Hi Gang…
Do you remember that oft used phrase by Benjamin Franklin about getting work done. It goes something like…
“If you want something done….find a busy person to do it”
Well….we are keeping the guys at JR’s Speed Shop in Venice, Florida as busy as ever – even after they expanded their staff and brought in additional expertise for our Undiscovered Classic customers work. But John Pascucci of JR’s and I have been talking – several years as it would be – about creating custom Kurtis-inspired tube frame chassis for customers using rare Undiscovered Classics bodies. Think “Byers” and “Allied” and “Victress” – oh my!
I’m pleased to say that during a visit to JR’s earlier this week, the first chassis is taking shape nicely. Check out the side profile below:
Leading the team on chassis development at JR’s Speed Shop is John Pascucci. John is designing and building their first chassis which will serve as a model with features available for future custom built chassis too. Some of the features John shared with me include torsion bar suspension, adjustable height, adjustable ride and a host of other features that he and his team will discuss in a future story here at Undiscovered Classics.
The first chassis is being built for Undiscovered Classics aficionado Tom Kubinec and his Almquist sports car. It’s custom built with an 86 inch wheelbase and 46 inch track. It can accommodate tires which are 8 inches or wider, and the entire chassis is built with sports car performance and handling in mind. Here’s a photo of Tom’s Almquist body for which this chassis is being built.
Here are additional photos to review:
From Left to Right: John Pascucci and Brian Ford. Brian and his wife Sue wanted to visit JR’s after our recent debut of their Voodoo Gardner Special at the 2020 Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance.
Summary:
The first chassis should be completed in the next few weeks and we’ll get a story posted about the chassis, its features and additional detail for those of you who might be interested in pursuing a vintage or new build. And keep in mind, if you want to match a custom-built chassis with a newly minted vintage body, you can choose from the following vintage sports car bodies we currently offer:
- Allied Blackhawk Coupe: 99 inch wheelbase
- Byers SR-100: 99 inch wheelbase
- Bangert Manta Ray: 99 inch wheelbase
- Sorrell SR-100: 99 inch wheelbase
- CRV Piranha: 90 inch wheelbase
- Covington Tiburon Coupe: 82.5 wheelbase
For those of you wanting more information on available bodies, click here.
Hope you enjoyed the story, and remember…
The adventure continues here at Undiscovered Classics.
Geoff
Update: March 25, 2020:
Hemmings posted a story about this chassis and JR’s Speed Shop via the following link:
New Sports Car Chassis Designed To Get Decades-Old Sport Specials Back On The Track
One of my Glasspar roadsters had a “Shorty Post” chassis which would have worked well in most of the small kit cars of the era. If you could find a Post chassis it would be an easy one to duplicate or improve upon.It used a Ford flat head drive train.
I wish I could weld like that!
This is really neat. Love the Kurtis double tube style. Please do another post on this when the chassis is completed. I’d love to see it done and see some close-ups of the suspension. Well done.
F A N S A S T I C I D E A! LOOKS INCREDIBLE!