Popcorn wagon feasible?

[gotnitro?]

We toured the National Corvette museum yesterday, and near the end of the day, they have a beautiful display of movie/ show cars. One that peaked my curiosity, was the Popcorn Wagon from designer Carl Casper. 

The double blower arrangement was interesting, and caused me to wonder if its actually functional? 

We missed the unveiling of the new Sky Dome display by a couple days, all the cars were being uncovered and moved when we toured.

[Dave Van]

What I understand....NO. Showrods were well known for using empty blowers. IE they take the rotors out and use a dummy pulley on front. Many times they were used to hide a carb!!

[Daddyfink]

Behold the trickery! 

[Brian Austin]

Show rods were often not even drivable.  Some had incomplete engines/drivetrains.

[gotnitro?]

8 hours ago, Dave Van said:

What I understand....NO. Showrods were well known for using empty blowers. IE they take the rotors out and use a dummy pulley on front. Many times they were used to hide a carb!!

Thanks Dave ! I assumed these were for show, not go.

[Fat Brian]

The popcorn wagon setup would at least work because both blowers are feeding down, the two upper blowers on the hard hat hauler would explode since they're feeding against each other. 

[peteski]

13 minutes ago, Fat Brian said:

The popcorn wagon setup would at least work because both blowers are feeding down, the two upper blowers on the hard hat hauler would explode since they're feeding against each other. 

Well, but the toothed belt just "kisses" the  lower blower's pulley (instead of making better contact around the pulley's perimeter).  The belt would likely slip over that pulley.  I would think that  tensioner or another  idler pulley would be needed for this setup to work

I love that triple blower setup. The belt is just wrapped around the blower pulleys (not powered at all).  And I'm no blower expert (although I suppose I could be called blowhard).

[Ace-Garageguy]

Compound supercharging can actually work, but it takes a little more magic than just stacking one on top of another.

[bisc63]

This is/was the kind of show car that always irked me even as a kid. Hokey concepts that don't function, IE: all show no go, just didn't feel right to me as show CARS. CARS are something that you can drive, no matter how show-worthy. If you can't drive it or make it function, don't let it in the show.

[Ace-Garageguy]

1 hour ago, bisc63 said:

This is/was the kind of show car that always irked me even as a kid. Hokey concepts that don't function, IE: all show no go, just didn't feel right to me as show CARS. CARS are something that you can drive, no matter how show-worthy. If you can't drive it or make it function, don't let it in the show.

Honestly, that was the main thing that bothered me about the whole rat-rod hysteria too...not the style so much as the uselessness.

So many of them were so poorly engineered and built as to be undrivable, other than on and off the trailer.

It takes a lot more talent, skill, and effort to make kinetic sculpture that functions well than it does to pile together a bunch of basically static stuff just to get a reaction.

[Mark]

At absolute best, the one-on-top-of-the-other setup MIGHT work NEARLY as well as a single one.

Nobody has brought up the "pyramid" dual supercharger setup used on some other show rods.  That started out as a serious attempt, but racers quickly figured out it was cheaper and easier to just install a larger supercharger or change pulleys to drive a single one at higher RPM relative to engine RPM.

[atomicholiday]

8 hours ago, bisc63 said:

This is/was the kind of show car that always irked me even as a kid. Hokey concepts that don't function, IE: all show no go, just didn't feel right to me as show CARS. CARS are something that you can drive, no matter how show-worthy. If you can't drive it or make it function, don't let it in the show.

This is a pet peeve of mine on some of the more modern trends we've seen over the past 20 years or so.   Stuff like tuner cars with wheels that stick WAY out of the wheel wells and are cocked at crazy angles.   The concept of tuner cars I get.   That's just modern day,  high tech hot rodding.  But those wheels?  It can't possibility handle worth a darn.  And donks?...

 

That being said, at least they can travel down the road under their own power.  Unlike many of the old show rods.

Edited June 29 by atomicholiday

[Fat Brian]

9 hours ago, peteski said:

Well, but the toothed belt just "kisses" the  lower blower's pulley (instead of making better contact around the pulley's perimeter).  The belt would likely slip over that pulley.  I would think that  tensioner or another  idler pulley would be needed for this setup to work

I love that triple blower setup. The belt is just wrapped around the blower pulleys (not powered at all).  And I'm no blower expert (although I suppose I could be called blowhard).

Yeah, the lower pulleys aren't really getting enough contact to drive them correctly but the way a roots blower you can't blow air through it if it's not moving. The whole thing is a mess.

[Daddyfink]

Ok, this is turning into a bit of a "Get Off My Lawn!" moment. Let's keep it on track. 

These are wacky show rods, they look wild, and that is all it is, just show. As a kid, I was enthralled by these things. I had no idea if it worked or not, but it looked cool! Now I know better and it makes me chuckle, but hey, it worked on me as a kid. 

So don't try to take it too serious, it is just for fun. 

[GLMFAA1]

Wasn't the term called "No go Showboat"?

greg

[Ace-Garageguy]

43 minutes ago, Daddyfink said:

Ok, this is turning into a bit of a "Get Off My Lawn!" moment.

I disagree. I think it's simply about "functional vehicle" vs "static display piece"...or anything that ignores real-world 1+1=2 vehicle dynamics, like donks, wildly extreme camber, etc.

Kinda sorta like the little sub that was built without regard for the realities of correct design and engineering of composite structures..

But I say it's not an "old man shouting at clouds" thing because, when I was much younger, I was always disappointed when I found out some cool looking showcar had no guts in the engine, or some other mechanical deficiency that rendered it completely inoperative.

And much as I really liked the looks of Ed Roth's creations, some, in particular the Mysterion, were poorly engineered. The Mysterion is reputed to have suffered a frame rail failure while being unloaded from its trailer.

Pretty lame.

[Rob Hall]

I look at the fantasy stuff as just novelties of a specific era.  Before my time, not my thing so they just 'are'.. just as there have been many real concept cars displayed by manufacturers at auto shows w/ no powertrains. 

[Ace-Garageguy]

11 minutes ago, Rob Hall said:

... just as there have been many real concept cars displayed by manufacturers at auto shows w/ no powertrains. 

Of course, we all knew the omission of functionality of concept cars by manufacturers was not because of technical ineptitude or ignorance.

Can't always say that about showcars though...no matter what decade they're from...and definitely not about huge-wheel cars or insane camber.  🤓

 

Edited June 29 by Ace-Garageguy

[peteski]

1 hour ago, Daddyfink said:

Ok, this is turning into a bit of a "Get Off My Lawn!" moment. Let's keep it on track. 

These are wacky show rods, they look wild, and that is all it is, just show. As a kid, I was enthralled by these things. I had no idea if it worked or not, but it looked cool! Now I know better and it makes me chuckle, but hey, it worked on me as a kid. 

So don't try to take it too serious, it is just for fun. 

Hey, at least this one runs on its own (unless the heat discoloration on the exhaust pipes is faked). 

[Ace-Garageguy]

23 hours ago, peteski said:

Hey, at least this one runs on its own (unless the heat discoloration on the exhaust pipes is faked). 

 

On 6/29/2023 at 5:56 AM, Mark said:

Nobody has brought up the "pyramid" dual supercharger setup used on some other show rods.  That started out as a serious attempt...

By Romeo Palamedes IIRC, founder of American Racing (wheels), and if I remember right, made its first appearance on a drag boat.

And yes, it began life as a serious, functional setup, not a silly attempt just to look different.

AND...one shining example of a concept car that had stunning looks as well as performance (and was successfully raced) was Chevrolet's XP-87.

Edited June 30 by Ace-Garageguy

[Mark]

As for the Popcorn Wagon, I'd bet that it did run, even if it just had a carburetor under all that.   Carl Casper's stuff ran, all that I'm aware of.  He used his Paddy Wagon (Ford FE with four four-barrel carbs) as a push truck for his Young American dragster on occasion.

[CabDriver]

2 hours ago, peteski said:

Hey, at least this one runs on its own (unless the heat discoloration on the exhaust pipes is faked). 

Nope, no faking, it runs!

 

[Daddyfink]

6 hours ago, Ace-Garageguy said:

I disagree. I think it's simply about "functional vehicle" vs "static display piece"...or anything that ignores real-world 1+1=2 vehicle dynamics, like donks, wildly extreme camber, etc.

My comments are mainly about show rods, fantasy cars and the like. I didn't say anything about goofy modified road cars, and that is the Get Off My Lawn thing I was making reference to.

I know they barely work, if at all, but they where made to make us ooh and ahh, and fire up our imaginations. 

Honestly, who would go riding around in this thing in real life? 

[atomicholiday]

Point taken.  And I get it if they are done for either artistic expression or as an engineering exercise.

But I totally understand the statements above about being disappointed when finding out most of these things didn’t actually work.  (Thanks for crushing my dreams dad!  Next I suppose you’ll tell me Santa isn’t real…😂)

Edited June 29 by atomicholiday