Technical Traditional looking 426 hemi valve cover options?

I helped crew on a couple nostalgia SS cars for a while. I always held both first and second gen hemis in high regard, but after watching the build and running of the second gen, I knew that I would either spend cubic dollars for an experienced builder to select, machine and assemble one or spend even more learning all the tricks and still be behind. There are a ton of combos that each have an assortment of parts that have to play together, and a lot of them require best friends to not beat each other to death.

 

426 takes a dedicated builder. People that are used to bolting stuff together and running it have no idea. The pushrod clearance and geometry on mine was already figured out by the previous guy, but since I put a smaller cam in, I still had to verify everything was gonna be happy. It takes time.

 

1959

Hello,

In our early days at Lion’s Dragstrip, we saw plenty of So Cal drag racers. The record holders had all sorts of motors. But, the FED race cars + one Sidewinder race car had big Chrysler motors.
SOUND to go with a supercharged hemi motor

No one in the popular Gas Coupe and Sedan class had any big Hemi motor except for this one Ford truck.
1958-59
The only Ford truck running in the Gas Coupe and Sedan classes was a full size plus added extras. The Hemi motor was powerful and attracted many people to come see what was making all of that power in the pits. Sometimes, the owner would leave all of his work day stuff in the back as it was considered normal weight. But, later on as the rules got more stringent, all added weight had to be welded to the frame and not just bolted in place or sitting in the bed. Afterall, he was called “The Painter.”
A rebuilt motor 59 years later…

The only Ford truck running in the Gas Coupe and Sedan classes was a full size plus added extras. The Hemi motor was powerful and attracted many people to come see what was making all of that power in the pits. Sometimes, the owner would leave all of his work day stuff in the back as it was considered normal weight. But, later on as the rules got more stringent, all added weight had to be welded to the frame and not just bolted in place or sitting in the bed. Afterall, he was called “The Painter.”
1959

Jnaki

But, also in 1958-59 the big Hemi motors were very popular in the FED race car classes. We were reading the weekly Drag News publications as fast as they came out. The stories in So Cal kept us reading about every dragstrip and competitors. The outside of So Cal coverage did have some racers that drew our attention. Namely, Bobby Langley from Texas.
1959
When the advertised biggest drag race in the USA was about to happen in So Cal, we had to see those “famous” racecars that we only read about weekly.

Something drew us immediately to the bobby Langley pits action. Was it the cool hemi motor set up and the almost full streamlined body? Or was it that cool air scoop with retreating shark fins built in the casting?

At any rate, the Hemi motor was not only a nice looking build, but the sound starting up and running down the dragstrip was outstanding. The early films taken at Riverside Raceway in December 1959 and a few months later in March 1960 in Bakersfield for the Smokers Annual March Meet.
Riverside + Bakersfield

 

That is a beautiful GTX, do you still have it? Your Hemi X and Dudeks Black 69 Hemi Road Runner were my two favorite cars in the FAST class.