Warbird Information Exchange

My dad is trying to start a left hand P-38 Allison engine, but we need to know if it's a positive or negative ground on the starter. It's in a Bonneville salt flat racer. Don't have the engine dash number yet. Any help would be appreciated.

I was able to get a hold of Ace Allisons, it's a negative ground to the starter.

Can you post some pictures of the car?

_________________
Dean Hemphill, K5DH
Lake Dallas, Republic of Texas

Was any aircraft ever positive ground? Many vehicles were but I have not come across any aircraft that had it . Have any of you?

_________________
To donate to the PV-2D project via PayPal click here http://www.twinbeech.com/84062restoration.htm

We brought her from: to this in 3 months: Help us get her all the way back

All donations are tax deductible as the Stockton Field Aviation Museum is a 501c3 nonprofit organization. Tell a friend as the Harpoon needs all the help she can get.

Thank you!

Taigh Ramey
Vintage Aircraft, Stockton, California
http://www.twinbeech.com
'KEEP ‘EM FLYING…FOR HISTORY!'

I will have to see if the owner / family of the car will allow it, going to look at the car tomorrow morning.

Bonneville Salt Flat racer originally built by ATHOL GRAHAM, being restored by his son Butch Graham.


7 by Travis Hopkins, on Flickr

10 by Travis Hopkins, on Flickr

4 by Travis Hopkins, on Flickr


3 by Travis Hopkins, on Flickr

5 by Travis Hopkins, on Flickr

6 by Travis Hopkins, on Flickr

9 by Travis Hopkins, on Flickr

airtj: Thanks, buddy! Very cool. Even though I grew up on the east coast, I followed the Bonneville scene when I was a kid in the 1960s. I remember seeing the "City of Salt Lake" and Mr. Graham featured in hot rodding magazines and historical books about LSR racing. The steering wheel appears to be a cut-down 1959 Impala unit! Neato!

And now, back to the original purpose of this thread. . .

_________________
Dean Hemphill, K5DH
Lake Dallas, Republic of Texas

Wow...what a cool piece of history!

Tks for sharing

Pretty cool survivor. With a first name of Athol, he musta caught a lot of flak at school. Apparently it didn't stunt him too much...What don't kill ya makes ya stronger...

_________________
He bowls overhand...He is the most interesting man in the world.
"In Peace Japan Breeds War", Eckstein, Harper and Bros., 3rd ed. 1943(1927, 1928,1942)
"Leave it to ol' Slim. I got ideas...and they're all vile, baby." South Dakota Slim
"Ahh..."The Deuce", 28,000 pounds of motherly love." quote from some Mojave Grunt
DBF

Does any one have a service manual for this Bendix Stromberg carburetor in PDF form, PD-12H4 parts list 391699-1? The carburetor is giving us problems, I've already emailed Anderson aeromotive. Any lead on the gasket to engine to carburetor and the V gasket and the rubber ring at the bottom of the metal tube.

Best bet will be a call to Jose Flores at Vintage V-12s in Tehachapi, CA for help on the carb issues.

No disrespect intended to Ray at Anderson, but a couple of months back when I visited the shop and picked through the copious outdoor storage inventory, there was not one stray piece of Allison or Merlin engine to be found. And trust me, I spent enough time there and I looked. Hard.

Offhandedly, I commented about that and expressed surprise there wasn't even a dead core inline motor anywhere in the storage area. Ray's response was calm and deadpan... "Nope, we don't do car engines here."

I got a chuckle out of that.

Flores will help. And what he isn't able to provide, Joe and Pat Yancey in Chino, CA will.

Best wishes on getting yours fired up shortly.

- Robert in PHX

It's Alive !!

IMG_4558 by Travis Hopkins, on Flickr