Milt Decker wants to drive the quickest and fastest nitrous small-block car in the world. That’s a lofty goal, but this ’63 split-window Corvette is well on its way to runnin’ with the big dogs in Outlaw Pro Street. Milt has always been a racer. When he was a kid, he wheeled a soapbox-derby car. Today, when the Dover, Pennsylvania, used-car dealer isn’t making deals, his attentions are focused on pushing this 2,300-pound Sting Ray through the traps at over 200 mph.
The bright Lemon Ice PPG-painted ’63 Hairy Glass split-window body makes an immediate impression. But what really sets this shark apart from the rest of the big-block predators in Pro Outlaw is that this is a small-block–powered car. Bringing a knife to a gunfight is rarely a good idea, but Milt’s Mouse power plan isn’t as crazy as it sounds. Class rules give nitrous’d small-block cars a serious weight advantage, allowing a 2,250-pound car while the rest of the class usually weighs in at closer to 2,800 pounds.
Milt chose Gene Fulton to build the motor for his effort, starting with a 4.155x4.25-inch bore and stroke plan to create the 463ci Mouse. Dart Little Chief splayed valve heads are the key ingredient in this mixture, massaged by Competition Flow Specialties and featuring 2.250/1.65-inch titanium valves. The tall deck iron Rocket block is stroked with a Callies steel crank, Venolia pistons, and a “big” Comp Cams cam (that’s all Milt would say) with a Jesel belt drive. Up top, Fulton built the sheetmetal intake and mounted a pair of 1,150-cfm Holley Dominator carburetors. More power comes from the two-stage NOS fogger system, while an MSD ignition ensures the fire stays lit. On the motor, Fulton says this baby Rat cranks out 925 hp, but on the nitrous, they’d rather not comment. We plugged the details into our calculator and came up with roughly 1,300 hp to push this stinger past 200 mph in the 1,320. Power is transferred through a Lenco four-speed and a Mark Williams center section sporting Richmond 4.86 gears.
Tim McAmus built the round-tube chassis for the Corvette while Jon Little has assisted in tuning the chassis and clutch. More help from Darin Flohr and Joy Decker resulted in Milt’s first pass down the track—a 6.97/202.0-mph effort. America loves an underdog—especially when it’s a small-block bottle rocket taking on the big, bad Rats on the NMCA trail.