Like Indian motorcycles, post-war hot rods and Gee Bee airplanes, "belly tank" race cars are the quintessence of American technical ingenuity in the middle of the last century. Also called "Lakesters", belly tank racers took advantage of surplus military materiel after WWII, namely fuel tanks. The tanks were the teardrop-shaped types fitted to fighter planes, their aerodynamic profiles, dimensions and structural integrity making them the perfect basis for a scratch-built racer.

While they have a plump profile, the name has nothing to do with girth around the midriff: born in the 1940s, the "belly" refers to the emergency drop tanks being fitted to the bellies of fighter planes. They were used to extend the range of aircraft, and were detached and discarded when emptied, hence "drop tanks."

Along with canteens, uniforms and other clothing, watches, belts, messenger bags and anything else that could be re-sold after the war, the tear-drop-shaped fuel tanks became army surplus like other leftovers. I recall many hours in my Uncle Bob's and Cousin Hudi's Surplus Store in Portland, Maine, marvelling at unused, as-new and lightly-worn paraphernalia - much favoured by hippies in the 1960s.www.bestpanerai.com

So did the car fanatics on the other side of the USA. In the late 1940s, hot-rodding legend Bill Burke of the So-Cal Speed Shop built what is generally regarded as the first "Lakester" from a surplus aircraft drop tank, in recognition of racing on perfectly flat, dry lakes. According to the lore, the idea of using a fuel tank as an car body came to Burke when he saw some at Guadalcanal. Noting the beautiful streamlining, he measured one and did the maths: knowing the dimensions of a Ford engine block and rear end, he worked out the concept of a streamlined body with four exposed wheels. The aerodynamics had already been addressed.

Burke's first Lakester was created from a 168-gallon tank used on the P-51 Mustang, of which there were ample supplies of surplus belly tanks from assorted aircraft selling for under $50 each. Eventually, the design evolved to use the larger 315-gallon tank used on the P-38 Lightning,Hublot Replica Watches the builders preferring to use just two bottom halves, as the upper halves of the tanks had openings for the fuel and hardware for fixing to the aircraft.