i heard those H. Hornets were fast in their day. and only had 6-bangers. were those flatheads?
Itâs the common âSevinâ product youâll see at garden supply stores. If you do a google search for âsevin insecticideâ, youâll see various brands. Ortho is a popular brand.
The benefit of this powdered Sevin approach, over liquid sprays, is when you donât have access to spray the nest directly.
Be careful with it and use it sparingly as it is an insecticide.
Joe
The 1950 Hudsons featured both 6 & 8 cylinder engines, and strangely, the 8 actually had a slightly smaller displacement than the 6! Output was similar, with the 6 producing 123 hp, and the 8 putting out 128 hp. Of course, the torque of the 8 was much better.
In '51, the fabulous Hornet was introduced, with a 308 cubic inch flat-head six. In stock form it put out 145 hp, but by '53, with the addition of the dealer-installed âTwin H-Powerâ intake manifold and dual carbs, the output was increased nicely (I think that it produced about 165 hp, but that is just an estimate, as my memory of it is a bit faulty).
Because Hudsons had such a low center of gravity and such good handling (for the day), the Hornet became a favorite of racers. Some success on the track led the factory to introduce the â7-Xâ engine option, with overbored cylinders, a hot cam, larger valves, higher compression, and special exhaust headers. When properly tuned, the 7-X put out 210 hp, and was essentially unbeatable on the track, due to the combination of great handling and strong acceleration. Not bad for a flat-head engine, wouldnât you say?
Because the public craved V-8 ohv engines, and because Hudson decided to develop the compact-size Jet rather than spending the money on V-8 development for its large cars, Hudson died a premature death. The Jet was undoubtedly better and faster than the Rambler and the Henry-J with which it competed, but its homely appearance and its high price put off most potential buyers.
And, of course, with the low price of gasoline at that time, the market for compact cars was limited. The Jet was marketed for only 3 years before Hudson pulled the plug on this marketing failure. The decision to develop the Jet, rather than developing a V-8, is what did Hudson in, and this is a damn shame because Hudson was one of the best-engineered cars of its day.
The Hudson Hornet was a 6 cylinder flat head with a 308 cubic inch displacement. This car held the record for a couple of years for the number of stock car races won. One driver that I remember was Tim Flock. There were a couple of other drivers, Herb Thomas and Marshall Teague who did well with the Hudson Hornet. Hudson had introduced the âstep downâ design which gave it a low center of gravity and it was one of the best handling cars of its day. While other engines may have had more raw horsepower, Hudson could beat them with its superior handling. The engine and body style came out in 1948âthe original engine had a 262 cubic inch displacement. Hudsons, IMHO, were great automobiles and I personally liked the stying of the 1948-54 models. They were also very well built. Iâve never understood why they didnât sell well.
Ah! I get it. The âHudson Hornetâ with Doc Hudson in Pixarâs âCarsâ movie. Now it makes sense why they chose that car for that role.
Thanks VDCdriver and Triedaq for the interesting info.
If it were MY vehicle, Iâd wait for the next cool evening and go to the car wash . . . and then (when dressed in protective clothes) stick the spray wand in the bumper from all angles/holes/cracks. Youâll dislodge the nest, or at least chase them out all wet and madder than . . well, a hornet. Do it once or twice, youâll get rid of them for a few dollars.
Yes, they were in-line 6 flatheads. The later ones were 300+ cubic inches; the Super Sixes.
The one my neighbor has looks just like this one. (drool)
My brother in law had a 51 Mercury he built up and these were similar in appearance except his had a chopped top, channeled, and a later model V-8.
Believe meâŠthe right wasp spray WILL kille them instantly. I spent 30 years climbing telephone poles. The black rubber terminals attached to the cable are the preferred habitat for wasps, hornets, etc. We carried wasp and hornet spray, very similar to what I now buy at Home depot and other places like that, which shoots 20 feet and has an instant kill factor.
When you are on a pole, 25 feet off the ground, and only supported by a 1/4" penetration of climbing gaffs into the pole, you want to kill anything like that instantlyâŠit works.
Iâd go with the other suggestionsâŠwear heavy clothing, go out in early am or at night, keep the spray in one hand, and glove the other. Spray in and around the crack. You will see them crawl out, dying and dropping. Good luck.
I have a '52 mercury that had to have the motor rebuilt. We took it out it April and by June I noticed bumble bees buzzing around the car. It took me a while, but I found they had a nest in the frame of the car up by the engine and I didnât want to be pelted with stings while I was putting the motor back in, so after using several cans I decided to empty an entire can into the hole I thought they used to enter and exit. I could hear them angrily buzzing inside and eventually they started falling out and dying. Now when I tap the frame with a hammer there is no buzzing. Bees all gone and I suffered only one sting, on the nose!
I use Raid Wasp & Hornet spray, but BOTH hands get one. If not accesible by spray, I have used something like a Bangalore torpedo to get them from underneath. Several 1x4âs screwed together end to end, with a small room fogger attached to the far end, along with a short cross-piece to discourage flipping over. Activate the fogger, then slide it under the nest location while youâre 30 feet away at the other end of the device (with Raid handy just in case).
I guess that you win todayâs Resurrection Prize by reviving a 9 year old thread.
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Yeah I was going to comment but then saw it was from 2007. Why bother? Either the truck is gone or the mother in law is by now.
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All threads older than 1 yr should be locked!
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This thread was initiated nine years ago. Iâm guessing the OP has already dealt with the wasps. 
A gunpowder only charge loaded into a muzzle loading rifle or shotgun will absolutely destroy a wasp nest and all the wasps on it. Hold the muzzle about a foot away from the nest and pull the trigger.
Itâs best to use real gunpowder, (the original moniker of what we call âblack powderâ today), the substitutes sold today donât work that well for blank loads, they tend to âpoofâ instead of âbangâ when thereâs no projectile to provide the back pressure that the substitutes need to burn fast.
Also, donât try taking the shot out of a modern shotgun shell and using it for a blank, nitro or smokeless powder just goes âpoofâ if thereâs no projectile to provide the backpressure needed to make it explode. You can however dump out the smokeless powder and fill the shell about 1/3 way with black powder and close it with a toilet paper wad, or just hold the barrel pointed upwards.
Naturally, you shouldnât use this technique if you live where celebratory gunfire is frowned upon, wait 'til the Fourth of July and your neighbors will think itâs fireworks.
A friend of mine ran an auto repair garage and had a nest of wasps at the top corner of a garage door. It only had a small opening.
He placed a shop vac on a step ladder and duct taped the nozzle close to the opening. He put soapy water in he vac. For several days he ran the vac in the evening, when the wasps were returning. It worked, the wasps drowned in the soapy water.
OK, I had a bunch of ants swarming by my garage door so I grabbed the can of Brake Kleen since that was handy. All it did was stun them for a bit so its a âfailâ in my book. I wouldnât want to take the chance on hornets. So then got the Raid and theyâre still dead. The trick is to get them at dusk when they have returned to the next, then spray it and knock the nest down and step on it to oblivion. But still gotta be ready to run like heck.
Mother in Lawâs truck hosts a family of wasps? Why is that even a problem? ⊠lol âŠ
Whereâs that author that was asking about a murder scenario using a car a while back? Here we go. A perfect crime. Plant a nest of killer bees in the bumper to be found by mother in law. No jury would ever convict. And its not the same ole same ole cut brake line and car going over the cliff. Thatâs been tried since the 40âs but killer bees is something different.
I am really impressed with the number of responders from nine years ago who are still around on this board. I still plan to be here nine years from now as there are a lot more things I want to post to irritate all of you. The last thing I want to do in this world is croak because I know where the hell Iâll be.going!