Owner-supplied archive · Collectible card
Magnum Illusion
Big Time Drag Card
Card No. 9 · Copyright 1992 · Big Time Drag Cards
What the card says
This image appeared on the very popular wheelstander Magnum Illusion. This car was designed, built and driven by Bill Maverick and Rocket Rick Mehl of Newark, Ohio. It was a stretched fiberglass 1978 Dodge Magnum and was powered by a super charged 426 Hemi engine. It was licensed to wheelstand by the National Hot Rod Association.
Transcribed from the supplied reverse. The names, vehicle description and NHRA licensing statement above are the card publisher’s claims; the card alone does not independently verify them or establish the sequence of drivers.
Item details
| Publisher | Big Time Drag Cards |
|---|---|
| Printed date | 1992 copyright |
| Card number | 9, printed beneath the trophy illustration |
| Names on the item | “Bill Maverick,” “Rocket Rick Mehl,” and souvenir contact “Bill Maverick Golden” |
| Vehicle as described | Stretched fiberglass 1978 Dodge Magnum; supercharged 426 Hemi |
| Source / collection | The trading card shown is owned by Mike Burghart and forms part of his personal Magnum Illusion archive. Front and back images supplied by Mike Burghart. |
Collectible listing details
An item-specifics screenshot supplied with the card identifies it as card No. 9, a standard-size, English-language non-sport trading card on card stock. It lists 1992 as the year manufactured, “1st Edition” as a feature, and describes the copy as ungraded, excellent and unsigned.
| Listed set / card name | “1991 Big Time Drag Cards” |
|---|---|
| Listing attribution | Topps — contradicted by the supplied set information; see producer notes below. |
| Listed card thickness | 20 Pt. |
| Listed country of origin | United States |
| Listed genre / subject | Racing / Drag Racing |
These are listing-supplied descriptions, not independently verified production records. The listing’s “1991” set name differs from both its 1992 manufacture field and the 1992 copyright printed on the reverse. The reverse credits Big Time Drag Cards. The additional set information supplied by Mike Burghart identifies Big Time Drag Cards, Inc. as the independent producer and describes Topps attributions as errors. Condition and autograph fields describe the offered copy, rather than every card in the issue.
View the supplied item-specifics screenshot
Set and producer information
The additional set-information screenshot supplied by Mike Burghart identifies the “1991 Big Time Drag Cards” set as independently produced by Big Time Drag Cards, Inc., and specifically distinguishes it from Topps.
| Reported base set | 96 cards: numbered 1–95, plus an unnumbered cover / face card |
|---|---|
| Subject matter | Drag racing personalities, historic cars and legends of the sport |
| This card | No. 9 · Magnum Illusion |
The supplied summary also mentions separate limited-edition sticker sets and short-print releases, including reported runs of 500 or 2,500 copies for selected sticker sets. Those figures do not establish the print run or rarity of this Magnum Illusion card.
Source: a research-summary screenshot supplied by Mike Burghart. Its underlying linked sources have not been independently checked for this page. The card itself carries a 1992 copyright; the summary and listing use “1991” as the set name.
View the supplied set-information screenshot
Artwork provenance and the painted car
Mike Burghart reports that the color artwork on this trading card matches a black-and-white photograph of the artwork sent to him years ago by the artist’s widow. He also reports receiving from her a photograph showing the artist and Bill Golden beside the same artwork painted on the car.
A separate black-and-white event photograph supplied by Burghart shows Magnum Illusion with its body removed. On the panel behind the cockpit, the Magnum Illusion lettering, central starburst, helmeted portrait and surrounding starfield are visible. These motifs also appear in the card artwork.
Closer views of the painted artwork
These additional black-and-white details show the artwork painted on the car: the cockpit-panel view includes the helmeted portrait, while the closer lettering view shows the starburst and dimensional letter shapes. They provide further visual comparison with the artwork reproduced on the trading card.
The history of the photographs received from the artist’s widow is recorded here as Mike Burghart’s firsthand account. The visible artwork provides a comparison with the trading card; the card’s 1992 copyright does not date the original painting or these photographs.
Open research question: the earlier paint design
Owner hypothesis · Unconfirmed. Mike Burghart suggests that the blue-car artwork reproduced on this card may preserve the earlier design Bill Golden discussed replacing in Larry Rea’s April 24, 1978 article, “Golden Paints To Please His Fans.”
The article describes Golden’s dissatisfaction with an initial $1,500 paint job and his removal of most of it before reworking the car’s appearance for its Lakeland debut. It describes the finished car’s Star Wars theme, but does not identify the blue artwork on this card as the rejected design or establish that the earlier design lacked that theme.
The proposed connection remains unresolved. Burghart hopes contact with the artist’s widow may clarify the original artwork and its sequence. The matching motifs in the photographs connect the artwork to the car, but do not by themselves date the blue design or place it before Golden’s reported repaint.
How it fits the archive
The reverse identifies the previously undated color artwork as the front of a collectible card carrying a 1992 copyright. That date belongs to this card issue; it does not establish when the original artwork was created or when the depicted paint scheme was used. Its “Rocket Rick Mehl” credit is useful evidence of how the car and driver were presented on this item.
The souvenir address and publisher phone number visible on the reverse are historical printed details, not current contact information.