This is the “Big Block” version of the Hoss Fly Barstool – as the name suggests it’s a motorized barstool powered by a 572 cubic inch V8, it produces 727 bhp at 6,300 rpm and 680 lb ft of torque at 4,900 rpm.
Exactly why anyone would want a barstool with similar power output figures as a 1980s-era Formula 1 car is unclear, but the fact that it has open headers means you won’t be able to hear the owner explain their reasoning anyway.
The Hoss Fly V8 Barstool
- Motorized barstools are nothing new of course, they’ve been around for decades in one form or another, though most of them are powered by small ~3 bhp Briggs & Stratton motors, not fire-breathing V8s.
- Hoss Fly is based in the small town of Friedens, Pennsylvania. They sell the Hoss Fly V8 Barstool in kit form, providing everything you need to build one with the exception of the engine.
- The prices of the kits start at $8,900 USD for the least expensive, on up to $10,900 USD for the Big Block Deluxe kit which is the most expensive option.
- The kits include the go kart-like tubular steel frame, all four wheels, the steering assembly and steering wheel, the seat that attaches to the top of the air cleaner, a fuel tank, and the automatic transmission.
Barstools + Big Blocks + Madness
No one knows who it was that invented the barstool, it’s an innovation who’s creator has long been lost to the annals of history.
The fuel tank and radiator are mounted at the back, the driver sits on a padded stool atop the carburetor, with their feet at the front on either side of the steering column.
What we do know with reasonable certainty is that the Hoss Fly is the most powerful kit-built barstool in the world – with a power-to-weight ratio higher than any Formula 1 car in history.
Hoss Fly was founded in 2007 in the small town of Friedens in Pennsylvania, the town has a population of just over 1,500 people, some of whom spend their days building kits to turn American V8s into self-propelled barstools.
The company offers three kits, the east expensive is the Hoss Fly Raw Kit at $8,900 USD. This is followed by the Small Block Deluxe Kit at $9,900 USD and the Big Block Deluxe Kit at $10,900 USD. The example you see pictured here is the big block version.
It’s not publicly known how many Hoss Fly barstool kits have been sold or how many have been completed, we only see them come up for sale infrequently and this is the first time we’ve seen one appear for sale with a big block engine fitted.
The Hoss Fly Big Block V8 Barstool Shown Here
The Hoss Fly barstool you see here is powered by a 572 cubic inch (9.37 liter) Chevrolet crate engine capable of 727 bhp at 6,300 rpm and 680 lb ft of torque at 4,900 rpm.
The ZZ572 Big Block V8 weighs approximately 580 lbs depending on final specification, combined with the Hoss Fly kit weight of ~200 lbs the total weight is ~780 lbs giving it a power-to-weight ratio of over 2,050 bhp per tonne.
Exactly how this much power can be made to work effectively in such a tiny, lightweight vehicle isn’t clear, though we do know that it has a top speed of 25 mph at 5,000 rpm.
The padded stool seat is mounted directly to the top of the carburetor just behind a small steering wheel, the driver then essentially sits on the engine with their feet on either side of the steering column.
At the back of the engine you’ll find the fuel tank, transmission, and radiator. The exhaust system is made up of individual open headers pointed up and back in a similar style to many drag racers, it’s clear that anyone within 100 yards would need to be wearing industrial ear protection to keep from going deaf.
But that’s probably half the fun.
If you’d like to read more about this Hoss Fly or register to bid you can click here to visit the listing on Mecum. It’s due to cross the auction block in late March and it’s being offered with no reserve.
Images courtesy of Mecum
Articles that Ben has written have been covered on CNN, Popular Mechanics, Smithsonian Magazine, Road & Track Magazine, the official Pinterest blog, the official eBay Motors blog, BuzzFeed, Autoweek Magazine, Wired Magazine, Autoblog, Gear Patrol, Jalopnik, The Verge, and many more.
Silodrome was founded by Ben back in 2010, in the years since the site has grown to become a world leader in the alternative and vintage motoring sector, with well over a million monthly readers from around the world and many hundreds of thousands of followers on social media.
