Tuesday, March 27, 2018

The Ballpoint Banana, powered by an alcohol fueled 1937 rope start Evinrude outboard, was at Bonneville from 1965-69, 1972-74, but only went down the track once, and is probably the only rope start Bonneville Streamliner ever.


Owned by a guy named Arnold, and Kathy, one of his two sisters came with him to B-Ville to help. It arrived many times, was nearly impossible to start, and is said to have only went down the course once, and recently it was bought in 2008 and put in a garage.











http://www.landracing.com/gallery/displayimage.php?album=212&pid=8936#top_display_media


Wheel Centre Company #901H at top, "The Ball Point Banana" #555 at center and "The Orange Crate" #222 at bottom





this is the most in focus color photo I've come across of the BPB http://www.landracing.com/forum/index.php/topic,5202.msg107529.html#msg107529  Kathy in 1974

I brought the car home from its home in North Tonawanda New York last year. I do not have a garage where I live now so I put it in my grandmas garage in Cleveland and it has since been "buried" in there for the next few months.

Nothing has been changed on the car from the way it was then. The body is all hand laid fiberglass that is sitting on a aluminum frame. There were no markings on the motor that I could see but from what other sources have told me it is a evenrude from 1939 that ran on alcohol. The engine was a pull start and from what I have been told it took many pulls to get it running. The car is only about 7ft long and weighs less then 400 lbs. or so. It is also only about 3 ft high or so.

One guy told me that he pull started my uncle and when he dropped the rope and lit the ignition the car took off around them and they were going 85mph! He said that my uncle couldn't get it to shift into high gear so he shut it off. The offered to pull start him again but the tow car couldn't gain enough speed for the car to fire in high gear. They estimated that they would have to be going around 115 mph for that to happen.

The car now is in decent shape, their is 1 hole (about 6in round) in the lower body. It looks like someone might have kicked it. The chrome pipes for the exhaust are all pitted but I believe they would clean up. Other then that it is dusty and dirty.

Based on little info, but the mention of the outboard motor, and looking at the trumpet exhausts, I'd guess that its a Quincy Looper hi perf racing engine

http://www.quincylooperracing.us/gpage7.html

http://www.landracing.com/forum/index.php?topic=5202.1695
http://cncenginedynamics.tumblr.com/
https://ahrf.com/blogs/jims-news/posts/salt-fever
http://board.moparts.org/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/535142/3.html
http://www.landracing.com/forum/index.php/topic,2301.0.html
http://www.landracing.com/forum/index.php/topic,5202.1695.html




https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/1963-bonneville-speed-week-photos.1120368/

3 comments:

  1. Any chance of selling the car back to the original owners son? That would be me. I watched my Dad build the car. The first couple pictures at the top (with the Impala) are of him towing it.

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    Replies
    1. I just share the stories and post the photos... I have no idea who owns it, I wish anyone would get it back to racing.

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  2. I know a guy that has the yellow ballpoint banana its not in the best shape but i think iys really different

    ReplyDelete