b02.11.05_003_OSM_0070_UNK_1.jpg (1766 bytes)

Photo ID # b02.11.05_003_OSM_0070_UNK_1
Car #: #3
Driver (s) : Billy Osmun or Jimmy Horton...  Gary Balough???  Kenny Weld???
Location: Unknown
Date: 1970's
Photographer: Unknown
Photo provided by: Bob Sykes
Comments: Can't remember if this was Jimmy Horton or Billy Osmun, (or Gary Balough) but one thing is for sure... it's Weld through and through!  I think this was one of the first Weld cars built, but I'm sure that Ken Johnson and others can fill in the rest.
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02/12/05 Bob Scott Pretty sure that when Smith got the Weld cars it was Horton driving the Statewide car as also had a team car for Kenny Brightbill in his typical white/red #19 colors for a year. Can't remember the reason why but Billy O did run them at one time .
02/12/05 Ned This may have been Gary Balough's ride.  He also drove the Weld car early on.
02/12/05 3-Wide You're right again Ned.... Kevin Budden just sent the Vault a real nice picture of Gary behind the wheel of this car.  We are waiting to find out who the photographer is before posting it.
02/14/05 Steve Fegley I think u guys are mixed up....It's a Weld car but not one of the first ones.  The first ones didn't have the quarter panel window.  I know for a fact Brightbill's didn't   I have tons of pictures of that car.   I'm pretty sure the first 6 didn't have it.  (2 Statewides, 1 Statewide Brightbill and the first one Weikert's #29, and I think there was 2 more. )
02/15/05 3-Wide As mentioned above, I'm not sure, but I know that Ken Johnson and others will be when they tap into this page....  We have found pictures of Gary Balough, Billy Osmun and Jimmy Horton behind the wheel of the red Statewide #3 Weld car. 
02/15/05 John Mc I would be willing to bet this is the absolute first car that was originally the 29. If you look closely, this car had a bit more slope to the roof than the others did. It did have that cutout rear window, although it wasn't there in the beginning. Osmun ran this car 1st for Statewide, then Balough, Horton, etc. I think Weld may have even run it a few times.
02/22/05 Steve Fegley I found pictures this car in 70s scrapbook, indicates it was driven at Reading the whole 76 season by Gary Balough, then raced at Syracuse by Jimmy Horton that year and from then on as Balough went into the Ferriola 73.

Interesting note there's also a pic in there of two identical cars like this at Syracuse - one is Jimmy Horton aboard and the other with none other then Richie Evans driving. 

One things for sure - that this pic of the car on the page is set up for Reading - note huge Firestone Drag 500 right rear tire.  (hmmmmmmmm - wonder who it was that figured out that cross grooving a drag racing tire would hook up so well to the Reading cushion?   Be interesting trivia question . :)

Although u guys are right - this could be the original 29, with a new body on it with the quarter window in it.

02/26/05 John Stover Think this might be Osmun. I believe the body on Baloughs #3 was more squared off. The body on this #3 looks more curved and rounded. And, Steve, to answer your trivia question, it was KB. Thanks, John Stover
02/26/05 Kevin Budden welds.jpg (51611 bytes)
(Above provided by Kevin Budden to help solve the mystery above....)  Photo from an AARN Racing Pictorial - Subcribe to AARN today at 609-888-3618!)
03/02/05 Steve Fegley Glad that dilemma is cleared up lol.  Turns out everyone was partly right.  Amazing how we all remember those tiny lil details of racecars 30 yrs ago, but I forgot where I put my car keys yesterday lol.
Interesting is that pic Kevin put up, with KB's Weld car having that lil quarter window? I   never remember that in all pics I have of this car, including some originals from Reading, its not there?  I do remember Kenny flipping this car exiting turn 2 one night , I'm wondering if they put new body on it then?  I'm pretty sure it needed front clip, front was bent up bad from the engine forward.
03/24/05 Ken Johnson This is the 2nd Weld car (referring to color photo above).   Kenny drove this as a Statewide car and won 2 features in one day at Reading. It was his last visit to Reading as a driver.

When the cars were built and sold, no one ever gave it a thought that 30 years later we would wonder what happened to all the cars. Brightbill's car was changed all around from the original because the Weld cars were not built for his driving style. Same for the Cagle car. Upstate New York driving styles were not for an original Weld car on a weekly basis. Stacy Reeves, Welds mechanic went with Cagle for half the season then returned to York.
01/26/06 Pete Gardner How many Weld cars were built?
02/05/06 3-Wide The following info was provided by Matt Bahre, who's family purchased an original Weld car back in 1975:

The original Weld car (1975) led to Weld building only six (6) complete cars that winter (05/06) for the 1976 season. They were purchased by:

* Will Cagle (also the driver)
* Conoly Farms (Alan Johnson)
* Walt Olsen (Also the driver)
* T/K performance (house car that Weld drove)
* Statewide (Kenny Brightbill) note: Statewide also bought the original Weld car for 1976
* Bahre Racing (Ed Delmolino)

There was one other original frame welded up by (Stacey Reeves) during the building of these cars. Cagle bought this extra frame... and we (the Bahre's) bought it from Cagle mid-way through 76. That new frame and parts still sits in our garage.

Also... That was a Lanco transmission Weld used and was banned after one week and that car nick named (THE SIDEWINDER) 1977did end up with either Bunting or Breeding in Delaware. He brought it to Syracuse that year but it never hit the track.

Matt Bahre

02/05/06 Matt Bahre It's confusing but this is definitely the original car!  Once again, there are a couple subtle differences in this car compared to the one's Weld built the following year.

First, The rear weight jacker is a slightly different shape then the 6 copies. Also, as already mentioned, (in response to a different picture of a previous Weld car) the roof line and cage would be flat even with the drag tires on. Also, the hood stands almost on top of the rail above the engine where the rest of the cars cover that rail.
12/06/07 Mark Braun Definitley the original Weld chassis. The original Weld chassis was the only chassis built with different length radius rods for the front axle.
     
     
     
     
     
     

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