What kit did this lil beauty come from?

[Jantrix]

I picked this up from a pal. A GM big block with a transaxle and valve covers on upside down. However I don't recall a kit like this. Probably some wacky show car.

Anyone know what kit this is from and whether the transaxle is something fictional or something that exists in 1:1?

EDIT: scratch the second part of the question. I just found this pic. It's pretty darn close.

Edited February 9, 2016 by Jantrix

[Ace-Garageguy]

Good job on the research, Rob.

It's just a quick-change with its input shaft coupled to the trans output shaft, with a solid mount in between. Obviously, in a setup like this, a UJ isn't necessary because there's no relative motion between the components.

This was a fairly common rig (not this exactly, but the identical concept) in the way-back, where space was at a premium...like in old belly-tank lakesters.

 

Edited February 9, 2016 by Ace-Garageguy

[Jantrix]

That's pretty much what I had in mind for this piece, I'm just curious what kit it came out of. Since this has had over 100 views and no one knows, it must be pretty unusual.

[Jantrix]

Kit identified.

Monogram Troublemaker El Camino funny car.

[Crazy Ed]

   Rob, Glad you discovered the Kit it came from. From that info it seems it was used prior to that in a less glamorous release of the same Kit.

http://public.fotki.com/drasticplasticsmcc/mkiba-build-under-c/monogram-instructions/straightline-competition/monogram-chevy-el-c/

[JTalmage]

Good job on the research, Rob.

It's just a quick-change with its input shaft coupled to the trans output shaft, with a solid mount in between. Obviously, in a setup like this, a UJ isn't necessary because there's no relative motion between the components.

This was a fairly common rig (not this exactly, but the identical concept) in the way-back, where space was at a premium...like in old belly-tank lakesters.

 

Enlighten me, I'm staring at the shifter tower on this transmission wondering how you shift it? I assume it's only a 2 or 3 speed trans, but how in the world do you shift it??  Looks like some sort of rudimentary bracketry to the left of it, but I'm confused. 

[disabled modeler]

They also used it in the Monogram Elcamino funny car called (Hornet)...if I remember right....I loved these set ups and the chassis they used in the kits.

[Ace-Garageguy]

Enlighten me, I'm staring at the shifter tower on this transmission wondering how you shift it? I assume it's only a 2 or 3 speed trans, but how in the world do you shift it??  Looks like some sort of rudimentary bracketry to the left of it, but I'm confused. 

You're right...it's a 3-speed box, circa 1939 top-shift Ford. Most of the little belly-tank streamliners were push-started (no battery, magneto ignition), so shifting into first or reverse wasn't required. The shift from second to third is a straight line on these boxes, so a relatively simple linkage arrangement could accomplish it.

The bracketry with the holes in it to the far side of the shift-tower appears to be a part of the linkage. It most likely has a bellcrank arm hanging down out of sight (connected to a rod that runs up to the cockpit) and is pivoted on a horizontal line through the center of the shift-lever pivot, with the top portion of the bellcrank swinging in a longitudinal arc a few inches up from that, with enough travel to effect sufficient forward and backward motion of the shift lever stub to allow shifting between 2nd and 3rd.

Some of these little cars got pretty exotic, especially interesting considering they were mostly home-built. Obviously mid-engined when that was practically unheard of, a few of them also had fully independent rear suspension as well. No rear suspension, axle tubes attached solidly to the frame, was common, but some pivoted the entire engine-gearbox-rear end assembly to at least allow vertical movement of the rear axle centerline.

The cars with IRS only got as far as swing-axles, with the inboard universal joints made from the forward universal joints of the stock torque-tube driveshaft.

The rig represented by Rob's model has an automatic box, so shifting is easy with a cable linkage.

I believe the particular 1:1 example Rob has a photograph of up there was built for a mid-engined second-generation Corvair, and used that car's original independent suspension. The inboard universal-joint yoke for the axle can be seen in the photo.

[JTalmage]

Thanks for clearing that up. Makes complete sense now, and I wasn't far off in my thinking. Speaking of a rear engined v8 corvair setup, the guys from Roadkill bought a hodge-podge Mazda rotary pickup truck that someone had plopped an oldsmobile engine mated to the conglomeration of a turbo350 trans, and the olds toranado fwd setup, with corvair suspension and axles and all in the bed of this pickup. 

[62rebel]

according to the instructions the valve covers are right side up

[Jantrix]

according to the instructions the valve covers are right side up

Really how odd. They would be backwards though on a real engine. The valve cover bolts on a Chevy big block are four down, three up.

 

[62rebel]

not the first, and surely won't be the last time the instructions were wrong

[Jantrix]

not the first, and surely won't be the last time the instructions were wrong

Quite right.