RIP Crane
 

RI.P. Crane Cams ! Just got an order redone with CompCams P/N s.
Sad
Harvey Crane personally set H/O up with Crane at our shop in Lawndale in '75.

So.... Crane Cams lasted a little over 10 years under S&S Cycle ownership? I didn't hear they had closed again. Very recent?

They haven't be owned by S&S for a while. A company called Micronite owned them after S&S. Then another Co. or 2 took over. They are now owed by holding co. under the Edelbrock Performance Group banner. Edel. is moving their operation to Miss.

I didn't hear they were owned by S&S.

A friend, big time bike builder and neighbor has deep connections with S&S.

They were owned by S&S for several years. I believe S&S owned them right after the first closure and that is when Crane really passed. They were never the same and continually got worse as each year passed and ownership changed hands.

Crane was a great Company back in the day along with Lunati.... For a while (and might still be) they were under the same umbrella as Competition Cams... The Wal-mart of the valvetrain companies... I really feel for the folks that relied on them for a pay check.

Harvey Crane ran a tight ship and had experts working for him, like Don Hubbard, Harold Brookshire, and Glenn Corwin. Don H was a VP at Crane and Ran Camshaft Machine Company (with Glenn C) in Jackson Michigan. Once they voted Harvey out of his company the game was done.

Now I know how you had your Cam Connection with CMC and Wolverine Blue Racer, Ken Crocie.

Tom V.

google "Edelbrock Group"

I had forgotten they were part of the Group that owns Edelbrock and others. Usually that's the kiss of death. As I have said many times, it's a predictable pattern. The holding company NEEDS to show the investors how smart they are so what's the fastest and easiest way to do that? Find the 5-10 top salary earners in a given acquired company and fire them immediately. Instant profit for the holding company. It happened at Edelbrock in a big way. Within a few days of the acquisition, Rick Roberts, 30+ year MIT Master Degree Chief Engineer was shown the door, along with the rest of the brain trust of the company. Your left with a shell of a company, a name and a reputation. After a few years, it's over. Holley Performance group is marching down the same path.

The acquiring company - read into it what you will:

https://www.iopfund.com/

Welcome to the MBA-ization of the USA.

In case you are not aware, Mike, Holley Carburetor has filed for Bankruptcy at least two times previously due to poor management from these "Group" Owners and their "Management Skills".

Tom V.

Wow! Didn't think it would happen this fast but, I must be some kind of savant.
Same wonderful management group, doing what they do best........ruining companies.

Press release today:

If there's one aftermarket performance company whose name is synonymous with classic American muscle, it just might be Edelbrock. As the manufacturer of carburetors, camshafts, cylinder heads, and more, Edelbrock has built a trusted reputation amongst classic car owners across the nation. There's a reason the company calls itself "the most respected name in performance."

This week, though, Edelbrock seems to be hurting. Daily Breeze has uncovered a filing with the California Employment Development Department which shows that Edelbrock will be closing its long-standing headquarters in Torrance,.
via Edelbrock

According to the filing, Edelbrock notified the EDD earlier this month that it would be permanently closing its Torrance base, affecting the facility's 270 employees with an unconfirmed number of layoffs. This includes workers in the company's office-based divisions like sales and advertising, as well as employees in the research and development, testing, and manufacturing areas. It did not list a reason for the closure.

In addition to the Torrance facility, California also has houses the two Edelbrock Foundries locations on adjacent properties in San Jacinto, California, roughly 95 miles east. It's not clear how many employees will be relocated to the foundries. The company also has a distribution center in Mississippi, plus its carburetor division and its brand new Race Center in North Carolina.

Edelbrock has been headquartered in Torrance since its inception in 1938. As the story goes, Kansas-born Vic Edelbrock Sr. moved to California in the early 1930s and fell in love with hot rod culture—including modifying his '32 Ford Roadster to squeeze every last ounce of power out of the car's factory "Flathead" V8. After failing to find the performance he wanted from off-the-shelf offerings, Vic fabricated his very own intake manifold, stamped it with his family name, and opened the doors to his own performance shop in 1938.

Edelbrock has been owned by Industrial Opportunity Partners (IOP), a private equity firm, since 2010. IOP also acquired COMP Performance Group in February 2020.

We reached out to both Edelbrock and IOP for comment and will update this story when we hear back.

Got a tip? Send us a note: [email protected]


They will be completely gone in a couple years.

The MBAs will soon be contracting out the Edelbrock products to China. You’ll be able to buy speedmaster heads with the Edelbrock name cast into them.

So you don’t think they are leaving tax crazy California to save money? One of the company’s I do service work for is leaving California also for Texas. Blame the state not the company edelbrock isn’t the first to get out of California they won’t be the last.

Well, Certainly there is a complicated matrix of taxes, politics and other external factors. I don't want this thread to get closed, so lets look at just what's changed. When an "investment group" buys a company or group of companies, their priorities radically change from the former structure. Edelbrock, Crane, and the others in the group are now solely in business to bilk short term profits from an existing good name and reputation. Whatever it takes to make that happen is THE ONLY thing that matters. I can guarantee you that not a single person on the new "board of directors" has ever installed a Crane cam, or an Edelbrock intake manifold. The company and it's products mean absolutely nothing, history and legacy mean nothing, except as it relates to immediate sales and profits. R&D is not needed or even wanted because that cost $ and does not show instant profit. If this means closing all facilities and farming everything out to Vietnam, China, India, or anywhere else where labor is cheap and "dirty" industry is not regulated, that's just fine. When the work can no longer get done, and the quality falters, or sales drop, simply shut down that company and move to the next one. There is no emotional buy-in, no reason to care other than short term profits. No family name or legacy to protect. It's just business. Wash, Rinse, Repeat.

Not all of us with them make a big deal of it. And for the most part, its the "Semi-Synthetic Oil" of the education world. Didn't want the usual Bachelor's Degree, don't have the money or motivation to get a Doctorate.

For me, it was money, I wanted to go on to U of L law school, but as it was, I graduated with my MBA and was broke, all at the same time. Back then, a plasma donation would get me the tank of gas I needed to get home.

Edelbrock burning rubber to get out of California

Nothing new here, but for interest this popped up today....

https://www.thedrive.com/news/39011/...PdrV5Zj58UhHSQ

.

Guys,in this Speedtalk thread is some good insight from Jon Schmidt who worked at Edelbrock.He has helped me with some of my projects including my latest with the repop of the bathtub intake.Enjoy.
https://www.speed-talk.com/forum/vie...hp?f=1&t=62892

Thanks for the link Tom, very interesting insight from those (in the know).

I found the China topic on the capabilities of quality enlightening.


SchmidtMotorWorks - "When electric sports cars become a little more affordable and the styles get better, they will make muscle cars of any era look like typewriters and sewing machines; fascinating devices that don't have a place in most peoples lives."

Sadly there is truth in this statement and currently a thread with some discussion.


SchmidtMotorWorks - "In a street race today, I'll take a Tesla S over a supercharged Camaro, Mustang or Challenger."

I see he was smart enough not to include a Pontiac... :D



Frank

He told me a year ago or so that it was falling apart.Interesting about trying to keep good help away from the space industry.Tom