[kach22i]

https://patganahl.com/2021/04/05/one-old-proof-sheet/

While Bill Burke didn’t introduce his belly tank lakesters until after WW II, Bob Rufi and his good buddy Ralph Schenk both worked in the aircraft industry in Burbank well before the War, and used their skills to build these sophisticated, teardrop-shaped, aluminum-bodied, enclosed cockpit, open wheel “Streamliners.” Both ran similar 186 c.i. Chevrolet 4-cylinders with 3-port Olds OHV heads. But Rufi’s was incredibly fast, running 143 mph one-way, and setting the first-ever 140 mph long-standing speed record in 1940. Note the contrast of quality of cars in the upper photo.