I spoke to Ohio George at Beaver Springs 3 years about his cammer. He told me he was a full second faster than any other gasser at Indy. And he left his fastest engine at home. That year he won 11 of 12. Only loosing 1 race, a broken wheely bar. At Indy all the big guns saw what he had and started a petition to ban him and the engine. Big John, S W and C, and just about all the others. I ask him about durability. He laughed. He said he wound his up to over 9K and never had a failure. OG was a special man, and a great mechanic. Being a Chevy guy, he ate some crow when he switched to Ford. When ask why, he said I know a winner when I see one. And the Cammer was a winner. As an interesting side point OG said Ford never sent him a complete engine, only parts. Maybe that is one reason he was so successful. As he assembled each engine, he would change what he didn't like to make it better. True story, he spoke to me and my son for over 45 min. They had a rain delay that day.
It was in it's intended purpose.. running at sustained speeds on Superspeedways.. on the street and dragstrip performance wasn't that great.. later on changes were made that really turned it into a monster!
I remember walking through a Ford dealership when I was about 10 years old and they had 2 of these Motors on display in the showroom. I asked my Dad why do they call it a single overhead cam when it has 2 cams? As he was explaining a salesman overheard the conversation and came over and took the valve covers off one of the motors to help him explain. That meant a lot to a curious 10 year old.
Awesome! Especially for a 10-year-old kid, that stuff was so cool and the fact that they did that must have really made your day. No, it must have made entire youth, LOL. Actually I still feel that way when I go look at cool cars and engines. I guess I'm still a kid, just an old one 😁
Awesome at 10 youd have that interest!! And the dealer worker at the time did that for you. Lil things like that go along way. Just my uncle with a 69 mach 1 cobra jet car showing up to family picnics in it got me into cars! Daily driving a 652 rwhp 04 cobra now. Cammed up, kenne bell supercharger. Took it to my uncle one day, his freinds over at the time assumed my uncle did all the work. My uncle just said nope.. he did... gotta pass the knowledge/torch!!
I've always wanted to hear one running up and performing, there was a shop where I live a few years ago called Jim Green, he used to drag race the BARDAHL Green Elephant back in the 60s.. any way he had a few cammers on display in a couple of old rail cars, he said he'd be happy to fire one up but unfortunately it never happened.. one of the cars he had was built by Ed Pink, that was pretty damn cool..
I was 8 years old at a car show with my dad and he introduced me to a man who owned a Cobra kit car with a 427 cammer in it. The man gave me a ride in the car and because of that ride I'm buying a Cobra kit car in two weeks.
@@johnsheetz6639 Sure! As long as your willing to come down to Texas! It's a completed car, but I'm pulling the little 302 out in favor of a big block FE. It just don't look right under the hood the way it is.
@@stevenlaxton3618 I'm 5'11" and the seat is almost all the way up for me to drive it. I've got a friend who's 6'4" and the car fits him perfectly. Going to move the pedals back somehow...
My uncle had a pulling tractor in the late 70's thru early 80's with this same engine , It was called The Little American and no other pullers could compete with it until the multiple engine tractors started coming out . He was sponsored by Ford and the Us air force for many years , That cammer was mean at the very least . George Montgomery from the Ohio gassers here in ohio was the tuner for his 2 cammer engines .
Ran up on a Ford Sohc 427 in the early 80s. Tore my 396 Chevelle up. I was the 4th fastest car in town back then. Caught up with the guy at a bank parking lot and he showed me the motor. Was a retired Ford assembly worker.
I can remember when Don "The Snake" Prudhomme showed up with a Ford Cammer in a Drag Race slingshot. He and another drag racer "The Mongoose" ruled the drag tracks in Southern California. Man, those engines struck fear in the hearts of other drag racers. The Cammer had a very distinctive sound to it too.
Pete Robinson was one of the most innovative individuals I ever met at the dragstrips. I used to set up injection for the fuelers and there was no injection system I would rather work with than Pete Robinson's. Crower's systems were nice, too; and it was due to the same quality that both Pete and Bruce had: They could think outside the box and see problems from a different angle than other rodders. A lot of people credited Pete's innovative ability due to his work for NASA but it ran much deeper than that.......both of these guys had the ability to see a problem, roll it around in their head in a different way the other hot rodders and come away with a different solution than their peers. Losing Pete was a tremendous loss for us all.....who knows what he would have come up with if he'd been around longer?
Tom, I agree from all that I have heard and read about Pete, He was a brilliant man... He was the last holdout running the Cammer in Top Fuel from my understanding. Thanks for Watching! Andy
I worked with an old man in Montana who was part of the FE program. One night he and I were messing about south of town and his 74 F-150 4x4 totally smoked my 70 Dart 340. Hood up on his pickup showed one of these Cammers with 2x4 carbs and some funky headers. I'd never heard of such an engine. Lenny's response was epic: "The real good stuff is never well known." RIP Lenny
More than anything else, I wish Bill France would've allowed the Ford Cammer and the Chrysler Hemi to compete at least for a couple years in NASCAR against each other. That would've made for some spectacular racing at the super speedways. Great video, I really enjoyed it. Thanks Andy.
It could have went well, and it could have went all to hell. Adding HP to every car in the field is the same thing as putting a restrictor plate on all the cars. With more top speed... Those old 60's cars had to have 10 to 18" of wiggle room, just to get clean passes. Let alone 35 1960's cars doing 205mph. Believe me, if you had 20 or so Hemi's and SOHC's out on the track, you'd have enough drafting potential to hit 205 even in the say 67 Fairlane...
@@jonbrockman5308 I don't think Ford and Chrysler would have sat back and let GM run away with any type of auto racing .Remember the Aero.wars along with the Boss 429 that both Goodyear and Firestone were not ready for those speeds at Talladega? That 429 put out as much or more HP.as the Cammer and Chrysler had to build the Daytona Charger and Plymouth Super Bird to match speeds with the 429.
@@arkhsm Found the in-car footage I was thinking of (it's either Platt or Ed Terry) starting at the 22:05 mark of this video: czcams.com/video/HgxghLagkUI/video.html. The Ford Drag Team launched their Super Stock 427 SOHC engines at 6000 rpm and shifted at 8000 RPM! That explains the great engine sound!
Since Bill France was in Chevrolet's back pocket it was a certainty that the cammer would never be approved for NASCAR. I was heavy into the drags at about the same time and ran a Y-Block Ford. Whenever we started getting into the elimination rounds the panic-stricken Chevy drivers would start protesting and the Tech guys would find something wrong with my Ford. To this day I won't own a Chevy!
I don't find that surprising at all. I can't find enough love for these old Fords and absolutely love all the cool classic Fords. Some people think I'm crazy, but I want nothing more than to build a cool old Y-block hot rod with classic original hot rod parts. I did and FE 390 already, not its Y-block time hopefully one day.
Jon Kasse sells the 427 sohc for $55,000 at his Winder Georgia facility. Can’t afford it but am considering one of his boss nine’s. Currently run a 623 hp 460 in a 50 f1. Gotta love the fords.
Snuffy, That is pretty awesome setup you have! Im building my own version of a BOSS 429 using Hammerhead Performance Engines BOSS style heads on a 429" Stroker windsor for my 71 F100 that I call Casper! Andy
@@UnityMotorSportsGarage sounds like Casper is gonna be a goodun you gonna tub it. My trucks pretty much original and I don’t want to cut up the bed so I really don’t get much traction with 10’s , that’s max width for me. Don’t really matter though mines a work truck still haul manure , hay ,dirt or whatever.
@@GeorgeMcKinley. same here... I still use it as a truck! I run a 275/60 M/T drag radial and it ran 1.5x's 60' times I also run Cal Trac bars which helped a ton with my traction problems... So we will see how it acts with more power... Andy
@@UnityMotorSportsGarage I also run a Caltrac but recently had them send me a softer back half of the leaf, just too stiff for the street my back couldn’t take it any longer causing too many problems for this old man.
I love the footage of Hubert Platt, making the run, and banging the gears. That is one of a few of the historic Ford videos. The sound in that video is nothing short of poetry in motion. Thanks for posting.
Beaver Springs Dragway holds an annual FE race and show, and there’s always several SOHCs that show up. A handful of years back there was a gorgeous 61 Starliner with a cammer and manual trans I wish I could have taken home.
@@cooperparts I’d love to see it. They had a bunch of Thunderbolts, including Phil Bonner’s. There was even a gorgeous 64 Marauder 427/4 speed that was owned by my aunt’s high school boyfriend. He’d take my 14 year old father for jaunts around the block. The show gets bigger every year. Was held in April, but now it’s September and spanning several days.
It's been many years since I last visited, but if nothing has changed, the Don Garlit's Museum off I-75 near Ocala Florida had several old SOHC Powered dragsters. Pretty sure I remember Connie Kalitta's Bounty Hunter as well as one of Pete Robinson's. Also they had at least two engines on Stands. If you ever go to Florida, it's well worth stopping by as it's a treasure trove of old drag cars.
I own 2. I have a 550 hp 427 SOHC factory 64 Marauder . And I was lucky enough to find a Nascar banned one in B.C. Canada . Remember that the #'s of production is always off. 25% more of rare cars and engines are up here in Canada. Recent example was the Demon. Low production#'s but we got 500 up here that you folks don't include .
@@jimhofus916 Nope. Both the Hemi and the Ford Cammer were banned by Nascar--but the cammer was never allowed back because it kept kicking the hemis ass so badly the hemi simply couldnt compete with it,,
@@donreinke5863 Same with the 351 Cleveland when Nascar switched to small blocks.. The only 2 engines ever banned from Nascar and both were fords lmao!
You really have to think about how fast they are! There was no track glue. It was straight tires and asphalt. It started getting used in the nationals in 72. Most tracks didn't touch it in any other events until the early 80s. I remember going to the drags starting in 76 and there was never anything sticky in Epping NH until the early 80s or top fuel. When I was going in the 70s I remember walking on the track and thinking nothing of it. It was the 90s when I first discovered it in Epping at a top fuel race. My dang shoe come off. I remember thinking 🤔 when the heck did they start making them this sticky? Pulling a 7.55 on dry asphalt with tires hazing smoke past the 1/8 is straight ridiculous. A 2000hp small tire car won't get out of the 9s slightly hazing the tires past the 330. If you think about that, and that a 7.55 wasn't even qualifying. How much power were they making? With factory PARTS!!!
I get a feeling they were using a different equation to figure hp, or they were only concerned with horsepower at peak torque according to 5252rpm. Rolling mid 7s with tires spinning halfway down sounds like 2000+hp territory.
I have a diamond encrusted SOHC tie tac FOMOCO gave to some of the engineering staff that worked on it. My Grand Father retired in 75 as head of dyno lab and worked on cylinder heads of 65 Indy winner and pretty sure I met Kalitta when I was i kid
Kurt I agree! If there would have been more than 1500 engines made, I believe that if it had been installed in production based cars the aftermarket would have developed better cams, intakes and other parts...But we will never know! Andy
Wow, a 7 foot long timing chain. As someone who spannered on all brands of japanese motorcycles from the eighties into the two thousands and saw how many times they would struggle with stability in the cam drive area i cannot imagine the things that big fords chain was doing at high rpm.
Chains will always be the bug bear of engines. The longer they re the worse they are. The failure of most OHC engine is the chains A stock V8 replacing worn out stretched old chains is 50 hp. On a stock engine. Gears keep the cam timing where it is supposed to be butt can transmit valve train harmonics into the crank which in turn can fail. Toothbelts are far better, do not stretch much but are a bit fragile and never like oil.
It's easy to armchair quarterback things 50+yrs later , but maybe a separate chain for each bank would have calmed down some of the hubbub. That gear drive musta sounded bomb though.
That's how Ford went with the Mod Motors.. two chains.. the reason for the 7 ft long chain was it was designed around the pushrod FE block instead of a dedicated CAMMER block...
@@UnityMotorSportsGarage The GM experimental SOHC and DOHC engines from the later 60 into around 71 all used pushrod versions of the various big blocks. IIRC Pontiac used a chain drive that was much shorter than the Ford while Olds used a gear drive. Both engines used an idler shaft in the OHV cam bore to reduce the cam timing to 50% of crank speed plus to turn the distributor and oil pumps. Plus the Cammer isn't the only engine ever converted to OHC. There were DOHC conversions of the Model T. Plus in Argentina there are DOHC 4 valve heads used on Ford, Chevy and Jeep (AMC) inline 6s. The heads all have very similiar valve and combustion chamber layouts. 500hp out of 3 liters using two 2 bbl carbs.
@@ldnwholesale8552 geardtrains can be calm down with VVT phasers ( it even sometimes be can even be better than belts at consistent timing and NVH ect. ) / harmonic damper's ( on the crank snout and the camshaft drive snout look 👀 at F1 parts as one example ford v8 cogsworth DFV or ford voodoo or chevy ls/LT or Toyota v8 1uz ) and or sisisor gears with little to no backlash slapping well running. thats how i have my gear setup in a per-1972 RB dodge block 1 camshaft in block with 16 liquid pushrods. if anyone has questions im happy 😊 to answer more about it.
The 5.4 Triton isn't a bad street evolution of this.Mine since new has 220k and has only had regular service.Chain and guides have held up so far,being a mechanic I've noticed chains and guides are its Achilles heel.
Andy you did a truly fantastic job I watch this and even I as a lifelong drag racing fan did not realize the technology that went into these engines at the time that they were built thank you for doing this great video this was definitely well worth watching thank you .
Nah, all these idiots nowadays will just put in what I call a Millennial Motor (ls swap) No creativity anymore. Sad really. But yes, this Cammer would be sweet in an old custom
A modern blown coyote would probably make more power, be lighter, more reliable, the old cammers were rare back then. To pound on one now days when replacement parts don't exist isn't very sensible. Modern ford coyote or Godzilla can be bought for cheaper and easily make more power with more fuel efficiency, and actually go 100,000 miles without much but oil changes.
I had a friend at United Airlines, who was an aircraft mechanic and firmly entrenched in the Ford mafia, who had a Maverick with a SOHC motor in it. Nastiest sounding thing you’ve ever heard! I think he mentioned 7 mpg!😊
Just the Sound of Nitromethane in a top fuel rail. Was just the most sick sounding fuel going through a big block Just was the best sound period. For me growing up next to a Drag strip up all night till 3 to 4 in the morning was just the Most exciting thing for a young boy......lions Dragway ....
As usual Ford builds a Superior Product and the Sanctioning Bodies outright BAN them even though they meet and exceed the set parameters for the specified series. Just because the other manufacturers can’t compete, Ford Racers and the MoCo are punished. Mickey Thompson was always a Ford Champion and really did do Ford Proud.
The "Sanctioning Bodies" did not get it banned from NASCAR. Here are the Facts: Ford initially "whined" (early in the season) about Chrysler's Hemi as it took both Ford and GM to the proverbial woodshed in the 1964 season (were it finished 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 5th at Daytona, the Hemi's debut and went on to win the 1964 Championship). Ford answered with its "90 day wonder" the 427 SOHC engine. NASCAR likewise responded by outlawing BOTH ENGINES as they were both not PRODUCTION BASED ENGINES; hence, Chrysler did not legally participate/boycotted NASCAR for 1965 season (that is why Ford was so successful in 1965). However, Chrysler stepped up to the plate and offered its supreme 426 Hemi engine as an option/production engine for 1966 (in B body platforms) making it legal for use in NASCAR. FORD DID NOT reciprocate. However, Bill France/NASCAR WOULD ALLOW FORD to run its Cammer only if it was to put in the larger (400 lb. more) Galaxy platform (the theoretical power potential of a 427 SOHC Hemi engine was greater than that of Chryslers push rod Hemi mostly due to its increased RPM potential); thus, NASCAR instilled a handicap to the Ford which would keep the others competitive with it. The bottom line is Ford did not offer its Cammer in any production car/platform and I believe this was due to a number of engineering problems (and not due to the "Chrysler whining/ Sanctioning Bodies claim" Ford fans are fond of presenting) with the SOHC Ford, among them: 1) Poor castings-core shift, inclusion problems 2) Inferior/inadequate oiling circuit/crank-rod bearings/lower rod profile design 3) 7 foot long timing chain with inadequate tensioner, and/or miscalculated thermal expansion/chain stretch rates (resulting in cams going out of phase and engine blow ups). 4) Inadequate cylinder head clamp load on high compression/supercharged applications. All these problems plus the fact that this engine would be turning at a higher RPM (for 500 miles in southern heat in some cases) than its competitors with an already marginal oiling circuit and inadequate rod/crank bearings (plus the cost of development which Ford did mostly out of house...Holman-Moody, etc.) presented too much of a potential embarrassment/PR problems when going up one-on-one against Chrysler's juggernaut Hemi (on both circle track and quarter mile) IMHO. I believe Ford had no intention of ever offering this engine to the public as the cost of development (and a massive public failing/embarrassment on the nation wide Grand National/NASCAR circuit) was much too great.
Yup you are absolutely right about that. They are for art and art only or else they would have lasted a lot longer than they did and from what I have read were absolute engineering nightmares and would have been plagued with problems if used in street cars due to the 20 foot (yeah exaggerated..a little) timing chains that were needed.
Great video. I was born and raised in Tulsa and still live here. The old video footage of Tulsa International Raceway was excellent. Brings back good memories.
In 1965 they were also powering Ford & Mercury Factory Experimental class cars, both standard body and altered wheelbase depending on the sanctioning body. At that time there was also a brother duo who were running a full Ford size Galaxy in a lower Factory Experimental class.
Great video Andy, thanks. I passed on a Cammer when I bought my 40 Ford Coupe, It was complete, with prototype tunnel Ram, Carbs, to oil pan. Lady wanted 10k, my buddy bought it. it is sitting apart last I knew in 2007 ish.
Thanks Tim, I would LOVE to have one.. but the cost is just crazy... I will say that one would look amazing in you 40 Ford! I wonder what the history was on that engine? If it could only talk...lol
@@UnityMotorSportsGarage To tell you the truth my old engine builder, who used to own Gliddens EXP, bought it in 66, and still has the receipt for it. I think it was like 2800 or 3500, somewhere in that neighborhood. We still need to chat my friend.
Another awesome history video. A lot of guys hated going to the Boss 429 in their pro stocks in 1971, a lot of them tended to feel like they had just got the cammer sorted out and had a good feel for how to build and tune them then due to the low production numbers and the factory no longer producing the SOHC to continue to keep factory backing they had to go to the Boss 429. The Boss was never proved to be as good of an engine until Bob Glidden perfected it in the early 80s. (Except for George Montgomery's turbo version of the boss 429 which has a story all its own) Thank you and keep the great content coming.
What about the MICKEY THOMPSON MACH 1 TEAM IN DRAG RACING? I BELIEVE DRIVERS WERE DANNY ONGAIS (BLUE CAR)AND PAT FOSTER (RED CAR)?? THEY DOMINATED FUNNY CAR WITH 427 SOHC ENGINES.
When the 500 cubic inch Pro Stock rule took effect the Boss engines came into their own. The engine could finally use the heads. And when the Whiteland wizard got his hands on one things really changed. That man could have made a Jokeswagen beetle competitive in Pro Stock.
I LOVED THE 4.6 THAT WAS IN MY T BIRD AND MY CROWN VIC...I SMOKED ONE OF THE V6 BUICK GRANSPORTS AND THE OWNER WAS SHOCKED...THE T BIRD ALMOST NEVER LOST A RACE...
it aint a race if the other person isnt aware of wtf you are doing.you tromping it at a light beside someone who couldnt give a fuck who you are isnt a race.....you couldnt touch a grand national with a 50 foot pole with a shitty 4.6....you must be talking about the fwd buick .i still bet you couldnt beat one of them either,4.6 was a fucking dog
@@UnityMotorSportsGarage You brought me back to the early to mid 70's when I lived in the Bronx, New York. The Superintendant of the building had one laying on a truck tire in the basement. That engine was his pride and joy. I never heard it run but he said one day he would install on his Fairlane. Unfortunately i never got to see that happen. Those were the days of street racing in the Bronx on the weekends..Thanks again. Made my Day. Keep up the Great work.
Around 1990 at an A & W drive-in on Jefferson in Harrison Twp Michigan, a red, stock looking spotless 1961 Ford Starliner pulled in next to me and sounded healthy and had a nasty rumble. Under the hood was a 427 SOHC. What a car !
Thanks for the look back at the Cammer. '71 Winternationals was the first drag race my dad took me to and we were in the pits when Pete Robinson crashed. Saw the smoke/dust cloud and heard the announcer saying it didn't look good. I understand the car went partially under the Armco barrier. Sad day.
Was Don Vanderwoude racing then? The Flying Dutchman? His daughter married my best friend and I met Don just before he passed. He told me some great stories.
Was at a Ford Enthusiasts car show in Xenia Ohio around ‘93 or so and chatted at length with a guy who had a cammer in a 67 Ford pickup truck. The thing was beautifully done. Memory is shaky on this but I swear I think he said that someone was using the engine as the base for a coffee table and he convinced the guy to sell it to him. The truck was copper metallic, if memory serves.
As a big Gasser fan of the mid to late 60's and a Mopar fan these motors scared the hell out of me because they gave the 426's a true heads up match in that time, I believe Kalitta was right if the parts where there then we might have seen a different look in both Top Fuel and Funny Car today!!! Great vid Andy, thanks!!!!
What do I think you're doing with the channel? Great things!!! I had a lousy day at the office and I came home opened a can of beer and watched your analysis of the Ford cammer. Keep up the good work those are bygone days and the internal combustion engine is probably going to be going the way of the Steam locomotive so it's fun to enjoy memories of these Engineering masterpieces while we can.❤
There used to be a company in Indy named Genesis Performance Castings. They had license to make all aluminum copies of the 427 and supplied many a race winner with their upgraded versions of the mighty side oiler. I may be mistaken but pretty sure John Force used them for a long time and a lot of success.
Googled Genesis, seemed to have gone bankrupt by 2004, bought by a Webber who were going to try and honor orders (and deposits) for the block. Some sites are showing them inactive since 2008.
We need more of these types of videos!! Like history lessons for the next generation of hot rodders. Doing my first rebuild now... Chrysler 287 with the 2008 Ram revisions jumping the HP up too 310, thinking of running variable length individual throttle bodies or bolts a Eaton 112 on it but thats for another time... All forged internals with a cast iron block should be a good starting point
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,As a young teenager [1964] I was devouring car magazines every month.......Me and a gearhead buddy went all over Brooklyn NY on our bicycles.......at night goin down Coney Island ave. We heard some insane engine noise at a big gas station car shop.........Low and behold what I saw on the lift running was a cammer in a notchback mustang.....I can't remember if it was injected or a supercharger......Anyway,,,,,thanks for all you are ,and the timely work you put out here...................
Met an individual named Shannon in Milwaukie Oregon years ago at Russ Meeks' shop. Russ had just completed a frame off restoration of a real '67 Shelby SC cobra. It had a SOHC 427 in it and what a thrill. This had to be 30 years ago, I'll have to ask Russ if he has heard anything lately.
The new modular motors Ford makes is a relative of this engine. It would be awesome if Ford could make a crate 427 cammer engine like the original or better.
Yeah, while not related.. The Mod Motor can really trace it's roots to this engine... The deep skirted block with cross bolted mains and the OHC design... The 6.2 SOHC cylinder head design is almost a true copy of the 427 SOHC head... Andy
I would love to see a DOHC version of the 427. That would take a whole new block, because the bore and stroke is nothing like the Coyote. But it would make almost 900 hp without a turbo.
The fact is the Ford 427 Thunderbolt was the competitor to the Doge Hemi producing 500 horse race application with two four barrels. NASCAR requires any engine that is used in NASCAR to be produced in cars to the public. The cammer was never produced to the public in a automobile. On the other side the detuned 427 FE thunderbolt side oiler was, it came in the Galaxy 500 producing 425 horse with two four barrels... Fact
Almost. John Mihovetz has made over 3,000 hp from a factory block and heads 5.4 L in the standing mile record holding Ford GT running 300.4 mph. That's the most powerful and fastest Ford engine ever ran in anger.
I didn’t know what this video was going to make me cry. It reminded me of my dad and his cousin working in their drag chevy Vega it had a v8 it would run low 10s high 9s but the shifting idk it just brought back memories of my pops.
I saw TV Tommy Ivo, Big Daddy Don Garlits and Shirley Cha Cha Muldowney racing at Cleves race track just outside of Cincinnati in 1977-78. That was a lot of fun.
I spoke to Ohio George at Beaver Springs 3 years about his cammer. He told me he was a full second faster than any other gasser at Indy. And he left his fastest engine at home. That year he won 11 of 12. Only loosing 1 race, a broken wheely bar. At Indy all the big guns saw what he had and started a petition to ban him and the engine. Big John, S W and C, and just about all the others. I ask him about durability. He laughed. He said he wound his up to over 9K and never had a failure. OG was a special man, and a great mechanic. Being a Chevy guy, he ate some crow when he switched to Ford. When ask why, he said I know a winner when I see one. And the Cammer was a winner. As an interesting side point OG said Ford never sent him a complete engine, only parts. Maybe that is one reason he was so successful. As he assembled each engine, he would change what he didn't like to make it better. True story, he spoke to me and my son for over 45 min. They had a rain delay that day.
That is pretty awesome... Thank you for sharing that... And thanks for Watching
Andy
Frigging awesome dude
I wouldn’t stop asking him stuff
I thought the 429 was the bad boy?
It was in it's intended purpose.. running at sustained speeds on Superspeedways.. on the street and dragstrip performance wasn't that great.. later on changes were made that really turned it into a monster!
I remember walking through a Ford dealership when I was about 10 years old and they had 2 of these Motors on display in the showroom. I asked my Dad why do they call it a single overhead cam when it has 2 cams? As he was explaining a salesman overheard the conversation and came over and took the valve covers off one of the motors to help him explain. That meant a lot to a curious 10 year old.
That is pretty awesome! That a dealership had them on the showroom floor... Thanks for sharing and watching the video!
Andy
Awesome! Especially for a 10-year-old kid, that stuff was so cool and the fact that they did that must have really made your day. No, it must have made entire youth, LOL. Actually I still feel that way when I go look at cool cars and engines. I guess I'm still a kid, just an old one 😁
Awesome at 10 youd have that interest!! And the dealer worker at the time did that for you. Lil things like that go along way. Just my uncle with a 69 mach 1 cobra jet car showing up to family picnics in it got me into cars! Daily driving a 652 rwhp 04 cobra now. Cammed up, kenne bell supercharger. Took it to my uncle one day, his freinds over at the time assumed my uncle did all the work. My uncle just said nope.. he did... gotta pass the knowledge/torch!!
Wow! that is so cool
I've always wanted to hear one running up and performing, there was a shop where I live a few years ago called Jim Green, he used to drag race the BARDAHL Green Elephant back in the 60s.. any way he had a few cammers on display in a couple of old rail cars, he said he'd be happy to fire one up but unfortunately it never happened.. one of the cars he had was built by Ed Pink, that was pretty damn cool..
I was 8 years old at a car show with my dad and he introduced me to a man who owned a Cobra kit car with a 427 cammer in it. The man gave me a ride in the car and because of that ride I'm buying a Cobra kit car in two weeks.
You the man! But for real can i please get a ride when shes done?
@@johnsheetz6639 Sure! As long as your willing to come down to Texas! It's a completed car, but I'm pulling the little 302 out in favor of a big block FE. It just don't look right under the hood the way it is.
@@johnflett2531 not many boats have the edsel , but there are some
Hahaha I wish cobra is my grail car too but being that I'm 6'3" tall it's a REAL tight squeeze for me haha
@@stevenlaxton3618 I'm 5'11" and the seat is almost all the way up for me to drive it. I've got a friend who's 6'4" and the car fits him perfectly. Going to move the pedals back somehow...
My uncle had a pulling tractor in the late 70's thru early 80's with this same engine , It was called The Little American and no other pullers could compete with it until the multiple engine tractors started coming out . He was sponsored by Ford and the Us air force for many years , That cammer was mean at the very least . George Montgomery from the Ohio gassers here in ohio was the tuner for his 2 cammer engines .
Ran up on a Ford Sohc 427 in the early 80s. Tore my 396 Chevelle up. I was the 4th fastest car in town back then. Caught up with the guy at a bank parking lot and he showed me the motor. Was a retired Ford assembly worker.
That is a pretty cool story... Although a 396 is no slouch!!!
Thanks for watching
Andy
I can remember when Don "The Snake" Prudhomme showed up with a Ford Cammer in a Drag Race slingshot. He and another drag racer "The Mongoose" ruled the drag tracks in Southern California. Man, those engines struck fear in the hearts of other drag racers. The Cammer had a very distinctive sound to it too.
Norman Silver, Connie Kalitta also.
Pete Robinson was one of the most innovative individuals I ever met at the dragstrips. I used to set up injection for the fuelers and there was no injection system I would rather work with than Pete Robinson's. Crower's systems were nice, too; and it was due to the same quality that both Pete and Bruce had: They could think outside the box and see problems from a different angle than other rodders. A lot of people credited Pete's innovative ability due to his work for NASA but it ran much deeper than that.......both of these guys had the ability to see a problem, roll it around in their head in a different way the other hot rodders and come away with a different solution than their peers. Losing Pete was a tremendous loss for us all.....who knows what he would have come up with if he'd been around longer?
Tom, I agree from all that I have heard and read about Pete, He was a brilliant man... He was the last holdout running the Cammer in Top Fuel from my understanding. Thanks for Watching!
Andy
I worked with an old man in Montana who was part of the FE program.
One night he and I were messing about south of town and his 74 F-150 4x4 totally smoked my 70 Dart 340.
Hood up on his pickup showed one of these Cammers with 2x4 carbs and some funky headers. I'd never heard of such an engine.
Lenny's response was epic: "The real good stuff is never well known."
RIP Lenny
More than anything else, I wish Bill France would've allowed the Ford Cammer and the Chrysler Hemi to compete at least for a couple years in NASCAR against each other. That would've made for some spectacular racing at the super speedways. Great video, I really enjoyed it. Thanks Andy.
It could have went well, and it could have went all to hell. Adding HP to every car in the field is the same thing as putting a restrictor plate on all the cars. With more top speed... Those old 60's cars had to have 10 to 18" of wiggle room, just to get clean passes. Let alone 35 1960's cars doing 205mph. Believe me, if you had 20 or so Hemi's and SOHC's out on the track, you'd have enough drafting potential to hit 205 even in the say 67 Fairlane...
And if given several years.....the chevy experimental ohc v8 would have cleaned house. Same 427 displacement. Much better heads and better cam drive.
@@jonbrockman5308 ya well if, If's and But's were Candy and Nuts we'd all have a Merry Christmas
@@jonbrockman5308 I don't think Ford and Chrysler would have sat back and let GM run away with any type of auto racing .Remember the Aero.wars along with the Boss 429 that both Goodyear and Firestone were not ready for those speeds at Talladega? That 429 put out as much or more HP.as the Cammer and Chrysler had to build the Daytona Charger and Plymouth Super Bird to match speeds with the 429.
GM was crying and that’s the rest of the story
That pro stock cammer sounds soooo sweet rowing through the gears! I replayed that footage many times.
And did he pulverize that Toploader 4 gear.....whew !!
There's another video somewhere on CZcams with interior shots of Platz bang shifting that Mustang. Sorry, I don't have the link.
@@Mick_A_Knuckle Ford '69 drag team video !!
I know what that thing does sounds so good when he's rolling them gear!
@@arkhsm Found the in-car footage I was thinking of (it's either Platt or Ed Terry) starting at the 22:05 mark of this video: czcams.com/video/HgxghLagkUI/video.html. The Ford Drag Team launched their Super Stock 427 SOHC engines at 6000 rpm and shifted at 8000 RPM! That explains the great engine sound!
Since Bill France was in Chevrolet's back pocket it was a certainty that the cammer would never be approved for NASCAR. I was heavy into the drags at about the same time and ran a Y-Block Ford. Whenever we started getting into the elimination rounds the panic-stricken Chevy drivers would start protesting and the Tech guys would find something wrong with my Ford. To this day I won't own a Chevy!
I don't find that surprising at all. I can't find enough love for these old Fords and absolutely love all the cool classic Fords. Some people think I'm crazy, but I want nothing more than to build a cool old Y-block hot rod with classic original hot rod parts. I did and FE 390 already, not its Y-block time hopefully one day.
Killroy Y blocks are cool and it would be fun to build one!
@@UnityMotorSportsGarage Big time. I hope to find one and some cool vintage stuff for it.
that's funny bc back in those days everyone ran GM or mopar.....Ford was dead last.
@@boostjunkie2320 and the full answer to that, is in his response that you're responding too. Smh 🤦♂️
Thanks for all the vintage footage, from the days of real racing….Sure miss it
Jon Kasse sells the 427 sohc for $55,000 at his Winder Georgia facility. Can’t afford it but am considering one of his boss nine’s. Currently run a 623 hp 460 in a 50 f1. Gotta love the fords.
Snuffy, That is pretty awesome setup you have! Im building my own version of a BOSS 429 using Hammerhead Performance Engines BOSS style heads on a 429" Stroker windsor for my 71 F100 that I call Casper!
Andy
@@UnityMotorSportsGarage sounds like Casper is gonna be a goodun you gonna tub it. My trucks pretty much original and I don’t want to cut up the bed so I really don’t get much traction with 10’s , that’s max width for me. Don’t really matter though mines a work truck still haul manure , hay ,dirt or whatever.
@@GeorgeMcKinley. same here... I still use it as a truck! I run a 275/60 M/T drag radial and it ran 1.5x's 60' times I also run Cal Trac bars which helped a ton with my traction problems... So we will see how it acts with more power...
Andy
@@UnityMotorSportsGarage I also run a Caltrac but recently had them send me a softer back half of the leaf, just too stiff for the street my back couldn’t take it any longer causing too many problems for this old man.
$55 THOUSAND DOLLARS!!!!!! Take that cammer and shove it, Jon.
This is a masterpiece film .I've never seen any of this footage before..thank you & God bless America.
Thank you Phillip for the kind words and for watching!! Glad you enjoyed it
Andy
wow...that 6 gear system to replace the timing chain is freaking genius!
I love the footage of Hubert Platt, making the run, and banging the gears. That is one of a few of the historic Ford videos. The sound in that video is nothing short of poetry in motion. Thanks for posting.
Joe, I agree.. The sound of that Cammer screaming past 8000 rpm is amazing! Thanks for Watching
Andy
Sounds like that are ear candy.
More candy please
OMG!...the vintage drag racing footage, you've compiled is absolutely priceless. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you for watching!
Andy
Beaver Springs Dragway holds an annual FE race and show, and there’s always several SOHCs that show up. A handful of years back there was a gorgeous 61 Starliner with a cammer and manual trans I wish I could have taken home.
From coopersburg. Ran 427 fee never was there Santee runs a comet every year
@@cooperparts I’d love to see it. They had a bunch of Thunderbolts, including Phil Bonner’s. There was even a gorgeous 64 Marauder 427/4 speed that was owned by my aunt’s high school boyfriend. He’d take my 14 year old father for jaunts around the block.
The show gets bigger every year. Was held in April, but now it’s September and spanning several days.
John Vermeersch (Total Performance) has a cammer powered '61 Starliner also
@@93_LXcpe may have been his that I saw. What color is it?
@@redram5150 Chevy hugger orange. Apparently from what i've read a paint code mix up and he liked it so he left it that color
It's been many years since I last visited, but if nothing has changed, the Don Garlit's Museum off I-75 near Ocala Florida had several old SOHC Powered dragsters. Pretty sure I remember Connie Kalitta's Bounty Hunter as well as one of Pete Robinson's. Also they had at least two engines on Stands. If you ever go to Florida, it's well worth stopping by as it's a treasure trove of old drag cars.
I agree, I was just down there in June of this year and they are still there! Thanks for watching
Andy
Thank you for the comments on Dyno Don. He has always been an icon to me I still have my Maverick from highschool
That was a truly bad ass motor in its day actually it still is if you're lucky enough to have one
I own 2. I have a 550 hp 427 SOHC factory 64 Marauder . And I was lucky enough to find a Nascar banned one in B.C. Canada . Remember that the #'s of production is always off. 25% more of rare cars and engines are up here in Canada. Recent example was the Demon. Low production#'s but we got 500 up here that you folks don't include .
It wasnt easy to get--you had to have serious racing or engine building credentials....or know a Ford big shot..in order for them to sell you one.
HEMI 426. Enough said
@@jimhofus916 Nope. Both the Hemi and the Ford Cammer were banned by Nascar--but the cammer was never allowed back because it kept kicking the hemis ass so badly the hemi simply couldnt compete with it,,
@@donreinke5863 Same with the 351 Cleveland when Nascar switched to small blocks.. The only 2 engines ever banned from Nascar and both were fords lmao!
You really have to think about how fast they are! There was no track glue. It was straight tires and asphalt. It started getting used in the nationals in 72. Most tracks didn't touch it in any other events until the early 80s. I remember going to the drags starting in 76 and there was never anything sticky in Epping NH until the early 80s or top fuel. When I was going in the 70s I remember walking on the track and thinking nothing of it. It was the 90s when I first discovered it in Epping at a top fuel race. My dang shoe come off. I remember thinking 🤔 when the heck did they start making them this sticky? Pulling a 7.55 on dry asphalt with tires hazing smoke past the 1/8 is straight ridiculous. A 2000hp small tire car won't get out of the 9s slightly hazing the tires past the 330. If you think about that, and that a 7.55 wasn't even qualifying. How much power were they making? With factory PARTS!!!
I get a feeling they were using a different equation to figure hp, or they were only concerned with horsepower at peak torque according to 5252rpm. Rolling mid 7s with tires spinning halfway down sounds like 2000+hp territory.
Yeah at best it was just a guess... Since you can't Dyno a Nitro engine..
Andy
I love that kickass old Brock Yates footage.
Yeah it doesn't get any better having both Brock and Don Garlits in the same film! Thanks for watching
Andy
@@UnityMotorSportsGarage He did a piece on Grumpy Jenkins and the ‘68 nationals that was phenomenal.
I appreciate these Ford history lessons, Andy.
I have a diamond encrusted SOHC tie tac FOMOCO gave to some of the engineering staff that worked on it. My Grand Father retired in 75 as head of dyno lab and worked on cylinder heads of 65 Indy winner and pretty sure I met Kalitta when I was i kid
427 cammer was king of the forest! fastest engine of the 60's!
Kurt I agree! If there would have been more than 1500 engines made, I believe that if it had been installed in production based cars the aftermarket would have developed better cams, intakes and other parts...But we will never know!
Andy
Nope
Except for the Mopar Hemis
@@ldnwholesale8552 The Buick 455 Stage 1,s took care of those Hemi,s aka "The Hemi Killer" The 427 SOHC was the Baddest Engine ever produced !
@@badass6.0powerstroke10 the street Hemi was not optimal and often times a 440 was a bit quicker. In race trim a different story.
Wow, a 7 foot long timing chain. As someone who spannered on all brands of japanese motorcycles from the eighties into the two thousands and saw how many times they would struggle with stability in the cam drive area i cannot imagine the things that big fords chain was doing at high rpm.
Chains will always be the bug bear of engines. The longer they re the worse they are.
The failure of most OHC engine is the chains
A stock V8 replacing worn out stretched old chains is 50 hp. On a stock engine.
Gears keep the cam timing where it is supposed to be butt can transmit valve train harmonics into the crank which in turn can fail.
Toothbelts are far better, do not stretch much but are a bit fragile and never like oil.
It's easy to armchair quarterback things 50+yrs later , but maybe a separate chain for each bank would have calmed down some of the hubbub.
That gear drive musta sounded bomb though.
That's how Ford went with the Mod Motors.. two chains.. the reason for the 7 ft long chain was it was designed around the pushrod FE block instead of a dedicated CAMMER block...
@@UnityMotorSportsGarage
The GM experimental SOHC and DOHC engines from the later 60 into around 71 all used pushrod versions of the various big blocks. IIRC Pontiac used a chain drive that was much shorter than the Ford while Olds used a gear drive. Both engines used an idler shaft in the OHV cam bore to reduce the cam timing to 50% of crank speed plus to turn the distributor and oil pumps.
Plus the Cammer isn't the only engine ever converted to OHC. There were DOHC conversions of the Model T. Plus in Argentina there are DOHC 4 valve heads used on Ford, Chevy and Jeep (AMC) inline 6s. The heads all have very similiar valve and combustion chamber layouts. 500hp out of 3 liters using two 2 bbl carbs.
@@ldnwholesale8552 geardtrains can be calm down with VVT phasers ( it even sometimes be can even be better than belts at consistent timing and NVH ect. ) / harmonic damper's ( on the crank snout and the camshaft drive snout look 👀 at F1 parts as one example ford v8 cogsworth DFV or ford voodoo or chevy ls/LT or Toyota v8 1uz ) and or sisisor gears with little to no backlash slapping well running.
thats how i have my gear setup in a per-1972 RB dodge block 1 camshaft in block with 16 liquid pushrods. if anyone has questions im happy 😊 to answer more about it.
The 5.4 Triton isn't a bad street evolution of this.Mine since new has 220k and has only had regular service.Chain and guides have held up so far,being a mechanic I've noticed chains and guides are its Achilles heel.
How are the plugs?
The 2 valves are pretty good. The 3 valves are terrible.
@marcuscook5145 yea,mine is 2valve.Ive done 3 valve timing jobs galore lol
Andy you did a truly fantastic job I watch this and even I as a lifelong drag racing fan did not realize the technology that went into these engines at the time that they were built thank you for doing this great video this was definitely well worth watching thank you .
Gary, Thanks for the words of appreciation and watching! These engines were ahead of their time..
Andy
This engine would be a great swap for an old Fairlane, Galaxie, old vintage Mustang, and even in an old school F100.
If you have the engi e I'd be happy to put it in my 54 F100
@@the_car_guy5915 Awesome brother.
This would be nice in a 57 Ford 300 2 door post short wheel base car and also turned into a Gasser.
Nah, all these idiots nowadays will just put in what I call a Millennial Motor (ls swap) No creativity anymore. Sad really. But yes, this Cammer would be sweet in an old custom
A modern blown coyote would probably make more power, be lighter, more reliable, the old cammers were rare back then. To pound on one now days when replacement parts don't exist isn't very sensible. Modern ford coyote or Godzilla can be bought for cheaper and easily make more power with more fuel efficiency, and actually go 100,000 miles without much but oil changes.
Excellent old footage really appreciated thanks.
Thanks for the kind words Dave!
Andy
I had a friend at United Airlines, who was an aircraft mechanic and firmly entrenched in the Ford mafia, who had a Maverick with a SOHC motor in it. Nastiest sounding thing you’ve ever heard! I think he mentioned 7 mpg!😊
That is a super cool story! Thanks for watching
Andy
Just the Sound of Nitromethane in a top fuel rail.
Was just the most sick sounding fuel going through a big block
Just was the best sound period. For me growing up next to a
Drag strip up all night till 3 to 4 in the morning was just the
Most exciting thing for a young boy......lions Dragway ....
Always enjoy automotive history especially on one of my favorite engines. Keep it coming brother!
Lots of history here. Steve Carbone built my first competitive engine.
That is pretty awesome Bruce! Thanks for Watching
Andy
077
Ford guy rite here
As usual Ford builds a Superior Product and the Sanctioning Bodies outright BAN them even though they meet and exceed the set parameters for the specified series. Just because the other manufacturers can’t compete, Ford Racers and the MoCo are punished. Mickey Thompson was always a Ford Champion and really did do Ford Proud.
The "Sanctioning Bodies" did not get it banned from NASCAR. Here are the Facts: Ford initially "whined" (early in the season) about Chrysler's Hemi as it took both Ford and GM to the proverbial woodshed in the 1964 season (were it finished 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 5th at Daytona, the Hemi's debut and went on to win the 1964 Championship). Ford answered with its "90 day wonder" the 427 SOHC engine. NASCAR likewise responded by outlawing BOTH ENGINES as they were both not PRODUCTION BASED ENGINES; hence, Chrysler did not legally participate/boycotted NASCAR for 1965 season (that is why Ford was so successful in 1965). However, Chrysler stepped up to the plate and offered its supreme 426 Hemi engine as an option/production engine for 1966 (in B body platforms) making it legal for use in NASCAR. FORD DID NOT reciprocate. However, Bill France/NASCAR WOULD ALLOW FORD to run its Cammer only if it was to put in the larger (400 lb. more) Galaxy platform (the theoretical power potential of a 427 SOHC Hemi engine was greater than that of Chryslers push rod Hemi mostly due to its increased RPM potential); thus, NASCAR instilled a handicap to the Ford which would keep the others competitive with it. The bottom line is Ford did not offer its Cammer in any production car/platform and I believe this was due to a number of engineering problems (and not due to the "Chrysler whining/ Sanctioning Bodies claim" Ford fans are fond of presenting) with the SOHC Ford, among them: 1) Poor castings-core shift, inclusion problems 2) Inferior/inadequate oiling circuit/crank-rod bearings/lower rod profile design 3) 7 foot long timing chain with inadequate tensioner, and/or miscalculated thermal expansion/chain stretch rates (resulting in cams going out of phase and engine blow ups). 4) Inadequate cylinder head clamp load on high compression/supercharged applications. All these problems plus the fact that this engine would be turning at a higher RPM (for 500 miles in southern heat in some cases) than its competitors with an already marginal oiling circuit and inadequate rod/crank bearings (plus the cost of development which Ford did mostly out of house...Holman-Moody, etc.) presented too much of a potential embarrassment/PR problems when going up one-on-one against Chrysler's juggernaut Hemi (on both circle track and quarter mile) IMHO. I believe Ford had no intention of ever offering this engine to the public as the cost of development (and a massive public failing/embarrassment on the nation wide Grand National/NASCAR circuit) was much too great.
Superior product ?? That pos has more Achilles heels than all of the Roman soldiers in history...I'll take a BBC Chevy or hemi anyday..
@@terryduncan5718 I concur.
If i win the lottery im getting one my favorite engine ever
Yes I would love to have one also... Who knows what the future holds..
Andy
Right after hookers & blow!
Wow some good history there along with some famous names. No doubt it was expensive to race back then but nothing like the craziness going on now.
My favorite Ford engine ! Would love one for my 64 fairlane gasser build .
I guess you've already seen the Skairlane Gasser beast !!
This is close czcams.com/video/OnwPUVAMsI8/video.html
The SOHC 427 and the Boss 9 are literally automotive art. Thanks for the video Andy. I just subbed.
Agreed .automotive master peices..the good old days brother
You guys should check out the Ford/Holman Moody BOSS 494 Can Am motors, and the 427 3v Calliope 🔥
What is the boss 9 never heard of it I am a Chevy man but I don’t knock other brands I am a Gearhead lol
@@johnfairchild3421 The Boss 429. Ford commissioned a company called Kar Kraft to shoehorn a handful of them into mustangs in 69, and 70.
Yup you are absolutely right about that. They are for art and art only or else they would have lasted a lot longer than they did and from what I have read were absolute engineering nightmares and would have been plagued with problems if used in street cars due to the 20 foot (yeah exaggerated..a little) timing chains that were needed.
Great history video of the 427 .
Thanks for the kind words and for watching
Andy
Thank you for your insitghts and video 🙂❤👍
Great video. I was born and raised in Tulsa and still live here. The old video footage of Tulsa International Raceway was excellent. Brings back good memories.
In 1965 they were also powering Ford & Mercury Factory Experimental class cars, both standard body and altered wheelbase depending on the sanctioning body. At that time there was also a brother duo who were running a full Ford size Galaxy in a lower Factory Experimental class.
Great video Andy, thanks. I passed on a Cammer when I bought my 40 Ford Coupe, It was complete, with prototype tunnel Ram, Carbs, to oil pan. Lady wanted 10k, my buddy bought it. it is sitting apart last I knew in 2007 ish.
Thanks Tim, I would LOVE to have one.. but the cost is just crazy... I will say that one would look amazing in you 40 Ford! I wonder what the history was on that engine? If it could only talk...lol
@@UnityMotorSportsGarage To tell you the truth my old engine builder, who used to own Gliddens EXP, bought it in 66, and still has the receipt for it. I think it was like 2800 or 3500, somewhere in that neighborhood. We still need to chat my friend.
Great history!
Thanks for Watching Richard!
Andy
Gosh... The good old days... Beautiful cars... Beautiful engines... Beautiful girls...
Gosh I'm so jealous
This video definitely takes you back ,
Thanks for Sharing
Thank you John for Watching!
Andy
Another awesome history video. A lot of guys hated going to the Boss 429 in their pro stocks in 1971, a lot of them tended to feel like they had just got the cammer sorted out and had a good feel for how to build and tune them then due to the low production numbers and the factory no longer producing the SOHC to continue to keep factory backing they had to go to the Boss 429. The Boss was never proved to be as good of an engine until Bob Glidden perfected it in the early 80s.
(Except for George Montgomery's turbo version of the boss 429 which has a story all its own) Thank you and keep the great content coming.
What about the MICKEY THOMPSON MACH 1 TEAM IN DRAG RACING? I BELIEVE DRIVERS WERE DANNY ONGAIS (BLUE CAR)AND PAT FOSTER (RED CAR)?? THEY DOMINATED FUNNY CAR WITH 427 SOHC ENGINES.
Rickie Smith had good luck with the Boss429 also first to go 7’s in IHRA prostock with one. Also won 4 years straight with one
When the 500 cubic inch Pro Stock rule took effect the Boss engines came into their own.
The engine could finally use the heads. And when the Whiteland wizard got his hands on one things really changed. That man could have made a Jokeswagen beetle competitive in Pro Stock.
Those motors are awesome.
Kalitta been in racing for ever.
Hubert Platt, what a character he was.....RIP Hubert, God bless...
He was a character.. I've had the privilege to meet his Son Allen and he is a great guy..Thanks for Watching
Andy
Damn shame NASCAR outlawed this engine. It prevented a whole more advanced engines to be developed for racing, and for the street.
Awesome 👌🏼🏁 another Badass motor in the day. Enjoyed the old school footages, Thanks 👍🏼🏁
Thanks Brother! I'm glad you enjoyed it... Hope all is well your way
Andy
@@UnityMotorSportsGarage 👍🏼🏁
I LOVED THE 4.6 THAT WAS IN MY T BIRD AND MY CROWN VIC...I SMOKED ONE OF THE V6 BUICK GRANSPORTS AND THE OWNER WAS SHOCKED...THE T BIRD ALMOST NEVER LOST A RACE...
it aint a race if the other person isnt aware of wtf you are doing.you tromping it at a light beside someone who couldnt give a fuck who you are isnt a race.....you couldnt touch a grand national with a 50 foot pole with a shitty 4.6....you must be talking about the fwd buick .i still bet you couldnt beat one of them either,4.6 was a fucking dog
Power shifting without a Revlimiter those guys were Gods what a gorgeous sound
I know I love it!!!
Outstandingly Insanely good vintage footage facts and pics....kutgw.
Wow! That was truly a Fantastic Video on the Cammer and Drag Racing History! Great Job, Love it!
Anthony, Thanks for the kind words... I have to say I love the Cammer... I just need one! LOL
Andy
@@UnityMotorSportsGarage You brought me back to the early to mid 70's when I lived in the Bronx, New York. The Superintendant of the building had one laying on a truck tire in the basement. That engine was his pride and joy. I never heard it run but he said one day he would install on his Fairlane. Unfortunately i never got to see that happen. Those were the days of street racing in the Bronx on the weekends..Thanks again. Made my Day. Keep up the Great work.
This video was really great. Thank you for the explanation and history. It was one of those “ oh that’s what happened “ moments
Thanks for Watching Jeffrey! I'm glad you enjoyed it
Andy
Around 1990 at an A & W drive-in on Jefferson in Harrison Twp Michigan, a red, stock looking spotless 1961 Ford Starliner pulled in next to me and sounded healthy and had a nasty rumble. Under the hood was a 427 SOHC. What a car !
Awesome automotive history, thanks for posting.
Thanks for the kind words... Thank you for watching!
Andy
Thanks for the look back at the Cammer. '71 Winternationals was the first drag race my dad took me to and we were in the pits when Pete Robinson crashed. Saw the smoke/dust cloud and heard the announcer saying it didn't look good. I understand the car went partially under the Armco barrier. Sad day.
Was Don Vanderwoude racing then? The Flying Dutchman? His daughter married my best friend and I met Don just before he passed. He told me some great stories.
Was at a Ford Enthusiasts car show in Xenia Ohio around ‘93 or so and chatted at length with a guy who had a cammer in a 67 Ford pickup truck. The thing was beautifully done. Memory is shaky on this but I swear I think he said that someone was using the engine as the base for a coffee table and he convinced the guy to sell it to him. The truck was copper metallic, if memory serves.
12:46 I'll come here again just for the sound!
I agree, its epic to hear the Cammer screaming through the gears! Thanks for watching
Andy
12:45 thats pure music
Yes it truly is! Thanks for watching,
Andy
Seconded!
Hell yea that sounded badass
And just think, that's a 427, not a little stroke 302 or 289 engine lol...
As a big Gasser fan of the mid to late 60's and a Mopar fan these motors scared the hell out of me because they gave the 426's a true heads up match in that time, I believe Kalitta was right if the parts where there then we might have seen a different look in both Top Fuel and Funny Car today!!! Great vid Andy, thanks!!!!
Thank you Steve for Watching and for the kind words..
Andy
That long timing chain makes trouble.
@@ScottKenny1978 Yeah, that's true. In fuel racing the SOHC 427 had a different regimen between rounds and it was a pretty intense one.
@@ScottKenny1978 - Compounded by the fact that the SOHC engine ran best at higher RPM’s.
I remember being in Jim Barillaro's shop when he lived in Ct., he had one brand new in the factory Ford crate....
I bet it was an awesome sight! Thanks for Watching
Andy
What do I think you're doing with the channel?
Great things!!!
I had a lousy day at the office and I came home opened a can of beer and watched your analysis of the Ford cammer.
Keep up the good work those are bygone days and the internal combustion engine is probably going to be going the way of the Steam locomotive so it's fun to enjoy memories of these
Engineering masterpieces while we can.❤
Thank you for the kind words! I really appreciate it
Andy
There used to be a company in Indy named Genesis Performance Castings. They had license to make all aluminum copies of the 427 and supplied many a race winner with their upgraded versions of the mighty side oiler. I may be mistaken but pretty sure John Force used them for a long time and a lot of success.
Didn't Dove make them also?
I think you are right Mark..
Andy
Googled Genesis, seemed to have gone bankrupt by 2004, bought by a Webber who were going to try and honor orders (and deposits) for the block. Some sites are showing them inactive since 2008.
Wasn't oil capsity contributive
Dave P, John Force's team helped Ford develop the Ford Boss 500 hemi engine for Drag Racing. Bob Tasca III currently uses that engine.
Phenomenal video!
Thanks Jeremy!
Andy
That's crazy timing
Yep ! that motor was the beginning of what we have today in production motors such as fords 4.6 and 5.4.
Great video, the vintage racing films are awesome!
Thanks Nathan!
Andy
We need more of these types of videos!! Like history lessons for the next generation of hot rodders. Doing my first rebuild now... Chrysler 287 with the 2008 Ram revisions jumping the HP up too 310, thinking of running variable length individual throttle bodies or bolts a Eaton 112 on it but thats for another time... All forged internals with a cast iron block should be a good starting point
Great stuff all the way. Especially that run starting at about 12:40.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,As a young teenager [1964] I was devouring car magazines every month.......Me and a gearhead buddy went all over Brooklyn NY on our bicycles.......at night goin down Coney Island ave. We heard some insane engine noise at a big gas station car shop.........Low and behold what I saw on the lift running was a cammer in a notchback mustang.....I can't remember if it was injected or a supercharger......Anyway,,,,,thanks for all you are ,and the timely work you put out here...................
Met an individual named Shannon in Milwaukie Oregon years ago at Russ Meeks' shop. Russ had just completed a frame off restoration of a real '67 Shelby SC cobra. It had a SOHC 427 in it and what a thrill. This had to be 30 years ago, I'll have to ask Russ if he has heard anything lately.
I bet that car was a hand full! Thanks for Watching
Andy
I really enjoyed the vintage footage and you taking the time to dig it up.
Thanks for the kind words.. Thank you for watching
Andy
i just wish i had the coin to own one so damn cool.
You aren't the only one! Lol. Thanks for Watching
Andy
Nice production, Sandy !
It's like I was there ...waite I forgot I was there what a great walk in the past!
Thanks for Watching Dave! I'm glad that you enjoyed it
Andy
The new modular motors Ford makes is a relative of this engine. It would be awesome if Ford could make a crate 427 cammer engine like the original or better.
They are not related .
Yeah, while not related.. The Mod Motor can really trace it's roots to this engine... The deep skirted block with cross bolted mains and the OHC design... The 6.2 SOHC cylinder head design is almost a true copy of the 427 SOHC head...
Andy
.....they do its called Terminator ,!
I would love to see a DOHC version of the 427. That would take a whole new block, because the bore and stroke is nothing like the Coyote. But it would make almost 900 hp without a turbo.
knobber420, you can buy a Ford 427 SOHC from Jon Kaase engines. Big buck$ though. czcams.com/video/pD_rHQA8_Rk/video.html
Another great video, loved the old drag racing videos you put in. ✌
Thanks for the kind words... And for watching!
Andy
Thanks for the trip down memory lane, the cammer is one of the truly great engines!
Thank you for watching Hank!
Andy
@@UnityMotorSportsGarage thanks for your work 😀
My Escort's a single overhead cam, maybe I'll get on of those repro fender emblems for it . cool as heck. GREAT VID
You make really good videos I love watching the history of Motorsport
Thank you the kind words and for watching!
Andy
The 427 SOHC Cammer V8 is the baddest engine Ford has ever made.
I agree! Thanks for watching...
Andy
@@UnityMotorSportsGarage You're Andy heck it'll even make Modern V8s Squeal.
Yes sir, that's correct.
....so do I.......
Unfortunately it was never made into a production engine. Which was part of the reason nascar banned it.
The fact is the Ford 427 Thunderbolt was the competitor to the Doge Hemi producing 500 horse race application with two four barrels. NASCAR requires any engine that is used in NASCAR to be produced in cars to the public. The cammer was never produced to the public in a automobile. On the other side the detuned 427 FE thunderbolt side oiler was, it came in the Galaxy 500 producing 425 horse with two four barrels... Fact
I asked for the cammer a few months ago. An low an behold. Thank you
Yes you did! I hope it was worth the wait... Thanks for Watching
Andy
Great video Andy!!!👍👍
Thanks Big Bear!
I got to see and hear one run in the Engine Masters competition.
That really is a beautiful engine with the blower on top. Just a really good looking wide, tall, big motor.
Baddest Blue Oval ever made! Those heads have serious intake ports!
Almost. John Mihovetz has made over 3,000 hp from a factory block and heads 5.4 L in the standing mile record holding Ford GT running 300.4 mph. That's the most powerful and fastest Ford engine ever ran in anger.
The engine that humbled the legendary Chrysler Hemi.
🎯
Chrysler didn't want to race it . That's what I heard 👂. Kind of makes sense , maybe that's why Bill France would ban it .
Chrysler answered with the dohc hemi. Nascar said stop
@@Marco-fi6gv 💥🤘
@@somebodyelse836 kinda funny it's never been mentioned or seen before I dont believe you .
Love it 1 of my favorite motors the other the shotgun can't wait to see your small block version run
Small black version? Like what CI?
I didn’t know what this video was going to make me cry. It reminded me of my dad and his cousin working in their drag chevy Vega it had a v8 it would run low 10s high 9s but the shifting idk it just brought back memories of my pops.
I'm glad you enjoyed it! I too get memories of my Dad when I make these videos...
Andy
Great Video, thanks for taking me back to the best Hotrod time in History.
Thank you for the kind words! Thank you for watching!
Andy
Great work !
Thank you Tim!
Andy
Great video Andy! Thanks
Thanks for the kind words... and for watching!
Andy
Fantastic video, the vintage videos are awesome. Great video sir.
I saw TV Tommy Ivo, Big Daddy Don Garlits and Shirley Cha Cha Muldowney racing at Cleves race track just outside of Cincinnati in 1977-78. That was a lot of fun.