Similarly, the exhaust ports...
Similarly, the exhaust ports are CNC-machined and have a dual bolt pattern for flexibility when installing headers.
The last major piece of the puzzle is the camshaft. There are many experts in the field of camshaft design, but it seemed like a good opportunity to work with Ed Curtis at FlowTech Induction. Ed's been in the business for decades and is a no-nonsense type of guy, to say the least. He confirmed that we were on the right track with our chosen hardware, and assured us that we would exceed our horsepower goal with FTI's tight-lash, solid-roller camshaft. This cam design is said to offer a best-of-both-worlds scenario, providing the additional power that solid-roller camshafts are known for, without the additional maintenance that typically scares away the average street/strip enthusiast. We won't go into specifics, but basically our camshaft is just under 0.700 inch of lift with a wide lobe-separation angle to retain boost in the cylinders rather than passing it through the exhaust during valve overlap. The lobe profiles favor the exhaust side since our car is boosted.
Ed gave us specific instructions on how to tailor our setup to work with his camshaft. He suggested stiffer valvesprings to handle the aggressive cam lobes, 3/8-inch pushrods for the increased spring pressure, and shaft rockers to maintain the proper valvetrain geometry under load. Ed also provided specific cam specs for us to pass along to Comp Cams. The fine folks there custom-ground our bumpstick from a billet core and set us up with complementary support gear-a cam retainer, timing chain, solid-roller lifters, and 3/8-inch pushrods.
Trick Flow's R-Series lower...
Trick Flow's R-Series lower intake manifold, with its provisions for factory sensors and fuel rail mounts, could almost pass for a typical street-style intake that is, until you see it coupled with the Box R-series upper intake manifold which is quite a bit....
Since Ed insisted that we use PAC Racing valvesprings with his FTI cam design, we called Chris Osborn at PAC. He was able to come up with a set of springs that matched our cam specs. He also sent valvespring seats, titanium spring retainers, and a really nice height gauge that PAC designed to accurately measure the assembled height of the spring package. The shaft-mounted rocker arms were surprisingly easy to find, as Coast High Performance has a system specifically designed for use with our Trick Flow High Port heads. The Probe Industries shaft rocker systems feature machined-aluminum rockers with dual-needle roller bearings that ride on aircraft-steel shafts bolted to steel stands.
With all of the major components of our long-block collected, we turned to Summit Racing Equipment for dozens of parts we needed to complete the package, including Cometic multi-layer-steel head gaskets, ARP fasteners, an FRPP oil pump and shaft, and a beautiful Moroso oil pan and pickup. I'm telling you, if you need a part, Summit Racing Equipment has it!
.....racier than what is typically...
.....racier than what is typically found under the hood of a street car. Bob Kurgan's Drag Radial ride is probably the fastest car with our heads/intake combination. He has broken into the 7-second zone with similar induction equipment.
One last piece of billet goodness that we added to our engine was a crankshaft dampener from Innovators West. It is the company's 6.5-inch billet-aluminum dampener, set up for an internally balanced rotating assembly. Ours features an optional blower hub, which has a larger outer diameter to provide extra strength and resist cracking that can result from the load placed on the dampener by the ProCharger's massive cog-drive system. It is a direct fit for the crank snout but requires a larger front-cover seal, which was supplied.
To assemble this all-star list of engine components, we needed an all-star builder, and there was never any doubt as to whom we would call upon. For almost 60 years Ohio George Montgomery has operated George's Speed Shop in Dayton, Ohio, and his list of accomplishments is staggering. Early in his career, he gained international recognition within the drag racing community by campaigning his '33 Willys, known as the World's Wildest Willys. His Willys, along with the Malco Gasser and Mr. Gasket Gasser Mustangs, won him countless NHRA class wins, setting dozens of e.t. and mph records in the process. More recently, George was inducted into the International Drag Racing Hall of Fame and awarded the prestigious NHRA Lifetime Achievement Award. So this is the kind of person you want to build your engine! George and his son, Gregg Montgomery, put 100 years of combined engine-building experience to use with every engine they produce, so we are honored to have them on our team.
The boys at George's Speed...
The boys at George's Speed Shop wasted no time getting the short-block assembled, so as soon as the FlowTech Induction-spec'd, custom-grind solid-roller cam arrived from Comp Cams, they installed it along with this adjustable timing chain set and cam retainer plate with Torrington roller thrust bearings, also from Comp. Of course, Gregg degree'd the cam to make sure the valve events were correct.
Follow the captions as we show how our big-inch small-block Ford came together, and stay tuned for a full dyno report in an upcoming issue.
Moving upward and onward with...
Moving upward and onward with our engine build, we installed these solid-roller lifters from Comp Cams into the freshly honed lifter bores in order to check piston-to-valve clearance.
Here we lowered a cylinder...
Here we lowered a cylinder head onto the block. Notice how thick the deck is on these High-Port heads. We shouldn't have any trouble keeping the combustion chamber sealed, even under pressure from the ProCharger.
Next we installed these heavy-duty,...
Next we installed these heavy-duty, 3/8-inch chrome-moly pushrods, having recently measured the correct pushrod length. They almost seem like overkill on a street car, but Ed Curtis at FTI specifically requested 3/8-inch pushrods for our tight-lash solid-roller combination.
With the Probe Industries'...
With the Probe Industries' shaft-mount rocker arms installed, we confirmed that the valves clear our pistons by a mile. The rockers look great resting on our PAC Racing triple valvesprings and titanium retainers.
Having confirmed piston-to-valve...
Having confirmed piston-to-valve clearance, Gregg got to work assembling the rest of the valve train. Also visible in this picture is the Innovators West crankshaft dampener.
The Innovators West dampener...
The Innovators West dampener is a billet-aluminum piece with an oversized steel hub, and it looks sharp! Ours is a neutral-balance dampener, as the rotating assembly was internally balanced.
Accufab's F90MAX throttle...
Accufab's F90MAX throttle body is a great looking unit. It measures 90mm, which conveniently matches the opening of Trick Flow's Box R-Series upper manifold. The rubber O-ring on its flange is part of Accufab's MAX clamp system. The MAX clamp is a heavy-duty alternative to the standard silicone hose and clamp system, which can withstand astronomical boost levels. The red LX in the background is not Procjet Shocker, but rather a low-mileage '93 coupe that will receive some open-track love after Shocker is completed.
I would like to thank everyone...
I would like to thank everyone who made this project possible. I've dreamed of building an engine like this for years, and the people at the companies mentioned in this story made it happen. The dream continues as we head to the dyno, so stay tuned to see what this beast is capable of producing.
From this angle the intake...
From this angle the intake manifold resembles a tunnel-ram. The Box R-series intake is impressive to be sure, but it required a substantial amount of work to match up with our race-ported cylinder heads. First, we had the lower intake port-matched by Kevin Hall at Halls Porting Service right here in Somerset, Kentucky. He advised us that there was not enough material in the roof of the runners to properly line up the ports, so we needed to raise the intake off the heads. We called Brian Tooley at Total Engine Airflow, and he made us a custom set of intake gaskets by double-layering two pairs of Fel-Pro 1262Rs and then port-matching them to his High Port layout. With this configuration, the intake ports lined up with the cylinder heads perfectly, but there was one last hurdle. The intake bolt holes did not line up with the intake studs, so once again we were off to Halls Porting Service to remedy the situation. Kevin slotted the bolt holes on a mill and we finally achieved success!