We’ve made another new friend here in The Garage today. Dale Smith found us via Jeff Bressler’s post about board track racing on Long Island. Dale lives in Indianapolis and has some hard core enthusiasm for racing in his family. Dale and artist friend Brian Stinger have created this fabulous display of board track racing history. The Miller Splinter Special was built out of steel on a high pressure water cutting tool, while Smith built the replica track surface.
As Dale and his friends and family have some pretty serious projects underway, I suspect we’ll be seeing much more of them!
3 comments ↓
Where can I buy one????
How cool.
How damn cool is THAT!
We are going to add a FLAGMAN soon. The track pictured is not the latest, the latest is the color of the top picture, but longer, it is 48″ long by 18 inches wide. The pictures don’t show the bank to the track. The boards are 1/2″ wide by 1/4″ thick, and random lengths. I sprayed the track with gray auto primer, wiped most off before it could dry, then used paste furniture wax to give certain parts of the track a shine as from SLIPPING tires. I am also going to add a crude top rail of sorts. The seat is leather, the hand fuel pump is 3-D as is the tail pipe. The motion wires are stainless welding rod. The car body does have a bend to show a hood or top panel. Brian designed and painted the piece, I did the track. He made three versions of same. One went to George Poteet, Brian kept one, and I got the other. All are different. George’s is called the Memphis Special. Brian would sell his for $2,500. Brian worked for us in our hardware store while in highschool and art school, and I do detail work for him on small projects. The current project I can’t talk about, it is something special.
The Miller car is approx. 24″ long, 29″ counting wind wires, and is approx. by 7″ tall. Note the driver has only a hand on the right, no arm. The proportions are so good, and the bending of the steel and paint work plays lots of games with ones eyes, FOR SURE. The louvers are hand punched using a small metal chisel, and the rivits are solid brass. The hood straps are leather, and the shaddow was made from the actual shaddow when light was placed from above. The drivers arm is bent at the elbow, and he is leaning out of the cockpit. The paint work has no shine. Needless I am a proud owner. I made tracks for all three. There won’t be any more made from this design. He is a strong believer in one of a kind art, so on to another piece of art.
Dale in Indy
Never boast, rarely rest
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