A ’62 F-100 Heads to the Bonneville Salt Flats

They were never meant to go fast—ever. But this one does. The Ford F-100 unibody trucks were a short-lived line that ran from 1961-63. When they left scratching their bewildered heads: a full-sized were introduced, Ford enthusiasts were unibody truck? Rumors abounded about body flex and misaligned doors on the new F-100 bodies. Those rumors might have led to the short three-year lifespan of the unibody line, but looking back wearing rose-colored glasses, these atomic-age trucks are rather beautiful and may not entirely deserve their sullied reputation. At least one man we know thinks so, and that man, Tim McMaster, is out to prove that his particular ’62 F-100 deserves some respect!

Back in 2007, McMaster worked as part of the support crew on another land speed racing truck, a ’57 Ford F-100 known as the Flying Yellow Brick. In 2009, he made his rookie run at Bonneville in the truck, and was hooked on land speed racing. Eventually owner Charlie Burns retired the old ’57 race truck, and McMaster was left with an addiction and no way to score.

Like a back-alley junkie, McMaster was in search of a cheap speed fix, which he found in the form of a $300 ’62 Ford languishing in the tomato fields of Central California, near Stockton. It was on! Starting in September 2010, McMaster, Todd Jolliff, John Garner and Lewis Milinich Bodyshop, along with a slew of volunteers transformed this former tomato picker’s truck into a full-fledged, unapologetic race car—excuse us, race truck! A lot of broken knuckles and late nights went into the build-up of this truck. It doesn’t hurt that McMaster is an engine builder and machinist by trade. He eagerly took to the task of turning the mild-mannered 292-ci Y-block into, well, a less mild-mannered Y-block. McMaster bored the cylinders .060 over then took a set of the more desirable ECZ-G heads ported and polished the combustion chambers and opened up the intake valves to 2.02 inches and the exhaust valves to 1.6 inches. To lessen resistance and provide better handling, the crew lowered the truck 6 inches using a flip kit up front and drop shackles and hangers out back. Then the truck made its way to Lewis Milinich Paint and Body to be coated in factory white and green with custom race badging and striping.

For the record it should be noted that McMaster is a Y-block guru and has really sharpened his ax working these engines over. The 292-ci mill now resides at a respectable 301 ci. The fuel and air collide via a 725-cfm Demon carburetor and run through a Blue Thunder intake into those wonderfully worked heads. The rotating assembly in the engine sports a stock cast crank along with stock connecting rods topped by cast aluminum flat top Badger pistons. As for the cam, we’re taking a don’t-ask-don’t-tell policy. It’s a special grind from Oregon Camshaft, but that’s all we know. So what kind of power is this thing making? The estimated horsepower resides at 320 hp at 7,000 rpm, while the torque is estimated to be 350 ft-lb at 4,800 rpm.

The current record in the D/PP class is 164.230 mph. The “D” stands for the engine class of 261 up to 305.99 ci (4.277-5.014L), while the “PP” stands for “production pickup.” Essentially the truck has to have a stock unaltered body in order to compete in this particular class. Since this was the ’62’s debut trip to Bonneville, it was more or less a shakedown run, a time to test the tomato picker and see what it’s capable of doing. The truck ran a best time of 142.5 mph, a bit shy of the 164-mph record, but this engine was built to perform on a flat out run. Plans to build up a bigger engine once the race season is over are already in the works. Here’s what McMaster has to say about further speed records, “One day I hope to take the truck over 200 mph, with a few class and engine changes.”

Safety is paramount when it comes to racing, especially land speed racing at Bonneville. The SCTA (Southern California Timing Association) is the governing body that has been hosting Speed Week at the Bonneville Salt Flats since 1949. The SCTA requires that cages, fire suppression systems and head and neck restraints be used in all vehicles, and this ’62 is no different. Inside the cab you’ll find a full Funny Car-style roll cage, no carpet, one seat complete with restraints, basic Auto Meter gauges to monitor the engine’s vital signs, a couple of toggle switches controlling the spark and fuel, and that’s it. If you want to read more about Tim McMaster’s Y-block adventures you can find them at Yblockguy.com. ST

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TIM MCMASTER
1962 Ford F-100
Modesto, CA

TRUCK SPECS

ENGINE

• 301-cid Y-block
• Demon 725-cfm carburetor
• Oregon camshaft
• ECZ-G cylinder heads
• MSD ignition
• Blue Thunder air intake

SUSPENSION

• Flip kit
• Drop shackles and hangers

WHEELS & TIRES

• Mooneyes discs

BODY

• Green/white Ford by Lewis Milinich Paint & Body

INTERIOR

• Roll cage
• Auto Meter gauges

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