Capt. Bob Vance
Desert Flame
Joe Brown's Arizona Outlaw
Gary McWilliams and his Pick your Parts "wheelstander".
Some interesting info on Jet Cars:
Joe Brown on the diference between Jets and Rockets.
The difference between jets and rockets is that jets are turbine units that compress air, mix it up in the hot section and create thrust and run on about anything combustible.
We use diesel because NHRA won't allow gasoline. The rockets on the other hand are powered by hydrogen peroxide,the hydrogen peroxide is pushed from a pressurized by nitrogen from a container into a catylyst container where there is a stack of silver screens. The reaction expands the hydrogen peroxide by 600% causing a steam that provides the thrust.
They just blow down the track until they run out of fuel, no throttle. They say whatever position you are in when it leaves is the position you stay in until it quits. I heard tell that the drivers use to have bruises on their chest from the belts when stopping. Joe Brown
Heres a note about some rocket and jet car info that Dana VanDersarl sent me. Thanks Dana,
I was a rocket and jet dragster owner/ driver in the 80's.
Joe Brown was right about the shoulder bruises -even with the belts really tight.
However:
*My rocket USA#1 did have a throttle. Foot type to start/stop (big
Jamesberry ball valve)
and an electrical solenoid rigged to close when the
primary chute was pulled.
Note that I said primary chute-unlike jets
that have a back-up chute
the first chute was a ribbon chute used only to slow down below 300
then you dropped out the regular ring slot.Otherwise the ringslot
would blow off-not good.
Remember jets really have to work to hit 290 whereas a rocket barely
breathes hard to run the NHRA speed limit of 320 at 4.5!
Sometimes to
show off we would go alot faster-great cars.
*Rockets never blew-up.Their safer than jets to the crowd-the only one in danger is the driver.
They were just misunderstood and feared for no
reason.I would drive a rocket car anyday over a jet car.
My cars:
USA#1-rocket
Jets:
Jetison1,
Ground Zero,
Ground Zero2- 1979-87
In '87 I quit to raise my family but I'll be back.
Thanks Dana, I hope you do return to the tracks someday!
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"The BEAST"
THE ARIZONA OUTLAW, for more on JOE BROWNS AWESOME '57 CHEVY JET FUNNY CAR go here, a side note.....the Outlaw was destroyed up at Medicine Hat
DESERT FLAME FLYOD AND RHONDA GUERRAS JET DRAGSTER WEBSITE
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All photos by S St.Pierre
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