Saturday, November 24, 2012

Chopped Fibersport Crosley HMod on Ebay

This Crosley-powered Fibersport has seen better days, but it still wears the Fibersport 'factory' baby blue livery and the seller claims that the motor ran well when he started it a year ago.

There are no photos of the frame, and that sure looks like a stock VC floor and trans tunnel to me, so this may be simply a Hot Shot or Supersport that was rebodied with a body from the Mays family factory (i.e. their basement).  Despite the gruesome hacking, this is clearly a Mark I Fibersport body - check the basic lines of what remains of the body and compare the ridge that runs from the top of the fender to the edge of the tub... an exact match.
John Mays and family pretty much owned the Hmod class in about '56-57 in the Midwest.  Mays developed a unique stepped intake manifold and experimented with seemingly nutty weight-saving experiments that paid off with a closet full of First Place trophies.  He dreamed of going pro and offered Fibersports for sale as either whole cars or just bodies.  As near as I can figure, he produced about three complete cars and about a dozen bodies - about half in this style, and the other half in the later 'D Jag' style designed by his son Bill Mays.  Mays moved to Florida around 1960 but never recaptured the magic of those mid-fifties years when he just couldn't lose.  Mays never got the financing he needed and got out of racing in the sixties.  I did an interview with his son Dave a couple of years ago and one of these days I'll figure out how to get it on youtube.
 
An ambitious fiberglass worker could recreate the missing bits, and I believe that the original mold for this body is owned by a guy in Maryland, so the buyer might be able to get just missing sections popped.  I doubt that this is a 'factory' Fibersport (a look at the chassis would be a big clue- there will me more holes than metal in the frame) but it is a great find nonetheless.  Good for me it's a few mountain ranges away.




5 comments:

Ol' Man Foster said...

Sold, for $1370. Somebody just got one hell of a deal.

Ol' Man Foster said...

Looks like it was bought by a guy who is very excited: he's already started a blog: http://crosleyfibersport.blogspot.com/

Will keep you posted!

Unknown said...

Update on this Fibersport. I bought the car this past summer from the fellow in Iowa and it now resides in Santa Fe, NM with its sister SIAM another Fibersport H-Mod. Hope to get to it in the next year.

Larry H
www.lchrestoration.com

Roobee said...

Greaat post thankyou

Roobee said...

Thank you for thiis