Barton, Andy

[Dan Rear]

To pick up various themes from various threads, what does anyone remember of Andy B, in particular, his single seat cars. From memory, after his Mini days, he had a Lotus 69, March 73B (updated along the way), Chevron B35, Sana/Barton JTB3, March 77B, March 782/79B, March 802, AC3000, the latter based on the last March as I recall.

I saw quite a lot of him in the 70s at Mallory/Donington, but I think he was based further north, as Croft seemed to be his home track. Anyone any memories of Andy or his cars ? Is he still around, or retired ?

[Jeremy Jackson]

I saw him loads at Croft 69-74, since that was orignally my local track, firstly in his Mini against the likes of Sedric Bell & Alex Clacher, there were some great races.

College (and thus lack of spending money) kept me away during his single-seater stuff in the later 70s, but saw him in the 802, and the 802-based AC in the early-mid 80s.

I'd love to know what he's up to aswell.

[Mackmot]

My dad thinks Andy Barton is some kind of god. Some of the stories he tells me are mythical, like where legends come from. Most of the time I dont believe him, I'll get him to email me some.

[capriman]

Originally Posted by Mackmot

My dad thinks Andy Barton is some kind of god. Some of the stories he tells me are mythical, like where legends come from. Most of the time I dont believe him, I'll get him to email me some.

He is a god!! He was my child hood hero!!

[jwblackwell]

Back to the future, 1981 having arrived in the UK on our way to Ireland to purchase the Nugent Autosport advertised Argo JM8 #44 Atlantic (he took a deposit on the car while we were in the air) we diverted to Argo to meet with Jo Marquart who put us on the path to the Rackham Argo JM5 #36 so South we go down past Lydden and do the deal, crate the car and call Rapid Transport to collect it up. Now on to the Ironman portion of this story. We need a BDA, there is one advertised in Autosport we call, I can't understand a word the person on the other end of the phone is saying, something about Allen Smith BDA it was the man him self talking about his hart (Hart 420) it was my impression we had to get there quick as there was a problem with his hart. Off we go to the North find Andy at the garage and the motor is in the car (March of some duravation) loved the grease and total disheveled look of the place. Purchased the BDA on the spot Andy said no problem will crate it and send it on let's go to my place and have a bite what a lovely evening his wife (I am remiss for I can not remember her name) made Yorkshire Pudding. She was on the UK international bridge team. Having meet Argo ( Jo and Nick Jordan) Dave Rackham and the Andy Barton I have the fondest memories of club racing in the UK. By the way that Argo JM5 with the Allen Smith BDA won it's first race in the US a SCCA National with James Blackwell driving. I just love this forum.

[Mackmot]

I just got this email:

About four years ago, I stopped in to see Andy Barton in the garage he still runs in Throckley, Newcastle which still looks the same as I remember from the seventies. Andy hadn’t looked to have aged a day and was still as fit as a butcher’s dog. He now gets his speed thrills from a high powered speed boat that he owns in Majorca where he has a house next door to Julian Bailey.

As a kid, I used to travel all over with Andy Barton, sat in his formula 2 car in the back of his transporter. I have memories of things like him taking tyres off wheels with his bare hands. If the engine started from cold on three cylinders he would remove the spark plug with the engine running, replace it with another, refit the plug lead and the engine would run ok.

After crashing an AC on the road I remember him racing with a steel pin sticking out of his elbow, which he wrapped foam and tank tape around and still managed to change gear and drive very quickly. When he finished the race he had a bottle of whisky under the seat for the pain. No modern bull**** here. We used to sleep in the truck and get completely ratted the night before races.

I remember at one group 8 race at Mallory, the chevron, having broken a drive shaft, crashed at the hairpin due to lack of brakes. We repaired the car and ‘borrowed’ a Beetle drive shaft leaving a note on the windscreen to say we would return it after the race.

These memories are from a long time ago and maybe a little bit ‘rose tinted’…

[Mackmot]

Also some more cars to add. He started with an NFU Prince, followed by a Morris Minor 1000 then 3 Minis, the last one he badly crashed at Croft at the end of the straight which put him out for 2 years. Then he got a Lotus 69 Ex Fittipaldi Moonraker car which he sold to long time friend Davy Muter. Followed by a previously crashed March 72b from Geoff Friswell and updated to a 742. Then he bought a 752 and the rest of Dan's list is accurate.

Davy Muter also bought the Barton JTB3, which was a Sana with a longer adapter to make it have a longer wheelbase.

[Dan Rear]

Mackmot, do you or your Dad know where the Ironman got a couple of those cars from. The Chevron B35 he had in early 77, but not for long I think, then the 782/79B he had from mid-79 to 1981 or so. Both are a bit of a mystery to us 'tub no crunchers' !

Also did Dave Muter buy Andy's cars from him, or borrow/hire them when Andy got a newer one.

I also remember him as a tough looking chap, very short hair for the time, a bid Squaddie-like even. I was always a bit wary of approaching him, I was only 14 or so at the time! Very goood driver though as I remember, pretty much unbeatable in Croft/Ingliston Libres, unless someone like Crawford went up there, or Dickson in a bigger car. He also went very well when he ventured south to Mallory/Donington, even Silverstone occasionally.

Stories like yours re his elbow, or the Beetle driveshaft borrowing are great, just what makes 10/10ths so brilliant. Any more like that, about Andy or anyone else ???

[morninggents]

Originally Posted by Dan Rear

Mackmot, do you or your Dad know where the Ironman got a couple of those cars from. The Chevron B35 he had in early 77, but not for long I think, then the 782/79B he had from mid-79 to 1981 or so. Both are a bit of a mystery to us 'tub no crunchers' !

Also did Dave Muter buy Andy's cars from him, or borrow/hire them when Andy got a newer one.

I also remember him as a tough looking chap, very short hair for the time, a bid Squaddie-like even. I was always a bit wary of approaching him, I was only 14 or so at the time! Very goood driver though as I remember, pretty much unbeatable in Croft/Ingliston Libres, unless someone like Crawford went up there, or Dickson in a bigger car. He also went very well when he ventured south to Mallory/Donington, even Silverstone occasionally.

Stories like yours re his elbow, or the Beetle driveshaft borrowing are great, just what makes 10/10ths so brilliant. Any more like that, about Andy or anyone else ???

Just rereading this thread I'm surprised nobody has mentioned Andy's seat in the Morris Minor collapsing as he braked at the end of the long straight at Rufforth. Although it was my local circuit I wasn't there on that day but I understand the car went a very long distance with Andy scrambling around on the floor!

Another time at Croft he was having the usual furious dice with Sedric bell and another car, probably Alex Clacher's Imp and coming out of the chicane there was no room for three cars wide up the pit straight and one of them, Sedric I think, had to drive straight up the pit road at unabated speed then back on to the circuit after the pits. Highly dangerous, but amusing at the time.

I think he also raced a Mini Marcos at some stage.

[Andy Barton]

Hi, defiantely not Davey Muter in the team photo.
Dad did drive a Sana...dunno who it was did the pit lane thing...but do remember hearing about it...will find out for you
Ta! AB Jnr

[roy moss]

Dear Andy/Jnr,
I have recently joined the forum on the 772 p/ 782 thread.
I believe I may have your original March 782 that was bought/built from the March works spare tub and works factory parts.
I have posted photos of the car on the 772p thread and would appreciate if you could have a look and reply as I obviously would dearly like to track the history of the car with the end result of hopefully having a legitimate chassis number(as it was a works tub).
Many thanks
Roy

[Angus Theape]

Originally Posted by morninggents

Another time at Croft he was having the usual furious dice with Sedric bell and another car, probably Alex Clacher's Imp and coming out of the chicane there was no room for three cars wide up the pit straight and one of them, Sedric I think, had to drive straight up the pit road at unabated speed then back on to the circuit after the pits. Highly dangerous, but amusing at the time.

I think he also raced a Mini Marcos at some stage.

To correct the mini racers book. Alex Clacher was not involved, as unusually or him he had retired. Sedric slid wide coming out the chicane and Andy got alongside him and wouldn't let him back on the track. Eventually Sedric reached tarmac at the start of the pitlane, still with Andy refusing to move over. So Sedric dodged right and went through the pits, changing up on the way through and rejoined still alongside Andy. The clerk of the course took a slightly dim view of the matter and black flagged Sedric, who managed to talk his way out of the incident.


Another post asked where he got his cars from, well one mini was 2 bits of floor pan welded together. Iiirc it was the last deseamed one with the glass fibre roof.

[JMLB]

I think he also raced a Mini Marcos at some stage.

Attached is a very poor picture of him in 1966 at Ingliston

[Chris Griffin]

I remember marshalling at Donington on a 2 dayer sometime in the mid 80s. Cant remember the meeting or what he was driving but the Saturday night in the bar at Redgate was legendary. Big crowd in there and the place was buzzing. Getting louder and louder as the drink went down. They had just installed a new TV Projector on the ceiling and were playing Tom and Jerry Cartoons back to back. The whole place was booing Tom and cheering Jerry. Bartons entourage were the loudest by far. They eventually took to smashing each other over the head with a tin tray in time to the music! Mad Night.

[Steve Jones]

I'm sure I remember the Morris 1000. Was it white with a thick blue stripe down the middle?

This would be back in the mid/late '60s at Croft and Rufforth etc. If it's the same guy and the same car, he was amazing - must have created an impression given that it is now nearly 40 years ago.

In those days, I was in my early/mid teens and we used to go to school on Saturday mornings. I used to go to watch the racing with a mate from school (Tim Heaton - where are you now?) whose Dad raced a Riley 1.5 on and off and had a 3.8 Mk2 Jag as a road car.

He used to collect us both from school in Wakefield at 12-00 and we would be off to Croft, Rufforth even Oulton Park, always getting there before the racing started. I still remember one trip to Oulton (no M62 then) when we raced over to Cheshire, Tim's Dad driving the Jag with a pint in a handle glass sat in front of the gear lever. Never spilled a drop but drank it as we travelled.

Happy days

STEVE

[Andrew Kitson]

This is Andy's March 77B, from an ad for it in the back of an old Autosport.

[Mackmot]

Which Autosport is that Andrew??

[Dan Rear]

Andrew/Mackmot, thats the 782/79B, not the 77B, and is one of Andy's 'mystery' cars. Any more info on it ?

Dan

[Dan Rear]

Picking this up again, I believe the car pictured here may have been built up from a crashed 782 tub, according to a very early 1979 A/Sport report. Anyone any ideas ?

[Mackmot]

Apparently that sounds about right. My dad says he has a vague memory that that was a ex Ingo Hoffmann car that Andy bought damaged and repaired, as with so many of the cars he bought.

He also adds a memory of a Chevron B35 that he crashed into a toilet block at Ingliston which was the same block that Doug Niven crashed into with his V8 Escort.

[allenbrown]

I needed a break from BT35 speculation so here's a few things I spotted about Barton's cars while looking up March 802s:

Close season stock:
Autosport advert 29 Jan 1981 p53
March 78/79 B Atlantic or Hill Climb car available with or without spare tub
March 772P/77B Atlantic or Hill Climb car rebuilt with new tub Aug 1980.

He raced up to:
Scotcircuit 26 Apr (AS 7 May 1981 p45) : March-Hart 782

but then (Autosport 7 May 1981 p42)
"Barton wrote off his March 792 in practice at Croft on Easter Monday". He was "just getting the car sorted after fitting a Hart 420R over the winter to replace the Atlantic unit fitted in 1980". The engine is OK and "Andy has another tub to rebuild the car around".

In the following weeks:
Oulton 9 May (AS 21 May 1981 p50) : March-Hart 772
Mallory 10 May (AS 21 May 1981 p47) : March-Hart 792
Scotcircuit 17 May (AS 28 May 1981 p48) : March 782 ("rebuilt")
AS 11 Jun 1981 p43: March-Hart 792
AS 25 Jun 1981 p54: March-Hart 78/792

So did he stick the Hart in the back of his old 772P/77B for the weekend of 9-10 May and then rebuild his 782/79B around a "new" tub in time for the next weekend?

Allen

[Dan Rear]

[QUOTE=allenbrown]I needed a break from BT35 speculation so here's a few things I spotted about Barton's cars while looking up March 802s:

Close season stock:
Autosport advert 29 Jan 1981 p53
March 78/79 B Atlantic or Hill Climb car available with or without spare tub
March 772P/77B Atlantic or Hill Climb car rebuilt with new tub Aug 1980.

He raced up to:
Scotcircuit 26 Apr (AS 7 May 1981 p45) : March-Hart 782

but then (Autosport 7 May 1981 p42)
"Barton wrote off his March 792 in practice at Croft on Easter Monday". He was "just getting the car sorted after fitting a Hart 420R over the winter to replace the Atlantic unit fitted in 1980". The engine is OK and "Andy has another tub to rebuild the car around".

Allen,

In the following weeks:
Oulton 9 May (AS 21 May 1981 p50) : March-Hart 772
Mallory 10 May (AS 21 May 1981 p47) : March-Hart 792
Scotcircuit 17 May (AS 28 May 1981 p48) : March 782 ("rebuilt")
AS 11 Jun 1981 p43: March-Hart 792
AS 25 Jun 1981 p54: March-Hart 78/792

So did he stick the Hart in the back of his old 772P/77B for the weekend of 9-10 May and then rebuild his 782/79B around a "new" tub in time for the next weekend?


Allen, we know the 77B was ex-Ian S from ZA, and think the 782/79B/792 was ex-Hoffman. I'm intrigued by the Mallory 81 May 10 meet. I haven't got a prog from it, so presume I wasn't there (A-levels looming maybe the reason I missed it !!), what was the meeting/race Andy was in ? I can't think he'd have stuck the Hart in the 77B would he, did he borrow a real 772, the ex-Dickson one maybe?

I saw the 782/79B on July 5 '81, at the Donington Open race, supporting the Belgian Touring Cars (really!), it was entered as a "782 Hart". Andy quallied well down, perhaps running it in (?), but cane thru' to 2nd behind Val M's 'Bennepaldi'.

Some interesting stuff out in that race - Muter in the Barton, Corridon in the Lyncar ('79 ex-Villota?), Kenny Stone non-started a '74B', Travis in a '772P' (which I'm sure it wasn't) BDA, Robinson & Booth in B48s, Malkie in the ex-Jim C/Keke B45. Plus sundry others.

In the supporting 'International Atlantic Race', Bob Howlings has his scruffy B29, Tyrrell Arnold the 2nd Argo JM9, Jim Evans the Kim 792 (which Jim E owned), and Malcolm Hull in the Neil Fletcher Racing '782' - this one I've mentioned before, no idea what it was.

[rcarr]

The Andy Barton AC 3000M was bought by Ron Cumming then Ron sold it to David Smail in Glasgow, who I think still owns the shell, used a cosworth yb as far as I can remember? Last ran in about 2002 or 2000 I think!

[Cameron Winton]

Andy Barton was a bit of an Ingliston legend. I remember the B35 which maybe went to one of the scottish Libre drivers (can't remember who maybe Stuart Rollo?) he had March 77B then a 78b/782 which he seemed to develop extensively until it had 80b style sidepods and 792 nose. He kept the 77B which appeared to be hired out to Cameron Binnie.
The JTB3 appeared between the 77B & the 78B and Andy didn't use it for long. Part of the 78 season probably then I think it went onto Dave Muter.
Aaah - memories.

[allenbrown]

Originally Posted by Cameron Winton

...He kept the 77B which appeared to be hired out to Cameron Binnie...

That could explain a lot!!