Dan,

         I sent an eMail to his web site, and He's supposed to be at the Studebaker museum Mar 1st, might go ask.

Frank/Rebop

Bristol, In ( by Elkhart) 

Someone should contact him and get the timeline/details. Likely it was HIS twin Turbonique Mustang that wiped out the xmas tree at US 30 dragaway in Merrillville Indiana (I thought it was a white notch-back, but I suppose it could have been the same '65 fastback body in the wreck photos). Was that injected-motor car assembled with salvaged parts? Were there two different cars? Did the weird US 30 incident scare him away from turbines?

6 VOLTS/POS. GRD. NW INDIANA

Hollow,

           Thank you for that site and the research. I met Dick Brannan a couple of years ago. Nice quiet guy. If you didn't know his history, you'd never guess!

Frank/Rebop

Bristol, In ( by Elkhart) 

Daniel, is this the Dick Brannan car that you talked about? This happened in US 131. Scroll down and the pictures will show up. Lots of great stories too... That car seems to "just regular Hilborn" car
http://www.waterwinterwonderland.com/drags.asp?id=1342&type=6

 Seppo from Järvenpää, Finland
www.hollowheads.net (just click the hole in the head to proceed)

Thanks again Daniel. I belive you. I wish you could somehow send those sounds from your memory to me, so also I could hear that roar . There was one Dodge Dart '66, one or two '64 Chevelles, two '65 FB Mustangs, '64 Galaxie, one Beetle and one '65 HT Mustang that are known to use those axles. And that '67 Cougar funnycar and that Mustang funnycar. And one dragster to my knowledge.

 Seppo from Järvenpää, Finland
www.hollowheads.net (just click the hole in the head to proceed)

Hollow Head,



While the time when I could testify with any authority about what happened 40+ years ago is long gone, my recollection is:

It was a very light, white fiberglass shell, Mustang copy ('64 1/2 style) on a tube frame. I was especially curious as the driver/owner usually campaigned a 427 Thunderbolt. They ran US30 grudge-match promos on WLS AM Chgo. radio, and I may have been there for that event (the Mustang trial could have been a side-show). I examined the car in detail when they pushed it to the line and was standing about 15 ft. away (amongst the pit crew) when the driver pushed the ignition button. As the Turboniques made maximum torque at zero rpm, the instant he lit it up all hell broke loose and the car went totally out of control and wiped out the xmas tree lights!

It could have been the car's one & only run (since results were so catastophic), so there may not have been much about it in any publications.

6 VOLTS/POS. GRD. NW INDIANA

My story is highly based on that "The Real Acme" text and it is juiced up with additions from several other sources. So far there is no mark about anybody that has used Turboniques with Y:s

 Seppo from Järvenpää, Finland
www.hollowheads.net (just click the hole in the head to proceed)

You can also look here if you haven't already done so. It also talks about the rackets and drag axle set-ups.

http://iowahawk.typepad.com/iowahawk/2006/04/the_real_acme.html

       A  L  A  N   F  R  A  K  E  S   ~  Tulsa, OK    

Daniel, are you sure it was a Mustang? Or was it a '67 Cougar with Rauth & Venditti /ED PIKE Lincoln Mercury texts on sides? So far I haven't seen pics about Mustang with two rocket axles.

 Seppo from Järvenpää, Finland
www.hollowheads.net (just click the hole in the head to proceed)

Jep, I found a couple of great pictures about Turbonique equipped cars but no much technical information from that H.A.M.B. forum. Ok, I tried just the word thermolene to search, so more might pop up with different words.

Now I have 6 full A4 papers of text to explore. Interesting and this really gives me some ideas for the future

Rocket engines are so simple...

 Seppo from Järvenpää, Finland
www.hollowheads.net (just click the hole in the head to proceed)