Читать книгу Ford 429/460 Engines: How to Rebuild - Charles Morris - Страница 7

INTRODUCTION

To describe me as a lifelong car guy would not be much of a stretch, as I can trace my interest in things automotive back to the tender age of 10. And while my ever-growing passion was not particularly understood or encouraged at home, it wasn’t stifled either. I credit my copious reading habit with the formation of a basic understanding of how the internal combustion engine functions and my strong interest in performance modifications. I devoured every car magazine I could get my hands on. And somehow during this formative time in my life I decided that I was a “Ford man,” despite an overwhelming percentage of my contemporaries preferring Chevrolet.

My early interest led to some hands-on mechanical experience when I began handing wrenches to a teenaged neighbor when I was 12. He had a real hot rod of the time—an Oldsmobile Rocket V-8-powered 1933 Ford coupe. I was hooked. This led to my rescuing an early Holley 2-barrel carburetor from the trash behind my local Ford dealership. After repeatedly dissecting this simple method of fuel delivery, I formed a basic understanding of its function and eventually got to where I could tear it down and reassemble it in my sleep.

As time went on, older guys in the neighborhood enlisted my assistance with their cars, which led to my participation in numerous street races and my decision to pursue a career in the automotive trades. The vocational technical training I received in high school allowed me to learn the trade that would provide a living, while a part-time job in a speed shop further fueled my passion for performance. After working in the service and parts departments at a local dealership, I eventually chose a different career path, but I exercised my passion for cars as a parttime drag racer and shade-tree mechanic for the next four decades.

Along the way, I gained valuable experience by rebuilding engines myself and watching professional engine builders. This book will cover a stock engine rebuild with simple performance- and reliability-enhancing modifications noted. Keep in mind that there are very distinct differences between a stock rebuild and a race-prepared engine, and while this book will help you enter the slightly modified engine arena, I leave the full-race engines to the pros.