ED DONOVAN
The "Donovan 417"
Drag Racings First "Purpose Built" Engine
A view of the many patterns required to produce the first
"for racing only" Hemi.
The making of these patterns was the beginning of the entire process of
producing the
417. The accuracy of these wooden parts was critical in producing a strong and
reliable block
Master Pattern Maker, Arnold Birner shown here working on
one of the many pattern parts for the 417
Arnold Birner spent hundreds of hours perfecting the patterns
needed
to cast the block
The hand finishing is a very tedious process and required a
great
deal of patience from Mr. Birner
The aluminum alloy was melted at temps in excess of 1700
degrees
before being poured into the sand moulds that have been prepared
using the wooden patterns.
The molten alloy was then poured into the mould. The pour had
to be
continous to insure that no cracks or joint lines was in the finished product
Leonard Van Luven is shown here machining one of the first
Main
bearing girdles on the Bridgeport mill. No high-tech CNC machines
were used in the early days of producing the famed "417". The hands
of skilled craftsmen like Van made it possible to manufacture and engine
that changed the face of drag racing forever.
The "Donovan 417" without its main bearing girdle,
shows the
many high-strength studs used to hold the girdle in place.
The "417" was made as a model kit by Aurora in the
80's. The kit is a rare and
valuable find among serious modelers.
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