429 1969 "SK" parts wanted

I need help finding 1969-1970 "SK" 429 heads SK-52545. Looking also for "SK" 429 engine parts, alt/power steering brackets, heads SK-52545, exhaust, block. Possibly other 429 SK parts so if not listed and you got something please let me know. And an early "XE" numbered 429 distributor.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

dforsyth@wamego.net Contact David Forsyth at: 620 244 3218 (KS)

What does Sk stand for?

bbf-falcon wrote:What does Sk stand for?

I was wondering the same thing

SK = "sketch"
XE = "experimental engineering engine and foundry "
ASK = on documents it usually meant "assemble sketch ######" . on actual parts it may have meant "advanced sketch ( prototype)"
XH = outside vendor
RX = possibly research prototype

These will be prefixes cast into parts. All of these at one time or another have been found in cars. SK 429 wedge parts were a failed attempt to create what was going to replace the Boss 429 in racing.

My car is a 1969 "SK" Galaxie that was used to test parts that were built by Ford and Holman and Moody and built by Kar Kraft.

Due to a thieving mechanic and the economy I guess, while the car was being restored several parts were taken and sold, mostly being the top end of the engine and a few body items.

SK and XE parts are definitely out there, taken mostly from old test vehicles or race cars. And, as they are far from being the best 385 parts, most sit gathering dust on shop shelves without being used.

What were the heads and intake like, compared to say c9 heads? Never have come across anything like this either, sounds pretty interesting.

Nearly the same but adjustable rocker assembly and slightly better flow setup in the casting. Intake on my car is the dual quad 2x4 setup. Thankfully the intake and carbs were being restored by someone else and are still complete on the car.

From what I have been told these parts were designed to replace the Boss 429 but eventually became the SCJ 429 parts in 1970 and on. Carbs were the basically the same as used on the 428 dual quad cars. Lee Holman ended up giving one his friends the owner of Blue Thunder one of the original SK dual intakes and now the reproductions have been available through them. But until I found this car no one knew of a car that had the dual four Holley intake installed on it by Ford.

SK galaxies were built in late 1968 using the earliest 69 bodies. These are test bed cars and not exactly meant for continuous use. They were supposed to be returned to Ford after testing and destroyed however this one wasn't returned and ended up being sold to a farmer in rural Kansas. To top things off it is a 4 door sedan with a 4-speed and posi 9 3/8 rear with disc in the front and 12in drums in the rear. Engine oil cooler with the prototype oil adapter and power steering cooler. However to show they never entended for long term use the car was built with a 2 core radiator and over heated badly and was taken in for service by the owner several times. The car was parked with only 30k+ miles on the odometer. To quote the farmer "the cost to drive it was too much" and he would someday get around to working on it, in reference to fixing the cooling problem.

This car is from one group that was made up of 10 galaxies built using this platform to test these particular parts. As there was no production 4-speed sedans built in 1969, all 10 cars were truly not DOT approved and ran on the road without the blessing of the government. All 10 sedans tested had different setups but all were the same in the fact they were 429, bench seat 4-speed, 4 door cars, with custom Kar Kraft drive shafts and transmissions. Mine has the SK long block as well as the pilot interior to include prototype inside rear window louvers, rear mounted antenna and hood tach. There were other "groups" of test vehicles that included coupes and trucks, these as well had SK and XE parts, so the parts are out there.

And yes this is documented with Marti Autoworks and Ford now. The car had the original bill of sale, manual and warranty card in the glove box as well as hand typed buidsheets under the front and back seats. It took this documentation and an interview with Lee Holman of Holman and Moody to convince Ford I really had the car. I have been told recently at least one other SK sedan and one SK coupe were spotted in the northern states decades ago but it is unknown if they still exist.

SK parts are not all together that valuable unless you have one of these cars. They do not perform quite as well as SCJ parts and no where near as well as Boss parts, but they are the parts that helped make the latter come to be. And most that have been found today in the midwest have been found reinstalled on industrial equipment and mud trucks as they worked well for high torque engines. The intake setup, rear window louvers and shifter on mine didn't make it to production so I don't know what value any of those would have, and thankfully I still have them.

Thanks for all the information. Sounds like the heads might be like the D20E PI heads, but I know you want the originals for your restoration. I have seen one of the photo type original dual quad intakes on Ebay for a $1000 awhile back. Forget the name cast on it, but I mentioned it in another thread on here before. Your car sounds as rare as hen's teeth, and should be worth alot, when you get it finished. Might want to start a thread in the Engine Tech or General Discussion sections to get more exposure, with pictures also.

At the moment we are substituting regular 429 parts for the stolen parts and getting the engine rebuilt so the car can go to the next shop for suspension and brake work. It may never be truly done if I cant locate the correct parts that came on the car.

I have no idea if it really could have a value put on it when it really is not a muscle car that people want. It is an all black 20ft yacht that it not the easiest to drive. Even after my current battle with cancer my wife said it was the one car we owned that would not be sold, so not worried about the value of the car, just the parts I have to recover. But thank you very much for the interest, it helps me keep motivated in black hole that is this car.

dforsyth wrote:At the moment we are substituting regular 429 parts for the stolen parts and getting the engine rebuilt so the car can go to the next shop for suspension and brake work. It may never be truly done if I cant locate the correct parts that came on the car.

I have no idea if it really could have a value put on it when it really is not a muscle car that people want. It is an all black 20ft yacht that it not the easiest to drive. Even after my current battle with cancer my wife said it was the one car we owned that would not be sold, so not worried about the value of the car, just the parts I have to recover. But thank you very much for the interest, it helps me keep motivated in black hole that is this car.

If you really want the correct parts, put out a decent bounty($$$) on them. Take out an add in National Dragster, and some of the other Ford magizines. I am into the old 429 stuff also, and the heads you speak of, I have never heard about or seen, in person or in print. You might contact Paul Kane, as I suspect he knows about them, and might point you in the right direction. I want one of the dual quad intakes with CJ ports, but don't want to pay Blue Thunders price for one. One old Ford that caught my interest, while researching 429 PI engines was a Red, 1971 Galixie Station Wagon with a police package. It had a 429CJ in it, before the PI, D20E heads came out. It too, was a very rare Ford. If you Google 429 PI you can probably find it pretty easily. It was purchased for a County Coriner, originally, I believe. So you say, Ford was testing these 429 engines in trucks, before 1973, when the 460's where factory installed? Any more information you have on this I would greatly appreciate. I have a 429 in my 1978 F150, but it was not factory installed, is why I am interested. I would think that Ford used the 460 for the trucks? I am wondering if they ever put the CJ heads on a 460, for a truck phototype? Thats the one I want, or at least to read about, if it was ever tested. It seems most of this information is lost, or extremely hard to come by today, and in the old publications as well.

The only info I have is what I got from Marti and Lee Holman. The paperwork that surrounded my car group doesn't exist that I know of because all of Kar Kraft's paperwork is long gone. So what is verified is where and when it was built and my cars specific parts package. I cant even say what the other 9 in my group specifically came with other than the engine, trans and body type.

I would give anything for someone that worked at Kar Kraft to come forward with info on all of these cars.

I would imagine the Kar Kraft guy's are getting pretty old by now. The paper work may be thrown away, or burried in some attic or basement. We may never know the story I'm affraid, but it is fun looking for it none the less. I like the 1971 Galixie's, because I went with my Dad to pick up his, when he ordered it new, with the first year 400cid engine. It was supposed to be a 2 door, but they shipped a 4 door, and the wrong color at that. I guess the dealer knocked off the price, so he took it anyway. I sure wish he would have ordered the 429 4V or PI with a 2 door, and kept it, as those seem hard to find now. I remember the one from the movie White Lighting, wit Burt Reyonds, and wonder what ever became of it. I guess they tore up a few in that movie, but must of have had one not used in the stunts. Good luck on your search.