Cammers on Fuel

by Jim Hill - 1/05/1999

Tommy Grove ran the 'Cammer motor into the 70's, but I think it was the early part of that decade that he finally threw in the towel. And yes, he did run well with it. Development, although there were few takers by that time, had finally worked many of the bugs out of the SOHC's bag of tricks.

These development improvements included bottom-end strengthening, vastly improved main and rod oiling and replacement of the lengthy, stretch-prone cam timing chain. Thanks go posthumously to Sneaky Pete Robinson for the "cure" for this malady, a complex but efficient gear-drive which eliminated the dreaded valve timing retard and blower-go-boom stuff!

The 7 liter SOHC Ford had loads of potential, but was about a full decade away from its realization. Consider this: A contemporary engine, with its super-strong bottom end, lightweight aluminum cylinder block, tough steel liners, opened-up oiling system and all the bells and whistles that make today's fuel monsters as reliable as they can be, could benefit tremendously from the SOHC Ford's valve train. All it would take is a couple million clams to engineer, prototype, test and manufacture this into what would surely be the "KB of the 21st century"! Any takers?

Jim Hill
Crane Cams