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Chassis and Load-Bearing Modifications

2:39
55:11
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At 2:39 in

The Birth of a Legend: NASCAR's Early Days and Pioneers (Bill Blair Jr's Personal Museum)

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What happens here

Bill Blair Jr. details how early moonshine cars, like the 1939 Ford coupe (nicknamed the 'Baby Diaper car'), were modified. To handle heavy loads of moonshine, additional helper spring leaves were installed at the rear of the vehicle, and larger tires were sometimes fitted to raise the back end. This kept the car from sagging too low, a tell-tale sign of a full load. This was a common initial modification to prevent law enforcement from easily identifying liquor-laden vehicles.

Goal: Understand how moonshine cars were modified to carry heavy loads and improve traction.

Tools and materials

  • 1939 Ford Coupe — Example of a moonshine car undergoing modifications
  • Helper Spring Leaves — To increase load capacity and prevent the rear of the car from sagging noticeably
  • Larger Rear Tires — To further raise the rear of the vehicle and improve traction for heavy loads

What they say

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helper spring Lea at the rear to get set a little higher you put bigger tires on the rear some of them did but then run his pretty much stock he put a extra spring lifa to under the back of it and that's about all he did to it but I mean he was an early on guy you know and then they put two carrers on them I'll show you one up here but see uh well this this car here just to give you an example it started out being 85 horse well next thing you would do get on a horow you put the El roock heads on as you see down in there then the next thing you would do is get you a molic supercharger see that thing on top of that block over there that was made 1939 4394 I found that one not long ago and going recondition it and paint it put on this board over here to simulate what he had and you put two carers up on top of if somebody asked me could you buy a supercharger for your Flathead port in 1939 I'd really have to think about it well they started making his made in Milwaukee uh guy's last name was mullik I think his first name is Fred but U anyway it's U it's pretty pretty neat that was made for just uh a regular adapter you put that on uh this a regular uh two barel in Tite and you had two CES on it's how crude to that that compressor wheel is compared to a a turbo now or does how many all give about seven or eight PB boost what it did all those little things had to be carved out by hand in the mold and that's just that's incredible I got to figure out how the old hooks back up and everything and strip it paint it and I'll get it back together now this block here is one I put my cam sh in to plot them I plot cam Sha but as is I'm on cam sha these things he also later on would put a the Mercury motor in with more stroke little supercharger hum you know but law didn't

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