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Agent 442, "Gentleman
Joe" Schubeck slips unobstrusively out of the gate at Bakersfield behind a
smokescreen laid down by a thousand pounding horses. |
After a show like the
Hemi-Under-Glass, what do you do for an encore? If you're George Hurst, you sit in your
Warminster, PA office, consider the problem and then defer to the inspiration of
brain-truster Jack Watson, one of the Youth Market's hottest numbers, the Olds 4-4-2, and
cram in , not one, but two, count 'em, two, blown/injected 432 cubic inch (remember the
425?) Olds -- one for the front and one for the back.
What expedient would you use
for a drive train? Just the decade's mechanical breakthrough for the industry, that's all.
The Toronado front wheel drive assembly. Stock? Almost. The right hand axle shafts were
swapped for left handers because they are stronger, and then each torus was welded up in
the torque converter which, by the way, is a variable pitch Hydra-Matic (3000 rpm, low
angle; 4200 rpm, high angle).
Better believe it takes a
heads-up team to keep this minor miracle on its scheduled missions. Like the Hurst
Performance crew, who get into their subject. |
With in the neighborhood of
4000 lbs. aggregate on the four 9.50 x 15 M&H's, you've got to start playing power
politics, so the Olds engines were pumped up with M/T rods and same family pistons set
.228-inch down in the hole. The crank was Tufftrided, the mains grooved and clearanced to
.004-inch; rods a thousandth less. Even under the pressure of a GMC 6-71 the engines
didn't lose their heads, but the rockers were swapped for M/T mags restrained by
7/16-inch, high performance 289 Ford studs. Further along in the train, Isky worked up a
set of special .190-inch longer-than-normal pushrods to use with the novel stud/rocker
situation. And while he was at it, old Ed popped for the cams, retainers, springs (180
pounds closed, 320 open) and the keepers.
Bodywise, it's such a lovely
chore for a light-hearted person to closely scrutinize the aluminum floor pan, fender
wells, deck lid, seat and yea, even the bumpers. Better yet, dig in detail the integral
frame/roll-cage assembly and reflect on the fact that it acts as a raditor for the 33
quarts of water coursing through its channels. Oh boy, too much! And it's none too good
for its driver, the man himself, "Gentleman Joe" Schubeck, whose fuel dragster
action is on the record as formidable.
What a car. What a
combination...And now for your pleasure, ladies and gentlemen, and edification...the Hurst
Hairy Olds. Music maestro.
(Click images below to enlarge)
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