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The Birdcage Maseratis
Ten years with a stable of Tipo 61 vintage racersDecember 16, 2011: During the 9 years and change that I worked at the Corte Madera location of Phil Reilly & Co, I had the pleasure of working on four different Maserati Tipo 61 Birdcages. The two cars in today’s lead image were major players in the success of the model, racing with Team Camoradi…
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The Maserati Birdcage Gearbox, Part One
The Tipo 61 transaxle's origins and mechanical layoutThe Tipo 61 Maserati “Birdcage” was a winning car under the right circumstances in its brief competitive lifespan from mid-1959 into 1961. Light weight was its major advantage, with the complex tubular chassis structure that spawned the “Birdcage” name being the main factor. It also had excellent disc brakes, licensed from Girling, and very good…
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Wrapping Up a Chaotic 2025
A year for the British racing carsThere was a lot a variety in 2025 to keep things interesting, with new-to-me projects as well as changes to my personal rolling stock. I started the year with a Jaguar XKE engine, a 4.2 liter for a vintage racing E-Type. The previous engine that came with the car blew up early in the new…
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The Old Volvo Chronicles: Origin Stories and Reckless Evading
My evolution as a car guy has taken some twists and turns over the last forty years. I went from being an uninterested teen, to an enthusiastic amateur, to a sometimes racer and then a grizzled old vintage racing mechanic. In the lead image above, I’m sitting in car number 18, on pole position for…