By Nick Licata – Images by Wes Allison
Dave Roberts, owner of this extremely potent ’57 Chevy is by no means related to the Los Angeles Dodgers manager of the same name, nor is he related to the legendary E. Glenn “Fireball” Roberts Jr. But what the Los Angeles Dodgers manager and the famous race car driver have in common is baseball. Roberts (the famous race car driver) pitched for the Zellwood Mud Hens, an American Legion baseball team where his ability to throw a fastball at a high rate of speed earned him the famous nickname “Fireball.”
Not dedicated to one brand, “Fireball” drove a number of cars throughout his racing career, including a ’62 Pontiac Catalina for the legendary Smokey Yunick. He also spent time behind the wheel of a supercharged ’57 Ford and raced a ’63 Ford Galaxie. But the car that ultimately got Dave’s attention was the ’57 Chevy he also raced. Although “Fireball” Roberts drove various makes of cars, the one constant was the number “22.”
“Back in the early days of NASCAR, I remember seeing photos of that ’57 Chevy. Images of that car stuck in my mind and influenced me to build a ’57 of my own,” Dave says. “My car was built to go straight and fast, unlike the ’57 Fireball drove, which was designed to go fast and navigate turns. Throughout the ’50s and ’60s no one did it better than he did.”
An Updated Gauge Cluster Provides More Information: 1957 Chevy Gauge Upgrade
Dave found the car on Craigslist under “Race Junk” and soon learned it was last registered in 1963 with all indications pointing to it living most of its life a quarter-mile at a time. It was a solid front axle gasser drag car that had a 1-gallon fuel tank mounted on the front bumper along with quarter-panels that had been cut to fit large slicks. Dave believes the car was also sponsored by Doug’s Headers at one time due to the faint hand-painted lettering on the lower front fender. “It was barely visible, but if you squinted and the light hit it just right, you could see it,” Dave laughs. “In fact, we ended up calling the car ‘Doug’ because of that. Throughout the long build process, my friends would joke and would always ask ‘when’s Doug going to be done?’
“When I brought the car home, the paint was shot, the floors were toast, and the body was rusty to the point where my wife and kids questioned my sanity,” Dave reveals. “At that point I had to question it myself, but it was the car I’d always wanted, so there was no turning back.”
Work on the car happened in phases at a few different shops and after years of little progress, he took the car to Don Lindfors at Altered Engineering in Orange, California. Lindfors, along with Gregg Peterson and Chris Ashworth, hung fresh quarter-panels and made new floors from scratch. They also prepped the sheetmetal and gapped the gaps to near perfection prior to sending it to Santini Paint and Body in Westminster, California, for finish sanding and paint. The Santini crew sprayed on a deep coat of PPG black then painted the chassis with a brilliant layer of PPG silver.
It was Dave’s idea to dress the 210 post in Bel Air trim to pay homage to good ol’ number 22 and because it adds more character to the otherwise mundane-looking car.
The cockpit’s refined scene includes some minor upgrades that offer a bit of modern functionality without disposing the car’s classic vibe. The seats and door panels are covered in gray and black leather designed to reflect the car’s original era. A 4130 chromoly eight-point rollcage created by the Altered Engineering crew offers additional safety measures and anchors the Crowe safety harness. Haneline gauges and an Auto Meter tach provide a full stream of data to keep Dave informed of any underhood shenanigans. An ididit steering column and steering wheel fit the visual landscape and concur with the Jeffco shift levers and Wilwood pedals.
Engine Time: 1957 Chevy Bel Air LS Engine Install
For power, it was big-block all the way. “I could have gone with an LS for reliability, driveability, and better gas mileage, but not for this car,” Dave affirms. “Tri-Fives are big cars and deserve big power with a big engine between the ’rails. I’ve always loved the look of a big-block, and a Tri-Five Chevy makes the perfect home.”
Performance Motors in North Carolina machined the Chevrolet Performance block while assembly was handled by “Uncle Bo.” Dave’s actual uncle? We don’t know for sure, but we do know it features a 4.530 bore and 4.75-inch stroke and it’s stuffed with Ross 10.5:1 pistons, Manley H-beam rods, and a Lunati crankshaft. Brodix CNC-ported BB-2 XTRA aluminum heads provide excellent flow to accommodate the requirements of the 850hp mill.
An Art Morrison Enterprises (AME) chassis armed with a rear ladder bar suspension includes QA1 coilover shocks and springs to get all that muscle to the ground. An AME Street Strut suspension with tubular control arms up front utilizes a 1-inch sway bar and QA1 coilover shocks and springs to achieve the proper stance while introducing the ’57 to driveability unachievable with the straight-axle suspension it came with.
Wilwood binders bring the hefty Chevy down from speed while Jeffco transmission gear changes come by way of the full-race Jeffco shift levers and a McLeod twin-disc clutch. Power makes its way to a Currie 9-inch rearend housing stuffed with a Detroit Locker, 4.11: gears, and 35-spline axles. Weld Racing polished Alumastar wheels are wrapped in Mickey Thompson Sportsman rubber up front and Hoosier Quick Time DOTs out back—a go-to setup in the street/strip world that coincides well with the car’s aggressive nature.
When Dave started the build back in 2004 he was hoping to have it done by his son’s eighth-grade graduation. Well, that didn’t happen, and in fact it even missed his high school graduation, confirming the project took much longer than expected. “The extensive metalwork the car needed really added to the complexity of the build,” Dave says. “Swapping the frame halfway through the build didn’t speed things up either. But it takes time to get things right and thanks to the expertise of Lindfors and his crew at Altered Engineering everything on the car was done right. It’s got more than enough power and everyone who straps in the passenger seat for the first time gets totally taken by surprise.”
Dave summarizes the build like this: “The sound, the torque, and instant shifts add up to a whole lot of fun, and that’s what this car is all about.”
With its obvious Pro Street demeanor, Dave’s ’57 lacks the ability to take corners with any amount of speed or precision, but we’d bet if Fireball were to get behind the wheel he’d do it better than anyone.
TECH CHECK
Owner: Dave Roberts, Villa Park, California
Vehicle: ’57 Chevy 210
Engine
Type: Big-block
Displacement: 632 ci
Compression Ratio: 10.5:1
Bore: 4.530
Stroke: 4.75
Cylinder Heads: Brodix BB-2 XTRA 26-degree
Rotating Assembly: Lunati crankshaft, Manley 6.535-inch H-beam rods, Ross pistons
Camshaft: Crane
Induction: Brodix intake manifold, 1,050-cfm Holley Dominator, Uni air filter with formed aluminum housing
Assembly: Uncle Bo
Valve Covers: Brodix
Alternator: GM
Ignition: MSD Pro-Billet
Exhaust: Performance Muffler 2¼x4-inch headers, 4-inch stainless exhaust, MagnaFlow 40-series mufflers
Ancillaries: Powermaster pulley kit
Output: 850 hp at 5,500 rpm, 900 lb-ft at 5,000 rpm
Drivetrain
Transmission: Jeffco four-speed
Clutch: McLeod Racing twin disc
Shifter: Jeffco Transmissions
Rear Axle: Currie Enterprises 9-inch, Currie 4.11:1 gears, Detroit locker, Currie 35-spline axles
Chassis
Chassis: Art Morrison Enterprises
Front Suspension: AME Street Strut, spindles, and tubular control arms; Detroit Speed rack-and-pinion steering; QA1 coilover shocks and 300-pound springs; AME 1-inch sway bar
Rear Suspension: AME ladder bar, Panhard bar, and sway bar; QA1 coilover shocks and 300-pound springs
Brakes: Wilwood 12-inch rotors, four-piston calipers
Wheels & Tires
Wheels: Weld Racing Alumastar, 15×4 front, 15×16 rear
Tires: Mickey Thompson Sportsman 26×7.50-15 front, Hoosier Quick Time DOT 31×18.50-15
Interior
Upholstery: Two-tone black and gray with black loop carpet
Door Panels: Black and gray leather
Seats: Stock bench with black and gray leather
Installation: Tito at Bon-A-Rue’s Upholstery (Orange, CA)
Safety Harness: Crow Safety Gear
Rollcage: Eight-point 4130 chromoly
Steering Column: Ididit
Steering Wheel: Ididit
Shifter: Jeffco
Wiring: Scratch by Altered Engineering
Dash: Stock with block-off plates
Instrumentation: Haneline, Auto Meter tach
Pedals: Wilwood
Radio: Stock
Exterior
Bodywork & Paint: Santini Paint and Body (Westminster, CA)
Sheetmetal Work: Altered Engineering
Paint: PPG black
Hood: 4-inch cowl
Plating: O.C. Plating (Orange, CA)
Click on this issue’s cover to see the enhanced digital version of Pro Street 1957 Chevy.
