43 jr Drag car

[C Body Bob]

The Execusioner

And here it is today is the collectors shop awaiting it's restoration. Just confirmed it still has its aluminum nose on it

 

[funnykarman]

I Know for a fact that Billy was a very good friend of the Petty's . I met Billy when I was 17 years old , When I would call down to his shop to shoot the breeze with him he would tell me to come down and see what he picked up from the Petty's shop . Usually both his truck and trailer was full . And yes the Petty's had a gully behind their shop that a lot of broken and bent up parts went. The wrecked one poped up when they build Maurice's new engine shop .
The car you see that has been restored was found behind a barn in Virginia in 1986 by me . I sold the car to Ron George in 1988 , long story , no place to keep it , no money , secound marrage took it all . I kept looking to see if the car would ever pop back up , when Mopar Collector's guide ran a story on finding the car it turned out to be the first one , when I looked at the article it knew where it was ,I remembered the RC drink machine in the back ground I called Billy and he said yep, he had it . went down and took pics with the magazine the article was in . The restored 43 JR has been in Mopar Collectors Guide and Chrysler Power , I sent a Note to Roland Osborn at Chrysler Power and he passed my number to Ron George , Ron called and we talked for 2 hrs . It's great to see that Ron kept it for 25 years and had it restored by the same folks at Petty's that built 50 before ... enclosed is a pic of the wrecked one at Billy's with Mopar Collector's Guide mag sitting on the car . I now live in Tucson AZ . the

 

[C Body Bob]

Billy "West" Pedin

Wow this just keeps getting better & better. Billy had friends all over the country. Here's a pic Ron Kirkpatric shared with me. Billy was often seen at the now defunct Dunn-Benson Dragstrip south of Raleigh. You know Maurice mentions Billy in his book " Chief "

 

[C Body Bob]

Wow my memory is starting to come back. There was another Maxie sitting close to this one. I want to say it was yellow & also had a name painted on the side. Wonder who ended up with that one .......

 

[funnykarman]

Billy West Pedin

Wow my memory is starting to come back. There was another Maxie sitting close to this one. I want to say it was yellow & also had a name painted on the side. Wonder who ended up with that one .......

I was born and raised in Cary N.C. moved to AZ later in life . Billy was one of a kind , I went down one day to buy an old Willys gasser he had , he did everything he could to talk me out of it and told me I needed an old race car he use to run , a 64 Plymouth . now listen to this I did not want it because the windshield was cracked , there was a split in one of the fenders and it only had 2 headlights . Let this sink for a minute , the front glass was lexan , the fenders and doors were aluminum , along with the hood , the hood scoop was missing so I passed and took the Willys home . The 64 car was 1 of the factory superstock cars . Later that year someone bought it . I could have bought it for $800.00 So I am a dumb *** . Later in years I wised up and again went to Billys looking for parts , He told me to go thru the barns and see if I could find what I wanted , in the secound floor of one was the complete exaust system for the 64 car , from cast iron manifolds to muffler , did not find what I needed but when I went back I asked him about it and he yep , you are right ... Billy was 1 of a kind and a good friend....

 

[C Body Bob]

Yea I know. Do you remember the red tube chassis Challenger to the left as you go down the driveway to his house. He offered me that car for $1500 bucks. I wanted a B body & passed. Then the White 68 Dart. Had the wierd front spoiler made into the bumper. Billy said it was one of the original Hemi Darts. Offered it for $5500 as a roller. Passed on that too. A 383 Challenger with factory sunroof. Running driving car. $3500 Yep passed. My buddy Jerry who I was building the Coronet for totaled it in just a few months. We went to Billy's place & Jerry bought the Orange 65 4 speed 383 Belvedere street / strip car he had. Jerry sold it after about 2 months because it was horrible on gas.

 

[funnykarman]

Yes I remember it.

Yea I know. Do you remember the red tube chassis Challenger to the left as you go down the driveway to his house. He offered me that car for $1500 bucks. I wanted a B body & passed. Then the White 68 Dart. Had the wierd front spoiler made into the bumper. Billy said it was one of the original Hemi Darts. Offered it for $5500 as a roller. Passed on that too. A 383 Challenger with factory sunroof. Running driving car. $3500 Yep passed. My buddy Jerry who I was building the Coronet for totaled it in just a few months. We went to Billy's place & Jerry bought the Orange 65 4 speed 383 Belvedere street / strip car he had. Jerry sold it after about 2 months because it was horrible on gas.

Yep I sure do , Billy drove the Virginia Twister AFX car years ago . He was down at Person County drag strip and had a wheel stand contest with altered wheelbase 55 chevy . Would walk the car down real slow for a few hundred feet just a little faster than you could walk , later I asked his how he did it and he replied that you would be amazed what a couple of railroad track steel pieces bolted in the trunk would do .

 

[C Body Bob]

I didn't know Billy ever drove a AFX car. I knew he had a deal for a Max Wedge car for one year. That may have been the car he tried to sell you. Person Co dragway has changed owners many times over the years. Now called Roxboro Motorsports Park. Owned by Jr Ward out of Virgina. Jr drives Jim Oddys 354 Hemi gasser. Dunn-Benson was torn down & new owner is building it into a Multi million dollar facility. Will be called Gallot Motorsport Park. Supposed to have a hotel & restaurant. All of us racers can't waite for it to open. The guy owns a pair of Pro Mods.

 

[funnykarman]

From my old memory

In 1962 Billy was racing Ford's and you are right about the Max Wedge car it was a 63 car , for 64 he got a 426 hemi superstock car with all the aluminum parts on it , he installed a lexan windshield and cut everything out he could for weight savings . The cars name was The Pilgrim . Billy was very superstious and crossing a black cats path was his top one , it seems he was running late to a race in Chester SC and crossed over one's path , well the hemi blew up causing him to lose the trans and rear . So if you ever rode anywhere with him and this happened you were going for a detoure . The Virginia Twister was in 1965 time frame Bill did not own the car but drove it for someone . There was a 66 barracuda afx car built withthe same name but Billy said that it handled very badly and His qoute was that car is going to kill someone . Here is apic of the afx car , I believe the 2 people in the pic are Billy and Jackie

 

[funnykarman]

From my old memory

In 1962 Billy was racing Ford's and you are right about the Max Wedge car it was a 63 car , for 64 he got a 426 hemi superstock car with all the aluminum parts on it , he installed a lexan windshield and cut everything out he could for weight savings . The cars name was The Pilgrim . Billy was very superstious and crossing a black cats path was his top one , it seems he was running late to a race in Chester SC and crossed over one's path , well the hemi blew up causing him to lose the trans and rear . So if you ever rode anywhere with him and this happened you were going for a detoure . The Virginia Twister was in 1965 time frame Bill did not own the car but drove it for someone . There was a 66 barracuda afx car built withthe same name but Billy said that it handled very badly and His qoute was that car is going to kill someone .

 

[C Body Bob]

Hum, The Pilgram. I'm thinking that other Maxie he showed me had that painted on it. Was it a light yellow. Maybe a black roof. Thinking is was a 63 Savoy?

 

[funnykarman]

You are right ,to the best I can remember , as far as the dart goes it was a 68 factory hemi car . It belonged to Max Hurley , it was cut up to run a lenco trans , someone did buy it from what Billy told me and was going to restore it . I remember seeing 4 of the chrome factory air cleaner set up that came on the crossram set up's piled in one of the cars . I think it was Jene Hinson's old superstock car that had been modifed for AFX action , all this was along time ago . Thing's were a whole light cheaper to buy . I got my first Hemi by trading it for a running 340 and trans . It came with some assembly required along with a 5 gallon bucket of bolts and parts . Put in my 67 cuda fast back with a 4 speed trans , found a set of glass fenders and hood that came on a factory hemi car for $150.00 went to Rockingham and picked it up from some folks that were rebuilding a factory car and got lighter glass for the front end . I picked up a second Hemi that had dropped a valve block , crank , roller cam and rocker assem. along with cross ram intake with linkage and carbs for $500.00 ... like I said A whole lot cheaper at the time just old woreout race cars,

 

[C Body Bob]

It was like stepping back in time to go over to his place. And he usually knew what it was all for or came off of. He was amazing

 

[C Body Bob]

Doodle Bug

Back in the day that's what they where called. Here Richard is paired up against one that probably has a 327 chebbie transplant. And I bet it still got its doors blown off

 

[67-Fury]

New copy of Chrysler Powet has Petty and a 65 Barracuda on the cover.

 

[C Body Bob]

Pretty cool

 

[C Body Bob]

The Execusioner

A pic from back in the day

 

[C Body Bob]

Courtesy of Ron Kirkpatrick. Here's Billy West's altered.

 

[b4black]

Hi all, I'm a little late to the discussion, but maybe I can contribute.

The first car, Outlawed, was wrecked on Feb 28th. During the next three weekends, Richard raced Billy West Peedin's The Little Pilgrim '64 Hemi Plymouth pictured above. The newspapers described Billy as an employee of Petty's. I know Richard raced The Little Pilgrim at Camp Wheeler and also at Piedmont vs. Ronnie Sox. By March 28, the 43 JR car was ready and Richard raced Arnie Beswick on the backstretch of Charlotte.

This picture was on display by Bristol Dragway this summer at their 50th anniversary. Richard's getting ready for the '65 Spring Nationals. That's Billy on the right.

 

[C Body Bob]

Good info & pics. Please post anything you have. When you would go over to Billy's shop it seed like nearly everything he had (engine parts) came from the Pettys. He had dozens of cam shafts. So how did you hear about this thread. Has been a lot of new members on these vintage threads lately. Just curious how you guys found out. Glad you're here. I love this stuff