Tether Cars
THE TETHER CARS FOUND IN THIS GALLERY ARE AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE.
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PLEASE CALL, TEXT, OR EMAIL ME FOR COMPLETE DETAILS
John P Avery - [email protected] - 386.795.8000

Contact me if you are looking for something not listed.


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Welcome to the updated VintageRacer TETHER CAR GALLERY.  I have been collecting TETHER CARS for over 40 years and, in order to keep the collection fresh, offer, from time-to-time, cars for sale.  The cars found in this gallery are available for purchase.  You might also find engines, speed planes, tether boats, and vintage tin toy racers.  If you have an interest in anything found here, or perhaps something not found here; or comments, questions, or
just want to catch up please call or email me. 

 ALL OF THE CARS LISTED HERE ARE ORIGINAL UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED !!
CLICK ON ANY OF THE IMAGES TO SEE A FULL FRAME SHOT OF THE SERIES. 

                                                                                        INTERESTING, HIGH QUALITY TRADES ARE ALWAYS WELCOME.  HAVE FUN!!

 1946 DOOLING "F" CHAMPION SPECIAL
                                                     
The "F" was the sixth tether car produced by the Dooling Brothers beginning in April,1946.  The cars were cast in magnesium with bevel gears driving the rear wheels.   This restored original example is powered by a spark ignition Hornet  engine, which turns through the driveline with excellent compression, and is complete with coil, condenser, fuel tanks, and wiring.  The original magnesium body has no damage; the paint is brilliant. This is an exceptional example of an iconic Dooling Brothers post-war racer.

         CONSTANTINE YONAITES' MARTIN FLASH
​                                                  HAND BUILT BODY; McCOY POWER

This martin Flash is an example of the talent of  Constantine Yonaites, who owned and raced the car with the Chicago Mite Car Club at the Calumet Park Field House, as well as with the National Mite Race Car Association  (NMRCA) on 1/80th mile mite car tracks throughout the Midwest.  Yonaites built the wooden buck and created the body out of 12-14 layers of fine cheesecloth stretched tightly over the buck and saturated with wallpaper paste.  After the wallpaper paste dried, the edges were trimmed and the tops painted;  a true "labor of love! The McCoy .19 engine has excellent compression driving the rear wheels; the driveline turns through smoothly. The Martin Flash fuel tank contains a venturi tube embedded in it for air flow directly to the engine. The car is 10" long minus the tail skid. The workmanship and engineering on this car are outstanding; there are still, after all of these years,  no cracks or damage to the body!  A newspaper photo from 1955 is included in the gallery. This is an exceptional complete, original, custom bodied Constantine Yonaites Martin Flash custom mite tether car; a rare time capsule indeed! 
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1941 BUNCH SPEED DEMON
"Lucky 7"; Bunch Mighty Midget engine
RARE metal body by Zip Grandell
~ SOLD ~

The Bunch SPEED DEMON was one of the earliest tether cars on the market beginning in 1938 with sales concluding in 1941.  The cars were sold as kits with the body consisting of balsa wood blocks requiring "modest trimming and sanding". Near the end of the run, several cars were produced with metal bodies....this is one of those rare examples!  The metal bodies were built by Zip Grandell, a well known tether car racer and builder.  This example is powered by a Bunch Mighty Midget engine and features an updated drive unit replacing the ineffective "wizard drive" found in the early kits.  In place are the fuel tank, wiring, and battery! The 80+ year old tires have been replaced.  This is an original, complete, rare Grandell bodied Bunch Speed Demon.  

"MUG" SHOTS
 VintageRacer mugs have popped up in collections all around the world.....stay tuned for additional gallery entries......they are always interesting.

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                   1950 McCOY HOT ROD
                  HAND CARVED WOODEN BODY - AS RACED

This custom McCOY HOT ROD TETHER CAR is in outstanding original "as raced" condition. The car is 14" long and features a hand carved wooden body making this hot rod clearly more streamlined than the stock aluminum deuce body.  The paint shows typical scuffs in a few places; the graphics are hand painted; the numerals decals.    This hot rod features a Fairabend style front axle and custom fuel tank car; it is powered by a McCoy.60 ignition  engine with a CUSTOM HIGH COMPRESSION HEAD; the driveline turns through smoothly, the engine has excellent compression.  The tether bracket is in place.  This unique custom bodied HOT ROD has an exceptional, period correct, as run shelf presence; it displays beautifully!

1941 HILLER COMET
​~ SOLD ~
RARE, EARLY "VERTICAL ENGINE" EXAMPLE



​Produced by Hiller Industries of San Francisco, CA, a company run by Stanley Hiller Jr, son of the leader in helicopter development and production, the Hiller Comet was the first mass produced, complete, ready to race tether car on the market. Production began in 1941 with the "vertical engine" configuration utilizing a differential driving the rear wheels. The upright ignition Hiller engine in this example wears serial number 534.  The engine has excellent compression and turns through the driveline smoothly; the timer mechanism is a replacement.  The unique part of this car, in the day, was the pressed steel body and pan.  The body paint and decals are original; the pan has been repainted.  The wheels and tires, which show flat spotting, are original. The "vertical engine" cars were produced for just one year, being replaced in 1942 with the now more common, "slant engine" examples utilizing spur gears.

1947 McCOY INVADER 
10 FIN DOOLING .61 POWERED !
~ SOLD ~

The McCoy Invader was introduced by Duro-Matic in 1947.    This fiberglass bodied car  is powered by a
10 Fin Dooling .61  which turns through smoothly with excellent compression.  The car is wired with the coil and condenser, the pan handle is in place. The rear wheels and tires are C-R (Curly), the fronts McCoy; the tires are hard but not cracked.  The old paint shows age patina; the decals are  period correct (Glen was clearly the owner/driver) The car is missing its battery box and fuel tank, a common occurrence as they were probably used in Glen's next car. The body and pan have no cracks or damage. This is a real-deal, as raced 10 fin DOOLING .61 powered McCoy Invader. 

1950  deBolt SPEEDWAGON 20
RARE HORNET .199 POWERED !

The deBolt SPEEDWAGON is a legendary vintage speedplane designed in the late 1940's by pioneering control line flier Hal deBolt. His company, deBolt Modeling Engineering Co (DEMCO) produced kits in three sizes; 20, 30, and 50, this being the smaller SPEEDWAGON 20 powered by the iconic Hornet .199 wearing serial number A133. This plane is 15" long from the tip of the spinner with a wingspan of 12".  It is original, complete, as flown, unrestored with original decals on each side with numeral #1 on the left wing and atop the engine cover.  A SPEEDWAGON 50 won the National Championship in 1949.  This .199 HORNET POWERED deBOLT SPEEDWAGON 20 should be hanging from the ceiling in your TETHER CAR shrine room!

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www.VintageRacer.net : Vintage Automobile Collections, by John P. Avery
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