History 64/65 Comets old drag cars lets see pictures

Well- priorities changed when I saw the photo of the rear axled wrapped up from that launch the other night! Either a custom pinion snubber, or a set of ladder bars will be the order of the day. I have a unique old set of heim-ended bars that came from some type of a missile-loader from the Air Force, and old friend gave me. I think they are dated from the sixties, so I may just leave em, painted in their military-spec yellow paint, and adapt them into a cool set of ladder bars. That'll be a new conversation piece!!! I'll get a picture of them, I've had them for years, just wondering what they would be good for. Guess I found a use for them..

-The other would be to leave on the converter at full stall (5200-5300 rpm's).
-Crites fiberglass bumpers and brackets (Thats a few pounds of weight!)
-I currently need to run damn near a full tank of California's best -91 octane to keep the pick-up submerged. Thats ALOT of weight thats not needed. A small fuel tank will help there.
-Shave some weight off the rims/tires some more.
-Lastly, and indeed one of the more expensive upgrades is pulling the stock Alan Root aluminum cylinder heads and having them completely worked over. We only cleaned them up before we put them back into service. They are a really neat old set, that's just begging for more airflow potential. I'm hopeful the conservative estimates of 40-50 hp gained by re-working these little performance monsters will prove to be true. I still have every reason to believe the little 289 wants to push the car into the elevens, even with the 10.8-1 compression.

 

MORE COMPRESSION!!!!! MORE CAM!!!!! Just a suggestion,I would try an adjustable pinion snubber before the ladder bars.Ladder bars can cause the suspension to bind unless you use axle floaters.40 to 50HP sounds optimistic with just head work,I would think a cam,intake and carb would be part of that equation!!I believe there is a better fuel intake available that fits the stock tank,probably for a Mustang,but I think the tanks are very similar. ROY.

 

Invite him back. Explain that we really don't bite. It's only words on a computer screen. This is THE place for cool Comets. I would like to see his pix again. Thanks.

 

Hi Guys
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I joined to have some fun and contribute information to the site (I have been around high performance Fords for 30 years and particularly 64/65 Comets) and then it turned out to be stressful and really not fun…..so I said the heck with this…I really don’t need to fight with people and left…..BUT there are some really nice people on this site and I spoke to some of them off line…..so I thought…why should I let hecklers chase me away.
To the nay sayers and experts, you could think what you want….it is your OPINION....BUT the truth is whether you believe it or not my Cyclone was delivered to the original owner in that configuration…..the Cyclone had all the parts on it when he took DELIVERY of the car….so to him that is the way Ford made it……the car was assembled that way when it was still in Fords hands whether it was done on the assembly line, off the assembly line or at a different location at the plant....none of us were there so we really cant say…. BUT the true fact is it was DELIVERED to the original owner in this configuration…..to answer a question that was asked…..he did not pick it up at the assembly plant….he took delivery of it at a dealership….FC Adams in Elmer NJ and the dealership was so excited to have it …they asked him if the could keep it on the floor for a couple of weeks to display and he agreed to one week.

The car is very special to me and I can’t express how happy I am to have it back and it is NEVER leaving my hand again.
<O</O
So, with that said…..I look forward to having fun and contributing to the site.
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Thanks
<O</O
Mark

 

Welcome back. Glad you changed your mind....JOHN

 

Mark, nothing against you but it just sounded to me somebody had given you a hyped up story. Based on the window sticker my guess would be that some items may have been dealer added which was and is very common.

http://www.classiccarswest.com/1965-Mercury-Comet-Cyclone-Hi-Po.html

Welcome back and enjoy your beautiful Cyclone.

 

Glad you and your cool car are back.

 

Mark;Happy to see you back on board!! I hope to get a chance to see your Comet in person! ROY.

 

Glad to be back….
<O</O
I have something cool for everyone…….Did you know that Hayden Proffitt produced a music record and played the guitar?? AND there was a song on the album called “Comet Cyclone”…..the song is about the Comet Cyclone winning at the drag strip all the time. I purchased this record many many moons ago…….I have never seen another one ….has anyone here?....I am sure it was not a big seller

 

Hey Mark,

Three quick things.

1. Welcome back!

2. I'm happy you recovered your car.

3. Now show us some of your great pix!!!!!

 

I agree!! You don't have to go 14.0 CR,but 12.5 CR would do wonders.Port and polish the heads,put in some Chevy(gasp) 1.94/1.60 valves and more duration on the cam.Get some Cal Tracs or a Crites Lift Bar and you be cookin'!Oh yeah,don't forget to get some decent roller rockers.

 

Welcome back Mark! This is really one of the best Comet threads going. Many really good people here. You will make some new friends besides myself. We Comet folks need to stick together. Brian

 

Dale, Your 289 will get you in the 11's but like Roy said you will need a bit more cam and some compression would not hurt either. Just getting your rear end settled down should help the 60' times?

In the 80's when I first was getting my car going I had a radiator shop put in a rear pickup on my stock tank. I mounted a Holley black electric fuel pump right at the rear and ran 1/2" aluminum line up to a regulator under the hood. That was temporary. 30 years later it is still there. I like Dave's idea on a car like yours to hide a fuel cell. Brian

 

Great picture. At least his suspension is not all negative camber like mine. I received a box of goodies from Opentracker today to help with that. Brian

 

Good Job on the pics, Is this the Thompson Comet. Looks like it was for sale, I couldnt imagine strolling through the pits today and debating if you should buy it or not. Probably came with a Trailer Also.

 

Todds feature shoot went down, albeit we never got to the track for the wheels-up shots. Frustrating. The starter/flexplate gave up to the ghost, with no explanations, other than some terrible noises. The car had not been run since the Mooneyes Race, and something must have happened! We got to an off-track location for all the static shots, but the big money wheelies were not to be had tonight... Sorry Todd. But- the evening was not all lost. We DID have some incredible BBQ Nothing like drowning your sorrows in beer and BBQ sauce......

 

Dale

I agree with 65Comet, if you are going to use any type of solid mount traction bar, a housing floater is the way to go. If the pivot point of the traction bar is not identical to the forward spring eye mount spring bind will increase the further apart those two points become. I built these floatersfor my Falcon project for under $30. A pair of mail order spring perches & 1 foot of 3 inch schedule 40 pipe (3.062 ID x 3.500 OD). After cutting & grinding the rings square, the saddle rings were cut in half with one half then welded to the spring perch. The mating surfaces were surface ground and then the saddles were honed to 3.015 ID on a connecting rod machine. The the top saddle was drilled & tapped for a zerk fitting. The stop rings were made by simply cutting a notch, clamping it tight around the axle tube and welding it back together to shrink it down to 3.000 ID. Of course I was working with a housing that did not have ends on it yet. With an assembled rear you can just cut the stop rings in half to install. Hope this helps.
Mike

 

glad to have you back mark let see pictures

 

Mike:
I used a floater set on the rear axle housing of my 66 Comet 427 FE SS car and they work great with the adjustable ladder bars, with that setup you don't have to have the location for pivot on car to ladder bar to a certain point. With leave springs the pivot point is NOT at the eye of the front of the spring like most people think. There is a Math Formula that is used by Chassis Designers so he can get the Correct possion, then he uses that new center point to determined the pinion angle for the driveshaft angle. Now that center point is the front pivot point of the traction bar, with the rear bar that is welded to the axle housing. That how it was designed at Hollowell Engineering in Dearborn Mi. when they did 64 Comets and T-Bolts. ~~~~~~~~AFX DAVE~~~~~~~~

 

Hi guys I was wondering how many of the AF/X, BF/X and Hi-Po cars are left. - Ryan

 

modifying another hotwheels....

 

Thats alot to digest with the floaters. You guys kinda shot down my thoughts on these missile bars, eh?? I need to map this stuff out in my head when we get back from camping.I got a look at a set of Crites set-up on Todd's comet, and it seems to be a rigid set-up??

I just spent all day up in the high desert picking at an incredible location, loaded with parts, and tools. I bought a very unique Offenhauser Cleveland manifold a single plane unit with a removable "turtle" in the center, and a completely new shaft mounted rocker arm assembly for a 428 Cobra-jet, or a FE I'm not sure, but there was a 428 nearby, so I assumed if was for that. Maybe you guys can help me identify it. Its from the seventies, Pro-Stock Engineering. Let me see if I can get some pictures up here.

Oh, I bought ALOT of other stuff too.....But, styed under a self imposed budget. It was hard though...

 

Ken, the Carlisle Ford events are really worth the trip if you have the time. We go every year and are lucky to have this event close to us.

Mike

 

All new, never installed.

Dirty, but no pitting at all. Cleveland?

 

Dale;I hope you do not get burned,PSE[Pro Stock Paul] has/had a very shaky reputation!!! Some thought he was the Ford FE saviour others thought he was just a scam artist.Many of his parts were re-packaged parts from other mfgs.He did come up with the adapter base for FEs to be able to use 351C intakes.GOOD LUCK!! ROY.