Buddy Dickerson and his family love their first-generation Dodge Chargers. This is the first of two Chargers he currently owns, and this particular 1966 specimen has quite a pedigree. The very first of his Dodge Chargers rolled off of the assembly line in mid-year 1966 when comparatively few were produced. This specific Charger was the 7th that rolled off that assembly line with the vehicle identification tag (VIN) ending in the number seven.
Dickerson now races this notable Charger at Nostalgia Drag Racing League events and at tracks around the greater St. Louis region. His first Charger, which he once raced for many years at the old St. Louis/Gateway dragstrip, is now his street machine. This Charger, though he has built it into various versions over the years, has always been strictly for the dragstrip.
The Charger steel roof and quarters are matched with varied VFN fiberglass components and Lexan windows. Dickerson worked for a period at Jerry Bickel’s chassis shop, where he and a friend, John Dunn, fabricated and welded up the 8.50-certified mild steel chassis stretching out to a 117-inch wheelbase.
The entire car weighs in at a svelte 3,250 pounds with the driver — that’s compared to his similar street Charger, which tips the scales at over 4,200 pounds.
The number “007” ending the VIN tag denotes that this was the seventh ever Charger off of the assembly line. Now, it’s all business in the driver’s compartment with a wealth of aluminum panels, Autometer gauges, Grant steering wheel, Jaz seats, and a Hurst pistol-grip shifter.
The Charger competes with a 493 cubic-inch Mopar engine that uses a World Products block, Indy Cylinder Head wedge heads, and an Eagle rotating assembly. Finer details include a COMP Cams solid lifter cam and a Ken Jones-reworked Holley Performance Dominator carburetor with the combination assembled by Mike and Todd at Phase 2 Machine.
The drivetrain moves the big-block power through a 727 Torqueflite, flexplate, and 8-inch torque converter, all from Rick Allison at A&A Racing Transmission. A Jerry Bickel Race Cars driveshaft is connected to a braced 9-inch Ford rearend with ladder bar suspension.
Buddy Dickerson spends most days at the track with his kids, Madison and Cameron. The trunk area shows the continuation of the 8.50-certified cage, a Jaz fuel cell, Optima battery and Magnafuel fuel delivery system.
As a proud American, Buddy’s attention-grabbing paint scheme came to him while he was enjoying a trip to…
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