Wow, that must have been an interesting spool for the two ring gears on each
axle.
John
----- Original Message -----
From: "glen barrett" <speedtimer@charter.net>
To: "John Beckett" <landspeedracer@email.msn.com>; <ardunbill@webtv.net>;
<land-speed@autox.team.net>
Sent: Tuesday, February 06, 2001 6:43 PM
Subject: Re: going fast
> Regarding Thompson's 4 engine 4 wheel drive liner. The two front engines
> drove the the front through two quick change rear ends. The two QC'S had a
> axle between them as did the back axle. So each wheel was not driven
> seperately. There was also an overdrive at the end of each axle to control
> overdriving the tires IE spin. I was at Mickey's shop many times when the
> car was being built and later on at Jim Travis shop when it was restored.
> He broke a drive shaft on a return record attempt and had to shut down the
> engines.Thompson used a mixture of oil and white lead in all of the gears
> cases to prevent galling. When the car was torn down we looked inside the
> gear case's and everything was like new.
> Glen
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "John Beckett" <landspeedracer@email.msn.com>
> To: <ardunbill@webtv.net>; <land-speed@autox.team.net>
> Sent: Tuesday, February 06, 2001 2:38 PM
> Subject: Re: going fast
>
>
> > Your thoughts are sort of why I asked the question in the first place.
> >
> > As for Mickey's car. I looked at it just a few months ago. It had Four
> > engines, clutches, transmissions and Four differentials. Don't know for
> > sure, but it looked like each engine drove it's own wheel. And it may
have
> > been a handful.
> >
> > John
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: <ardunbill@webtv.net>
> > To: "John Beckett" <landspeedracer@email.msn.com>;
> > <land-speed@autox.team.net>
> > Sent: Tuesday, February 06, 2001 5:00 PM
> > Subject: Re: going fast
> >
> >
> > > John, "what if" due to weight transfer or whatever, and the front and
> > > rear axles are not connected, the front wheels spin more than the
rear?
> > > Would this not destabilize the car, and interfere with steering
control,
> > > more than if the two axles are connected, and all four wheels have to
> > > spin at the same rate, if there is wheelspin. I'm visualizing a
> > > streamliner with two big horsepower engines here, where wheelspin
would
> > > be a distinct likelihood, whether at Maxton or Bonneville.
> > >
> > > Connecting the cranks ala Burklands might be preferable to using some
> > > kind of transfer case. Might be hard to get a transfer case that
could
> > > handle big power, and if it did it would probably aborb a lot of
power.
> > >
> > > I seem to recall from Mickey Thompson's story that Challenger had the
> > > front two engines driving the front wheels together, and the back two
> > > driving the rear wheels together. He noted that he sat in the cockpit
> > > with two tachs, one for the front pair and the other for the rear,
> > > noting the differences in rpm, and pondering whether it was the
clutches
> > > slipping (they had some trouble with that) or the wheels spinning more
> > > at one end than the other.
> > >
> > > An interesting exercise of Physics. My two cents worth. Cheers from
> > > Ardun Bill in the Great Dismal Swamp, Chesapeake, VA
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