Projects '61 Falcon Street/Strip Gasser Build

After seeing so many gasser builds on here, I caught the bug. I went to a SEGA race in May and that was all it took. My buddy Johnny, a SEGA racer aka Fiddle Picker on the HAMB, just happened to have a '61 Falcon he wanted to unload. Since I'm a Ford guy and he's not, we made the deal.

While I would eventually like to run with the SEGA guys, time and budget won't allow it for a while. So the plan is to build the chassis to the SEGA rule book while initially running an iron headed, pump gas 460 with a toploader. The goal is to build a street/strip terror that will hold it's own against late model cars that cost more than twice as much.


It will sit like this when done.

 

Question for you Falcon gasser guys right off the bat: what did you do about those tight wheel wells?

I'll run a 28" tire on the street and strip initially but I'd like to be able to go to a 30". I'll radius the fenders of course but it looks like I won't be able to avoid cutting the wheel wells. Black paint shows a 17" cut radius with rear axle in the stock location. This would put the front of the cut about 2" ahead of the wheel well.

Modifying the wheel well itself isn't that big of a deal but it looks like I'll get into the quarter glass window metal if I move it much. SEGA rules only allow the rear axle to be moved back 1".

So how does everyone normally deal with this? Tight clearance to the tire or massaged wheel wells?

 

Watching. Some of this I've wondered about as well.

 

Definitely one to follow for me, I'm building a 63 2-door sedan, so this is prime-rib winter mojo-boosting material

 

Look at the "falcons done right" thread, you may find something that will help.

 

Brian, ask the Gabriel Burrell. Sonic03bluegt on here.

 

here's Gabriel's thread: https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/63-falcon-gasser-south-east-gassers.965872/
here's Falcons done right: https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/falcons-done-right.80033/
here's Falcons gasser style: https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/falcons-gasser-style.1101398/

BigMike

 

Will do. I met Gabe at a SEGA race this year but he was running the A sedan.

I should have crawled under all the other Falcons there!

Speaking of which, one of the SEGA cars is the Patriot (red white and blue round body sedan). There was a HAMB build thread but I can't find it. Anyone got a link?

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G891A using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

You can do them like my old street gasser Falcon. I can give you some specs on a 435 inch 429 that will give them A/Gas boys fits.

 

I've seen those pics, Southcross. Very nice!

Is that a 30" tire? What did you have to do to the wheel wells?

 

Yes, they are 30 inch tires. I actually traded for that car and I didn't do the fenderwells, but they were radiused and flared which is easy to do .
You can weld in some small conduit and then glass them over and body work them to what you like.
You can go all fiberglass and mat and shape them . I have even used thin flat bar and roll it to the shape you want and weld it to the wheel opening and then do the body work. The important thing to remember is metal won't crack body filler will.
You might even find some front fenders and cut the flares off and weld them on the rear.

 

Thanks southcross.

I take it this car came from Massachusetts. This would explain the rotted floor and trunk pans.



I had to cut them completely out.

 

Makes it easier to install a new fabricated chassis.

 

2 X 2 X 11 gauge tubing was used to make subframe connectors. I bent them to nest in the front subframe and rear torque boxes.


Doublers added at the bends.



The stock sheet metal is pretty thin so it requires a good bit of weld area to spread the load. I drilled 1" holes in the front subframe and torque boxes for plug welding.

 

Mr. Engine Bay, meet Mr. Sawzall.



The massive 460 will require a good bit of setback to get decent weight distribution, so the firewall had to go with the shock towers.

 

With a 109.5" wheelbase and a 10% engine setback limit, I could go as far as 10.9" from centerline front axle to #1 spark plug. I picked a "moderate" 7" setback.

Preliminary motor mounts were fabbed from 2 X 4 X 3/16 wall to locate the engine. My phone automatically assigned the number "454" to this photo. Nice try, Samsung, but that ain't gonna happen.

The 460 came from a running '73 Lincoln I bought and stripped nearly 20 years ago. The engine has been sitting in the corner of the shop waiting for a home all that time.
The heads are '72 429 Police Interceptor, P/N D2OE-AB. They come with 2.19" intake and 1.76" exhaust valves, screw-in studs and guide plates from the factory.

It was a bit difficult to swing the engine under the cowl. I'll cut the cowl back for both fore/aft and induction clearance. After ruminating over the location for a while, I think I'll bring the engine forward 1" and drop it 1.5". That will put the crank centerline at 18.5" high.

 

Looks good. you are working fast !

 

Thanks but I've been holding off posting. I brought it home in June and I've worked on it at slow pace. Posts will catch up with progress real soon!

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G891A using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

Oh, I thought you brought it home like last week and worked around the clock on it.

 

The PI heads are a nice compromise between the dove and CJ heads. Bigger valves and pump gas compression. It'll be a handful with a stick shift for sure.

 

Roger that!
I knew a guy in the early 70's that put a very hot 221/T-10/nine inch in a 61, man that thing was a handful, I cant imagine how a 460 will do.
Better hold on, she's gonna buck.

 

Love the "fal-coonz"!! Had a 64 Sprint way-back-when.
I hate you already cut out the rear wheel wells. Hoping you coulda fabbed up a rear wheelhouse to hold the big rubber but......slipped them in/under the stock wheel wells. It seems to "ME" hacking up the rear wheel wells was just a short-cut a lotta gassers took to get the big meats in. Kinda the EZ way out.
I'll be watch'in!!
Agree with others that whopper 460 and the Falcon's short wheelbase could be a handful. Although......."back-in-the-good-old-days"(60's) they stuck/shoehorned 427 in the front of altered wheelbase Falcons and drove on the back wheels half way down the strip! They did it then.......you should be able to do it now!!
Gonna be sweet fer sure!
6sally6

 

Yep. I'm going for 10:1 static CR on premium fuel. 3.50:1 gears for the street.
The PI heads will need a lot of porting on the exhaust side. I should be able to realistically hit 500 hp and maybe a little more.

 

I hope so! I'm after stupid-quick acceleration at lower speeds.
I have a '31 coupe with 351C and stick shift that switches on over 3000 rpm. It's plenty fun but I'm not scared of it at low speed anymore. I need torque!

 

And tires!

 

I have a set of 4.56 gears if you need them . that 3.50 gear will get you to the track , 4.56's would get you down track.

 

No doubt!. I have 3.89 gears in my '31 coupe. Too much on the highway and not enough on the strip.

I might take you up on the gears if I can catch you at a SEGA race next year.

 

The whole idea for this build is to do it the old school way: add Ford's largest engine to one of it's lightest cars and use as many swap meet used parts as possible. Cheap speed, at least initially.

About the only new blow-proof bell you can find these days is a Quick Time and it's about $800. I lucked up and found an obsolete Lakewood bell for $300 on Facebook Marketplace. It's obviously out of date but it will do for now.
The seller supposedly bought a stash of Gapp and Roush parts from their 70s pro stock program. He had a pile of flywheels, clutches and even a big input/output Liberty prepped Toploader. I should have raided the savings account.

 

I picked up a 10 point roll cage kit from Summit. Their kits are sort of universal but it fit pretty well. Some cutting and notching required!





I might raise the dash bar up a bit. I need to get the right seat and steering column in there first.
I'll do swing-outs on the door bars. The fittings are pricey, though. That's where I wish I had a lathe and mill.