Graham Withers Ampol AA/FD

Posts relating to early (Pre 1985) Hotrodding History in Australia, including Hotrod and Custom Shows plus early Drag Racing, Speedway, Hillclimbs etc.
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Nailhead Bucket
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Re: Graham Withers Ampol AA/FD

Post by Nailhead Bucket »

This is a not the Ampol car: But still drag racing with a twist -
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Bob Honeybrook
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Re: Graham Withers Ampol AA/FD

Post by Bob Honeybrook »

Graham Withers is on facebook if you want to contact him.
55effie
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Re: Graham Withers Ampol AA/FD

Post by 55effie »

Retro Boy wrote:Howdy
Has anyone got some colour photos of Graham Withers Ampol GT AA/FD. It was on the cover of The Australian Hot Rodding Review in December 1969 I think. In fact any photos of it when it was White with Red & Blue stripes?
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Tony
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Nailhead Bucket
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Re: Graham Withers Ampol AA/FD

Post by Nailhead Bucket »

That firesuit reminds me of an article in one of my old Aussie hot rod mags: After a meet at the old Surfers dragway, three T/F drivers went wandering
around in a paddock on the side of the hwy in their suits for a joke. Several motorists were startled, though police only received one call about " aliens" loose
in a field. :D
The older I get, the more everyone else can bite my arse.
gunna34
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Re: Graham Withers Ampol AA/FD

Post by gunna34 »

i was speaking to Graham not long ago pretty sure his first rail was shipped from the states in bits and he bolted it together at his home in Cheltenham Vic .He still has all the photos and all the memorabilia , he still lives in chelt . Very interesting person to talk to. He's still involved in motor sport.
Andyd
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Re: Graham Withers Ampol AA/FD

Post by Andyd »

Dunno why but have got all inspired again to finish the 1/25th scale model of Graham Withers 1st fueler, the short wheelbase 1966-68 version, am building it same as that on the Sept 1968 Australian Hot Rodding Review cover complete with the dent in the front header pipe...............have decals and am using the AMT reissued MPC Ramchargers Fueler kit as a base with a few modifications etc.......I am still not 100% certain as to the original, 1968 cars wheelbase, I've a couple of side on pics from various sources over the yrs and using the rear wheels size of 16" I get a wheelbase of 160"...........I rang & spoke to Mr Withers about 14yrs ago when I 1st started doing this and unfortunately he couldn't be certain as to the wheelbase so I have left it as what I calculated it to be.......but ...does anyone have any info re the wheelbase?............thanks, Andy Douglas
Andyd
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Re: Graham Withers Ampol AA/FD

Post by Andyd »

Well, I suppose these things can't be rushed..........lol.........since the virus thing shut everything down I've been building a few, more than a few actually models, started doing those that were molded in coloured plastic, just using Tamiya polish to polish the body shells and no paint then progressed onto a few kits that I'd painted and stop building..........and lately started getting out some old rattle cans and throwing some paint on........so far since March this year I've completed 36 models and have only 270 unbuilt car kits and 65 aircraft kits to go......lol.......anyway..........I've decided to finish the Graham Withers Fueler conversion of the Ramchargers dragster........have just painted what "body" there is gloss white, and am about to get stuck into the frame........so .......from everything I can see, and I've got copies of the coloured adverts the frame was a satin/gloss black, which I assume was the rear axle as well..........does anyone know whether the car ran disc or drum brakes?, also as the "body" was aluminium am I right in painting the inside a flat alloy colour......or was the inside of the body painted white also?......am not being pedantic just would like to have it as close as I can..........my understanding is that after the car was rebuilt with the long wheelbase frame, the old frame was thrown away?...........I spoke to Graham Withers 18 yrs ago when I started this and he was unable to remember much about the car at all so any assistance would be helpful........I never saw the car run, my first drag meet was at Castlereagh in 1969, by then the long car was running..........regards, Andy Douglas
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Vonfat
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Re: Graham Withers Ampol AA/FD

Post by Vonfat »

Graham is on Faceache if you want to contact him and ask him these questions.
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Harv
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Re: Graham Withers Ampol AA/FD

Post by Harv »

A little O/T, but Graham was one of the founders of Cee Gee Holdings along with Garth Campbell (the “Cee” comes from “Campbell”, the “Gee” comes from Graham). They made go-fast bits, including floor shifters for grey motors. Cee Gee Holdings would later become Impala Performance Products - they mob that made all the floor shifters.

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Harv
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Re: Graham Withers Ampol AA/FD

Post by Harv »

Looks like the photo that was used for the oil painting advert:
Graham Withers 1.jpg
https://www.facebook.com/AustralianDrag ... 722712066/

Cheers,
Harv
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Greg N Smith
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Re: Graham Withers Ampol AA/FD

Post by Greg N Smith »

I am surprised that at top speed the driver can raise the right hand and operate the brake without their hand being blown out the back of the car by the wind !

If you are riding a top fuel bike don't let go of your grip on the handle bars !
Andyd
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Re: Graham Withers Ampol AA/FD

Post by Andyd »

Regarding the adverts that the car was in, I have 3, all full colour, full page adverts, one from the Nov 1968 Racing Car News inside of the front cover, 2nd from inside front cover again, January 1969 racing Car News and a 3rd advertwhich is undated showing both Graham Withers Fueler with the chute out just in front of Ash Marshalls Vandal, plus an original cover from the September 1968 Australian Hot Rodding Review with Graham Withers in his fire suit standing beside the rear tyre of the car, the pic has a great shot of the Hemi and with the trees in the background I'm certain the pic was taken at Castlereagh...these are all A4 size, laminated pics which together with 30-40 other black & white pics from various Oz magazines from around 1966-68 make up the reference material I have been using.
........I have spoken to Graham Withers over the phone probably 15-18 yrs ago and he was really not that interested in helping me, because he may have thought I was doing this for some commercial reason...........I did have the shop then BUT I was quite emphatic that the info was purely to enable me to make a model of his car for my own personal interest..........he couldn't even tell me the wheelbase and chassis colour so I thanked him for his time and left it at that.
........so I have found out thru rechecking magazine reports that the car did indeed use PBR sourced disc brakes as this is mentioned in the December 1969 Australian Hot Rodding Review Cover story & 6 page article on the new 200inch wheelbase car that had just been built, the impression one gets from that article that apart from the engine, rear end and front wheel hubs nothing else was salvaged from the original car and it probably ended up with the scrap metal yard.....tho' that's just a guess on my part.
........anyway I've painted the frame black, the discs have been found, the engine is getting a refresh, nice new 11.75-16 M & H Racemasters have been found and I await the gloss white painted body to dry.........it may even get a run across the model table in the next week......lol........Andy Douglas.
Andyd
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Re: Graham Withers Ampol AA/FD

Post by Andyd »

And does anyone know much about Scott Fuel Injection?............have asked on the Hamb and supposedly Scott Injection doesn't have a return line to the fuel tank BUT 3 pics I have of the Withers Fueler show what appears to be a fuel line entering the tank at the top rear of the tank which would equate to a return line......the feed line is easy to see, running from the bottom rear of the tank straight to the pump..........this other line tho?...............but no one seems to know where it comes from on the engine.......anyone here got any ideas?............lol..................
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