Wednesday, August 03, 2022

Bluebird Proteus CN7 and the Elfin Catalina Ford during the 1963 unsuccessful attempt to set the Land Speed Record at Lake Eyre, South Australia…


the Elfin Catalina was built for Dunlop Tires to use on the Lake Eyre salt to assist in determining certain characteristics of the tires fitted to Donald Campbell’s Bluebird during 1963/4. 

 The Elfin Catalina was fitted with 13" miniatures of the 52" Bluebird tires and driven over the salt to determine factors such as the coefficient of friction and adhesion using a Tapley meter.

3 comments:

  1. Wow ! brings back so many memories from when just a kid,early teens. Geez,that was BIG deal here in Adelaide,South Australia.Have been to Lake Eyre;defies imagination! Eventually did set the record;for wheel driven vehicle. Jet powered. Think all record breakers after that were pure jet thrust. Great work Jesse. Keep on keeping on Mate. Best regards from the driest state in the driest Continent. Rob.

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    1. thank you Rob! My time has been so used up on other things, that my overall quality of what I post is noticeably different from what I used to be known for... but, I just can't do a thing about all the stuff going on, and what I need to get done every day, to spend the time like I used to, looking for great stuff to post.
      I love that you're still enthusiastic about what I do post that fills your love for the stuff you dig... !
      Yeah, every one switched to jet thrust, and lost the reason and purpose of "worlds fastest car" racing. It's pointless to see how fast an airplane, jet fighter type, can move on it's wheels... and that's all the Thrust SSC is, there is no relevance to land speed racing with engines powering cars.

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    2. Should also have mentioned that Elfin race cars were manufactured right here in Adelaide by Garry Cooper. They enjoyed much success over many years including Formula 5000. Cheers.

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