Читать книгу Mopar Small-Blocks - Larry Shepard - Страница 5

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The Chrysler/Mopar small-block V-8 engine was in production for almost 40 years and was raced in many different categories and configurations during this time. Chrysler built millions of these engines with so many racing variations that the history alone could easily fill a book. Quick references and focusing on availability kept it within the covers. So hats off to Indy Heads (cast iron and aluminum), Edelbrock (aluminum), and B1 (aluminum) for maintaining key performance parts for the small-block.

The small-block program had many ups and downs, many parts programs that came and went, and too many racers who helped with these competitive efforts to name individually, but thanks to all! I owe a lot to the many contractors and Chrysler engineers: Ted Flack, Al Nichols, Tom Hoover, Pat Baer, Bill Hancock, Tim Zuehlke, and Jim Szilagyi, with special thanks to John Wehrly. They taught me well! I also want to thank the many manufacturers that display their new hardware at events and shows such as PRI & SEMA; their representatives are always willing to answer questions and discuss the latest hardware.

I thank Rob Cunningham of Mancini Racing and Bob McSwain and Rob Miela of Godfather Racing for their help. Plus a big “thanks” to Gary Stanton, Ron Keselowski, and Larry Henry for helping me with history data conflicts.

The writing and photography required for an engine book is a lot of work but not anywhere near the amount of work that went into the design and development of the parts originally. Extra thanks to Scott Koffel, Dave Koffel, Leonard Lawson, and Greg Charney for helping with the photographs and their leading-edge creations, along with Frank Parker for the real heavy work.

I owe the most thanks of all to machinist Richard Koffel, and engine builder Dan Parker, and the 340 engine’s owner, Charlie Henry. I couldn’t have done it without them! They all put in lots of time to help me put photos and words together.

Perhaps most of all, I must thank my editor, Paul Johnson, for his patience, guidance, and foresight. He took a tremendous number of words and photos on small-blocks and made it fit into this book and be readable.

I would like to give extra special thanks to my wife, Linda, for her steady hand in keeping our household going during this project and accepting the huge piles of research material and photographs that I used to create this manuscript.