12 replies to this topic

[T54]

This is the first of two identical 1972 Eagle-Offenhauser cars being assembled from NOS tubs, chassis 72-029 and 72-030. These are the last two tubs made of this model. It took quite a while to get all the correct parts and get someone serious and knowledgeable enough to put them together properly, but at last they are close to birth.
This one is painted to match the car that, driven by Jerry Grant, was the first to lap a racing track at over 200MPH. It was also on its way to either win or finish in second place in the 1972 "Indy 500" when a snafu (refuelling from the sister-car fueling rig by mistake) relegated it to 12th place after its last laps were disqualified.

The 1972 through 1975 Eagles pretty much shared utter domination of Indy car racing as late as 1976, and over 40 cars were built.

These two cars were never completed and use much of NOS parts as well as two ex-works engines that have a glorious history and Weismann 4-speed transmissions as used on the works cars.
There is still lots of work to be done, but it is getting closer.
What do you think?







Right now, the drive-shafts are being assembled so as to complete the rear suspention.
I can't wait to drive "mine", the other will return to Big Dan and the AAR Eagle museum.
Regards,

T54

[canon1753]

Great work! It will be a great testament to your work when it is completed and it runs on at speed. It is a great amount of work done quite well! :up :

[Andretti Fan]

I'd love to see Mr. Gurney do a couple of demonstration laps to open Indy next year............like the Andretti's did this year.

[brickyard]

Aaaamazing Job, T54...

Congratulations.

I hope to hear that it will run some day...

[T54]

Hi,
The whole idea is to run these two cars, soon joined by a third as we also purchased another (the American Kids Racer Spl.) recently, in the Victory Lane Showcase events here and there as possible. All three will be runners, not boat anchors.
Sincerely I hope that Dan will participate, he is still a pretty mean driver for a septuagenarian.
Also Alex could drive the thing, that would change him from those ugly DP coupes!

[raceannouncer2003]

Does Jerry Grant know about this project? I bet he'd love to take it out for a few laps!

I emailed a friend about this thread...here is his response...

"Thanks so much for your very interesting note. There are one or two
points that might be worth mentioning. First, I remember very well the car
Jerry drove at Indy in 1972. It was not blue, but lavendar in colour, and
it had the words "You Name It" written on the tops of the radiator pods.
This was because the car had been entered so late in the day, that Gurney
had not been able to line up a sponsor. But he was desperately anxious that
Jerry should be in the race. You may recall that Jerry's qualifying speed
was faster than the pole speed, but because he did it on the second weekend
he had to start back in the pack. Even so, I think he was in front before
they had gone 50 laps. The car's official designation was "The Mystery
Eagle." Perhaps the fellow who wrote the blurb meant to say that by the
time the car and Jerry got to the California Speedway (where the 200 mph lap
was achieved), the car had acquired a sponsor and had been repainted.
Anyway, thanks again for thinking of me.

Cheers, Rob"

[ggnagy]

Wow! 5 whole replies before someone said it was painted the wrong color!

[MPea3]

Originally posted by ggnagy
Wow! 5 whole replies before someone said it was painted the wrong color!

Thank God no one said it was supposed to be green. I don't think I could endure that whole debate again.

[Jerry Entin]

I don't care what color it is. It is a beautiful job that T54 and his crew have done. Thanks for allowing the forum to see your latest project.

[T54]

Thanks Jerry!

It was not blue, but lavendar in colour

After the 15-page argument with the color of the Cooper Indy car, now we are going to argue the Eagle...
Actually, it was not lavender but plum, a stock Chrysler color that we used. But for some reason the pictures came really off! Have no fear, it IS plum!

Also the car is decorated not as it was at the "Indy 476" (they docked him 12 laps), but as it was at the Ontario Motor Speedway when Jerry did the first 200MPH lap. Boy was Unser FURIOUS!!

Remember, I was the guy in charge of the decoration of the cars at AAR, that were painted under my personal masking and supervision by Ron Prevenslik and a local policeman of which I forgot the name, and I did that on and off all the way to the Eagle-Toyota CART cars. You don't really think I would have goofed THAT much, would you?

Here is a pic signed for me by Jerry a few days after he did that record:



This is one of the few surviving original sketches when we concocted the colors with Dan in early 1973, as I added the "claw" under the eagle. I also had added a body panel on the drawing over the engine as to suggest a cleaner airflow to the wing, but engine-man John Miller said that there was "no way the engine would be cool enough to run that way" and that was it, no discussion. Never mind the Lindsey-Hopkins cars (also due to Roman Slobodinskyj) only 3 years later...
The car has the new "square" tub that it used in 1973 to 1976 as well as many small aero details that made the car even faster than in 1972:



The second car will look like this one:



Regards,

T54

[rgsuspsa]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by T54


"The 1972 through 1975 Eagles pretty much shared utter domination of Indy car racing as late as 1976, and over 40 cars were built".

Compliments on an ambitious effort. Please note that Mark Donohue won the 1972 Indy 500
in a McLaren M16.

[T54]

Indeed, but he was very lucky. Bobby Unser had destroyed the qualifying record of 178MPH by turning 4 laps at 195MPH. He then led the race, pulling away at nearly 5 seconds per lap when of all things, the distributor rotor broke. Distributor rotors hardly ever break, but this was Dan's luck much of the year, with the new Eagle setting new qualifying records nearly everywhere it ran but having miserable picayune things happening while leading most of the races.
After Bobby's car was out after 31 laps, Jerry took over and led handsomely. Then he pulled in for refueling on lap 188, only to be refueled by mistake from the Unser rig which also lost a lot of time. He was immediately docked any subsequent lap. Bettenhausen had also led but had to stop for a cut tire, so Mark won.
It is not like he dominated the race...
Nothing wrong with what Mark did, it was a great victory. But Bobby and Jerry were the fast guys there, and were all year. In 1972, the Eagle had the advantage over the McLaren. It also did in 1974 when at last Bobby won the championship, and eventually the "Indy 500" in 1975 when the McLaren had evolved and was the better car while the Eagle was stagnant because of a lack of development money.
Is this a fair assessment?

[rgsuspsa]

T54: Yes it is, and clearly states the merits of the Eagle.