Pittman/Edwards were slightly ahead of him, chronoligically, but he (Ohio George) was VERY successful, having turned back the vaunted S/W/C car in most of their encounters, and with a small-block Chevy, to boot... Maybe it was because Drag News was a West Coast (L-A area) publication, but Pittman/Edwards were in there constantly, with class winner results from San Gabe, San Fernando, Long Beach, and the many other L-A area drag strips in the period around 1960. They seemed to race every week, somwhere, and almost always won, so had many imitators. Such was their influence. Thanks for bringing up Geroge Montgomery, though, His win/loss record is probably about the most formidable in Gasser history; he didn't get beat much; that's for sure! The great bulk of the Supercharged Gassers from that era ran 4-speed Hydros, and I think Pittman/Edwards, and Ohio George (who both ran Dual-Range Hydramatics) wew probably responsible for a lot of those cars using the hydro drivetrain. There were a few exceptions, but the outrageous torque production in these blown cars would literally eat up a B/W T-10, and there weren't a lot of options, 'til the T-Flites and Turbo 400s came into vogue, later. Before those cars (the supercharged gassers) showed that automatics could work in a high performace environment, nobody took them seriously. B & M, and some others like them (Vitar, Bee Line, and a place in Chicago, whose name escapes me right now) changed all that. And, it changed the sport. __________________ Bill Last edited by bill dedman; 07-01-2007 at 04:03 PM.

07-01-2007, 03:28 PM	#10
76 RACER Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 247 Likes: 0 Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Best Modified racer? If my memory is correct George had the very first spool in 1959. Look at the scoops the A/FD are running. The tall partially round narrow ones. George ran that style of scoop in the 60's. George also built all of his cars.