HPP Mag - McCarthy 455 Build Article
 

Guys, I know this is a long shot but I'm looking for an article that Pete McCarthy did in the early '90s on a 455 build using an Engle cam. I have pawed through all my old back issues of the magazine from about 1990 on and I can't find it. Does anyone else remember that article? Can you give me a month and year of the magazine?
Thanks in advance.

my collection has very few issues before 1994...
if it isn't found before that time frame I can look...
The only issues I am missing after that point are some of the ones where HPP briefly went monthly...

I remember the article. It used an an Engle cam that was 236/236 109 LSA and 494 ish lift. It used ported iron heads. I believe the dreaded Performer manifold and a modified 650 Holley.

It went in a 76 TA that touched a high twelve.

Cool build.

I only found two magazine reports on Pete's 455 engines.
Pontiac Enthusiast magazine January 1996 and March/April 1996.
Sorry, I could not find any on my list for High Performance Pontiac magazine.

Bingo!
 

Paul K. That's the one! Wonder if anyone has the issue that it is in? I looked through my copies but can't find it and I can't find the High Performance Pontiac issues that the other poster mentioned. I probably separated that issue out from all the rest so I'd have it handy and have since lost it. That's only been 30 years ago!

Pete McCarthy once said the following... "Even the lowly Edelbrock 'Performer' consistently produces more low-end torque with stock D-port heads than any of the factory 4-bbl manifolds".


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Great cam btw. Back in the early 90's my brother had Jerry Goodale at Specialized Motor Services (SMS) in Riverside rebuild the 455HO engine for his 72 TA. Pretty much a stock rebuild outside of the Engle cam and HO Tri-Y headers. It ran 107 mph in the 1/4 at Carlsbad with a M22 and 3.23 rear gear :eek:

I mention this because I met Pete at SMS when we went to pick up his engine. He showed us some new fancy holley boosters he developed and how he used a notched intake valve to do his head port work. Very cool day

I just went to look;
There is no January 1996 issue - there's a December 1995 & February 1996;
The April 1996 issue makes no mention of an article such as what's being discussed - and neither does the February issue.

Of interest. See page #13 here:
https://forums.maxperformanceinc.com...d.php?t=554097

Early Pete McCarty build, a 475-hp street 400. Mentions the Performer intake.

A fwiw, Pete's comment regarding the Performer intake that I mention in post #6
It was made in 1997 within Pontiac Enthusiast Magazine, made during his commentary regarding intake manifolds.
At the time he commented that he learned his lesson early on, when he ran his Ram Air 1967 GTO in the late sixties with every available aftermarket manifold then available.
None of them ran any quicker than did the stock cast-iron manifold. Only when the engine was later tuned for much higher rpm, using roller cams and more gearing, did the larger 360 degree manifolds do anything for him.

Keep in mind this was years ago.


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Correct! It was in one of Pete's Indian Head articles in the early '90s. I have it somewhere, but it would take a day to find it, as I have every issue from the first Fire Am mag to the last issue of HPP.

I'd gladly pay you a finder's fee if you went to all the trouble of locating the article. Really.
I built a motor from that article back in the mid '90s and put it in a 66 Catalina convertible. Probably weighed 4500 pounds. It ran about 96 mph at e.t. 15.10 at sea level. Open rear end with 3.23 gears IIRC. Street tires- no traction.
Sold the car to someone in Norway. Kept the motor. Sold it in a '72 Ventura to a guy who immediately jerked the 455 out and went sbc. Engine got ruined sitting outside in the weather. I bought the remains back from him recently and I wanted to refresh my memory of what I did against the build in HHP. Bought a 67 Tempest recently to put it in. Anxious to get things rolling!

Can you recognize the cover?
http://99wspeedshop.com/highperformancepontiac01.html

From the looks of the covers I probably have all the issues from mid 91' and newer.

Ive got a few letters from Pete from back in the day when I wrote him asking questions about my car. Back when you used pen and paper instead of the internet. Lol.He sent me some copies of dyno sheets from one of his builds.

I'll dig around this weekend and see if I can find it.

How about June '91, page 12.

Thunder Am (TA) that's cool .... I started with the issue that had the 69 & 70 TA on the cover. I'd like to find the earlier issues. I remember a friend's brother had them and I was able to thumb through them once.

JSuchma Thank you, thank you!

Oooops......I meant Thunder Am. Thanks, Paul, for the correction.

PM sent your way.

I will look at home ill remember a pete mc carthy article on a 455 on a 76 trans am with cam duration 230 or more .....and 6 x heads for me there were not so overwhelming results as i remember after some tuning and as i remember also using slicks the car run 12.98 s ......on the other hand petes 400 engine 475 HP article was for me very exciting and lot of test results with strong engine

He already got it. Hard copy, even.