Wayno goes 136 mph in his belly tanker

[Old Henry]

Saw this photo on the SCTA Facebook page.



I just thought it might be our own Elmo Rodge from the big cheesy grin on the front so PMed him and, sure enough, it was him. Went 136 mph at El Mirage.

Here are some pictures I took of him and his racer in March 2014:




Wayne and his car built out of a the belly tank from a WWII airplane. The front axle is from a 30 something Ford. The tires are dragster front tires. The windows were made by an aircraft manufacturer per Wayne's specifications. Entry is through the panel on the roof that opens up.

Here's from the rear:


Right behind the cockpit is the 15 gallon water tank that holds the water to "cool" the engine for it's short run without a radiator. It has standard Ford rear axle tubes shortened attached to a special differential that has quick change gears on the rear end. The silver tube is for the parachute released by the black cable on top of it. He's fabricated a real cool cover for the tube out of a Ford hub cap (forget which year). The engine is on the stand at the far wall and the transmission is under the plastic at the front end. The cable on this side of the parachute tube is an external shut off.

Looking into the cockpit from the left side:


The silver knob/lever on the far right releases the parachute by pushing it forward. The 8 ball is the transmission shifter. Above that is the starter button, then ignition, then fuel pump switches. Just ahead of that partially hidden by his knee is the inertia kill switch to shut off the engine in the event of a crash. The steering wheel is removable to get in and out of the cockpit and has a tachometer mounted to the middle of it. The gauge above that is air/fuel mixture. The net below it is to keep Wayne's feet and legs from leaving the vehicle if it crashes.

The cockpit from the right side:


The red tank above the net is the fire extinguisher for the front end that is activated by the black knob left of his left hand. The silver lever next to that activates the hydraulic brakes. The gauge above his left knee is water temperature. The yellow light above that is a shift indicator for the transmission.

Wayne reclining in the driving position:


There are pads on each side of his head that just barely clear his helmet to keep his head from getting knocked around if he crashes as well as pads on each side of his shoulders to keep them lined up with his head if he crashes. He looks between his knees out the front window and has some side view through the side ones.