Ed Pink built 426 Hemi.

[1970gator]

Hello!  I've been a member on the forum for a couple years but this is my first post.  I bought a 426 Hemi this weekend that has a really cool story.  I have my beliefs as to what kind of power I could expect, but I'd love to hear others estimates of what I should/could expect.  As this is my first Hemi, I'd love to get the opinions of those who have knowledge and experience with these motors.

A quick back story for this Hemi.  It is a time capsule.  This engine was built by Ed Pink in 1978 for a gentleman in Southern California who had plans to put it in his Jaguar XKe.  He raced the jaguar in hill climb races.  However, he never installed the engine and it was never even started after the Ed Pink build.  The motor was sunk in a barrel of oil in approximately 1979/80 and sat there for over 30 years.  The engine looks as good today as the day Ed Pink torqued the last bolt.  Judging by the dome of the pistons, I'm assuming its in the neighborhood of 12.5:1 compression.  The heads have been fully ported and polished.  The connecting rods have also been polished.  It is my intention to reduce the motor to a streetable compression ratio and put it in my '68 Charger R/T.  Any educated guesses as to what kind of HP I might expect would be greatly appreciated.  Thank you!

[ottawamerc]

How about gobs of power nice find 

[68X426]

Awesome all the way around. Great story, great first post and pics   

In '78 that motor could've put out 600-700 hp on the street (carb'd). Today, with advancements in EFI and ignition, you could see 800-900 hp or more.

Unless you're going old school with it, you have to consider several updates, like EFI, turbo, supercharge, etc. Wow, what a find.

Welcome Gator. 

[1974dodgecharger]

900HP of DETROIT MUSCLE 

Awesome all the way around. Great story, great first post and pics   

In '78 that motor could've put out 600-700 hp on the street (carb'd). Today, with advancements in EFI and ignition, you could see 800-900 hp or more.

Unless you're going old school with it, you have to consider several updates, like EFI, turbo, supercharge, etc. Wow, what a find.

Welcome Gator. 

[JB400]

Welcome to the forum.  Any idea as to what the cam profile is?   Wouldn't mind seeing some dyno numbers when it's completed

[Fred]

Congrats on your first post.     And welcome. 

[Ghoste]

Welcome to the group and that's an interesting first post.  Stroker is right, it'd be good to know the cam profile.  Cam technology has made some big advances since 1978 although possibly less so for street driven Hemi's than wedge engines.  The cam will tell you a lot as to what you should expect for power and it could also have some effect on whether or not you need to swap out those pistons.  Hemi's will generally tolerate a lot more squeeze than a wedge because of the surface to volume ratio.
Have the ports in the heads been greatly modified?

[1970gator]

Welcome to the group and that's an interesting first post.  Stroker is right, it'd be good to know the cam profile.  Cam technology has made some big advances since 1978 although possibly less so for street driven Hemi's than wedge engines.  The cam will tell you a lot as to what you should expect for power and it could also have some effect on whether or not you need to swap out those pistons.  Hemi's will generally tolerate a lot more squeeze than a wedge because of the surface to volume ratio.
Have the ports in the heads been greatly modified?

Awesome all the way around. Great story, great first post and pics   

In '78 that motor could've put out 600-700 hp on the street (carb'd). Today, with advancements in EFI and ignition, you could see 800-900 hp or more.

Unless you're going old school with it, you have to consider several updates, like EFI, turbo, supercharge, etc. Wow, what a find.

Welcome Gator.

Thanks for everyone's input thus far.  Honestly, I am completely undecided on whether to go with carburetion or upgrade to EFI.  I like the benefits of EFI and with the idiot proof EFI applications available now days, I think even I could successfully install one, lol.  As far as cam profile goes, I am again undecided.  I am considering a roller cam and full roller valvetrain to unlock as much streetable horsepower as possible.  However, because of the rather unique history of this Hemi there is a part of me that thinks I shouldn't touch it and leave it as Ed Pink built it.  That being said, I really think I am most likely to drop new slugs into it and get her down to around 10:1 compression.  I'll have the heads torn down and inspected to make sure the springs, retainers, seals, etc. are as they need to be.  The camshaft I have in mind is a MP purple camshaft with 296 advertised duration and .557 inches of lift (though this is certainly open for discussion).  As for fuel delivery, I'm leaning toward giving EFI a shot.  I have no experience with EFI, so any suggestions on the best setup for this application would be greatly appreciated!  I'm thinking that this setup along with a good exhaust will conservatively get me into a streetable 650-675 horsepower.

[Challenger340]

Congratulations, that is indeed a very unique Historical find these days.
No disrespect intended, but considering your power goals, it is a 426 HEMI, built in 1978 by Ed Pink ?

Nowadays being 40 years later, (and again, and no disrespect intended to Ed Pink), "Historical" significance is not a guarantee of unobtainable HP numbers these days, and there are probably 7,000 plus Builders in North America who have the same knowledge, and even far more than Ed did back in 1978 with HEMI's.
Just saying,
Technologies, R & D knowledge, and parts are all more prevalent and basically "common knowledge" compared to what Ed had to work with back in the day.

That's said,
nice find  ....but realistically, with a low maintenance Mechanical Roller profile Cam that is liveable on the street(you mentioned mid .500" lift), Pump Gas compatible Compression, and with a useable street powerband roughly between 3,500 to 6,500 rpm, again LOW-MAINTENACE, then 625-650hp'ish is about it for a 426 inch no matter Carbed or EFI, CARBURETORS obviously still making more power then EFI even today.
To do the above it would of course, have to be reworked by someone else TODAY to current Technologies, which would RUIN any Historical significance tied to the Engine, and it may be far too valuable to use as merely a "core" for a more up to date current build ?      

[1970gator]

Congratulations, that is indeed a very unique Historical find these days.
No disrespect intended, but considering your power goals, it is a 426 HEMI, built in 1978 by Ed Pink ?

Nowadays being 40 years later, (and again, and no disrespect intended to Ed Pink), "Historical" significance is not a guarantee of unobtainable HP numbers these days, and there are probably 7,000 plus Builders in North America who have the same knowledge, and even far more than Ed did back in 1978 with HEMI's.
Just saying,
Technologies, R & D knowledge, and parts are all more prevalent and basically "common knowledge" compared to what Ed had to work with back in the day.

That's said,
nice find  ....but realistically, with a low maintenance Mechanical Roller profile Cam that is liveable on the street(you mentioned mid .500" lift), Pump Gas compatible Compression, and with a useable street powerband roughly between 3,500 to 6,500 rpm, again LOW-MAINTENACE, then 625-650hp'ish is about it for a 426 inch no matter Carbed or EFI, CARBURETORS obviously still making more power then EFI even today.
To do the above it would of course, have to be reworked by someone else TODAY to current Technologies, which would RUIN any Historical significance tied to the Engine, and it may be far too valuable to use as merely a "core" for a more up to date current build ?

All valid points!  No disrespect taken and no offense taken.  I'm interested in anyone's thoughts regardless of their nature.  The historical significance is very hard to put a value on.  Ed Pink is obviously a very well known engine builder from an era gone by, but I'm not sure what that equates to value wise (if at all).  Nor, do I have a good idea of whether it'd make more sense to 're-work' this one to suit my needs or leave it in it's current configuration (although properly checked to ensure everything is in operational order).  Honestly, the Ed Pink connection may end up being nothing more than a fun and interesting story to share about the history of this hemi.  However, if there is a historical significance and a tangible value to this motor's history, I'd be more likely to leave it in it's current configuration.

[JB400]

For me personally, I'd just put it together and see what the numbers are.  I like seeing what the previous generations know and how much things have changed over time.  Every once in a while, you can be surprised at how innovative some people were.


You could always rebuild it later on to your specs.

[fy469rtse]

I would measure the cam , see what duration and lift you ,measure the lobe separation ray Barton has some great alloy heads for hemis that will allow you to get away with a point or two of compression , see if you can identify pistons part number or brand , there wouldn't have too many manufacturers back in the day , take what you and transform into a modern built hemi, envious wish that was in my garage

[firefighter3931]

That is a cool find and very well preserved 

With only 426 cubes you would have to RPM the hell out of it to get the big number and that means deep gears and lots of stall speed. I'd say that Bob (340Challenger) is correct in his estimates. 


Ron

[tan top]

hello & welcome        

[1970gator]

I had a chance to start working on the Hemi this weekend.  I photographed all the various stampings on the block, and I appreciate any help you all can provide as to exactly what they mean.  The first couple pics are the stampings just below the starter.  I know the 'NM' is likely stamped backwards and should mean the plant where the motor was assembled.  '426' is the cu. in. of the engine and the next four are the date code.  However, I couldn't find how to decode the date code.  Can anyone help with that?  Also, what are the number following the date code?  The next pic is the machined pad on the passenger side of the motor.  Is this a partial VIN?  The next two (2) pics are of the camshaft.  I read on one of the forums that camonics did some custom grinds for Ed Pink, but I really don't know if this is a custom grind or not.  The next pic is of the crankshaft and a date stamping of 4-17-78.  This motor was built by Ed Pink in 1978 so I assume that this date stamp was done during that build.  Beside the date stamp is a KC and an M with a circle around it.  Is there any significance to those markings?  The last pic is the machined pad on top of the motor.  It is stamped 'WT' which I understand all the Hemi's were and meant water tested.  Any information that can be provided about any of these stampings would be greatly appreciated.  Thank you all in advance!

Starter Tab Stampings:





Machined Pad Above Oil Pan:



Camshaft:





Crankshaft:



Machined Pad on Top of Engine:

[firefighter3931]

Based on the camshaft stampings i'd guess that the cam looks like this on paper :

H usually designates hydraulic flat tappet cam
236*@.050 valve lift
.333 lobe lift = .495 valve lift with 1.5 rocker ratio
108* lobe seperation angle

* You could call Crane and give them the numbers to see what they say. 



Ron

[maxwellwedge]

MN NM MV  = Mary(s)vale plant...all Hemi's were built there

3301 - August 11, 1970 assembly date (10,000 day calender)

3/13/70 = March 13, 1970 machining date

G = G Series....1971 production

Looks like possibly some kind of car VIN on the side pad. 71 Hemi's sometimes had no VIN stampings, hand stamps etc. They were often weird looking on a lot of original examples.

[1970gator]

MN NM MV  = Mary(s)vale plant...all Hemi's were built there

3301 - August 11, 1970 assembly date (10,000 day calender)

3/13/70 = March 13, 1970 machining date

G = G Series....1971 production

Looks like possibly some kind of car VIN on the side pad. 71 Hemi's sometimes had no VIN stampings, hand stamps etc. They were often weird looking on a lot of original examples.

That's great information, I appreciate it very much!

[maxwellwedge]

You are welcome. 

Here is a great little 10,000 day calender site for those who want to decode certain date codes that Mopar used on a lot of parts.  http://maxwedge.com/articles/10k.php

[1970gator]

I just did a quick search on the internet and the single source that I found showed approximately 393 Hemi's were installed in 1971 model year cars.  Was the '71 Hemi production numbers really that much lower than the '66-'70 year models?

[maxwellwedge]

Oh yeah - not sure of the 71 total at the moment -  but it was a heck of a lot less cars. Last year and the insurance companies were going hard.

[68X426]

I just did a quick search on the internet and the single source that I found showed approximately 393 Hemi's were installed in 1971 model year cars.  Was the '71 Hemi production numbers really that much lower than the '66-'70 year models?

Yes. Like Maxwell said.

Data from Allpar.com, I assume this was obtained from Chrysler:

[Ghoste]

Sure is a telling dropoff isn't it?

[1970gator]

I assume the R109106 stamped on the machined pad near the oil pan is a partial VIN?  I am a little unsure if the 'R' is designating that it was going into a Plymouth B-body or if the 'R' was because that was the letter designating a Hemi in '71.  I was told by a gentleman on another forum that the 'R' was for a Plymouth B-body meaning this motor went into a Road Runner or GTX.  However, I've since been told it was indeed because it was a '71 Hemi and that was the engine code for Hemi in '71.  So, now I'm confused, lol.  Can anyone confirm this one way or another?  Was there enough consistency in how these were stamped to say with confidence either way?  I appreciate any and all input!

[maxwellwedge]

1R109106 makes sense as a VIN

1 = 71

R = Windsor Plant (I do believe some Hemi B-Bodies were built there in 71)

109106 = sequence number