1969 AMC Rambler - Ketchum If You Can
07-05-2007, 12:42 AM
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1969 AMC Rambler - Ketchum If You Can
Jack Ketchum's Stupid Rambler Runs 9.9s At 137.
Back in the days when Ramblers were still relatively new cars, the typical owner profile included membership in the AARP. Rambler owners were sensible, frugal, and well . . . old. In the strictest sense, Jack Ketchum, the owner of this unassuming '69 Rambler fits the description pretty well, and yes, he's an AARP member. But Jack is also a member of some other organizations that include the NHRA, IHRA, and NAMDRA. Add up the clues and you'll see this is one senior citizen-age 67-with an active involvement in drag racing, American Motors style (NAMDRA stands for the National American Motors Drivers and Racers Association).
Though he's been retired from working as a machinist for more than a decade, Jack is a lifelong AMC enthusiast whose father worked as a research and development engineer at the AMC main plant in Detroit. Jack remembers getting sneak peeks at future products, like seeing the '71 Hornet SC/360 a full six months prior to its public unveiling. His dad also brought home an AMX/3 during his lunch break. If you don't know, the AMX/3 was a two-seat, midengine sports car intended for limited production. Packing a 390-cube AMX engine and four-speed transaxle, it was targeted at cars like Lincoln-Mercury's DeTomaso Pantera, the Lamborghini Miura, and the Corvette. But a fit of corporate belt-tightening killed the project after only a handful of prototypes were built. Still, how cool must it have been for Jack to see one of them sitting in his driveway?
Since those days more than three decades ago, Jack has raised two sons, John, 39, and Bill, 37, to be stalwart AMC supporters. He even helped Bill assemble a 10-second Hornet while staying away from drag racing himself. Until, that is, he scored this clean Rambler in September 2000. With a mere 57,000 miles showing on the odometer, the former 199-cube, six-banger, three-on-the-tree economy car was absolutely rust free and still wore its original Beale Street Blue paint. Returning some favors, Bill helped his pop transform it into the brutally effective projectile featured here.
The Ketchums combined the Rambler's lightweight unit construction with an iron-headed, 8,000-rpm AMC 401 that's been treated to an offset-ground Moldex stroker crank for a total of 426 cubes. The end result is a 3,050-pound car that has run a best of 9.998 at 135.3 mph. The Ketchums are quick to admit the car tickled the 9s just once during a cool morning pass when conditions were optimum. But a trio of 10.07 at 134.5 backup passes hints that 9s could be a regular occurrence if Jack blows against the windshield.
* Used from 1958 to 1968, the American nameplate was dropped in 1969. All '69 compacts were simply called Ramblers, even though the American logo still appeared on the horn button.
Expecting to find a hidden nitrous bottle or at least a trailer full of spare (and broken) parts, we hung out with Jack during the '06 AMC Nationals in Cordova, Illinois, and watched him click off a string of trouble-free 10.2s at 133 all weekend long. Remember, this is all done through the mufflers, with no nitrous oxide. What's more, the car itself is nearly stock, with only minor suspension tweaks and minimal efforts taken to reduce mass. Jack and Bill have taken to calling the car the stupid Rambler because of its simplicity and lack of go-fast, trick-of-the-week gizmos. Just try and Ketchum.
Back in the days when Ramblers were still relatively new cars, the typical owner profile included membership in the AARP. Rambler owners were sensible, frugal, and well . . . old. In the strictest sense, Jack Ketchum, the owner of this unassuming '69 Rambler fits the description pretty well, and yes, he's an AARP member. But Jack is also a member of some other organizations that include the NHRA, IHRA, and NAMDRA. Add up the clues and you'll see this is one senior citizen-age 67-with an active involvement in drag racing, American Motors style (NAMDRA stands for the National American Motors Drivers and Racers Association).
Though he's been retired from working as a machinist for more than a decade, Jack is a lifelong AMC enthusiast whose father worked as a research and development engineer at the AMC main plant in Detroit. Jack remembers getting sneak peeks at future products, like seeing the '71 Hornet SC/360 a full six months prior to its public unveiling. His dad also brought home an AMX/3 during his lunch break. If you don't know, the AMX/3 was a two-seat, midengine sports car intended for limited production. Packing a 390-cube AMX engine and four-speed transaxle, it was targeted at cars like Lincoln-Mercury's DeTomaso Pantera, the Lamborghini Miura, and the Corvette. But a fit of corporate belt-tightening killed the project after only a handful of prototypes were built. Still, how cool must it have been for Jack to see one of them sitting in his driveway?
Since those days more than three decades ago, Jack has raised two sons, John, 39, and Bill, 37, to be stalwart AMC supporters. He even helped Bill assemble a 10-second Hornet while staying away from drag racing himself. Until, that is, he scored this clean Rambler in September 2000. With a mere 57,000 miles showing on the odometer, the former 199-cube, six-banger, three-on-the-tree economy car was absolutely rust free and still wore its original Beale Street Blue paint. Returning some favors, Bill helped his pop transform it into the brutally effective projectile featured here.
The Ketchums combined the Rambler's lightweight unit construction with an iron-headed, 8,000-rpm AMC 401 that's been treated to an offset-ground Moldex stroker crank for a total of 426 cubes. The end result is a 3,050-pound car that has run a best of 9.998 at 135.3 mph. The Ketchums are quick to admit the car tickled the 9s just once during a cool morning pass when conditions were optimum. But a trio of 10.07 at 134.5 backup passes hints that 9s could be a regular occurrence if Jack blows against the windshield.
* Used from 1958 to 1968, the American nameplate was dropped in 1969. All '69 compacts were simply called Ramblers, even though the American logo still appeared on the horn button.
Expecting to find a hidden nitrous bottle or at least a trailer full of spare (and broken) parts, we hung out with Jack during the '06 AMC Nationals in Cordova, Illinois, and watched him click off a string of trouble-free 10.2s at 133 all weekend long. Remember, this is all done through the mufflers, with no nitrous oxide. What's more, the car itself is nearly stock, with only minor suspension tweaks and minimal efforts taken to reduce mass. Jack and Bill have taken to calling the car the stupid Rambler because of its simplicity and lack of go-fast, trick-of-the-week gizmos. Just try and Ketchum.
07-05-2007, 12:43 AM
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Who: Jack Ketchum, self-professed "old guy"
What: '69 AMC Rambler two-door sedan with all-original paint, not so original driveline
Where: Howell, Michigan, a really loud place around October 31.
Engine: All AMC, it has a 0.030-inch oversize '71 401 block packing an offset-ground 3.850-inch-stroke forged 401 crank for 426 cubes. Venolia 6.0-inch rods with 2.0-inch journals swing BRC pistons to yield 13.67:1 compression. Jack and his son Bill built the engine with balancing done by Eric Williams, honing and decking by Dave Woods, and oil-passage modifications by Ken Smith to allow safety at 8,000 rpm. An MSD ignition module, distributor, and wires fire each plug 40 degrees BTDC.
Camshaft: A sick Comp solid roller cam with a 108-degree lobe separation angle lifts the valves 0.707/0.672 inch and holds them open for 277/284 degrees of crankshaft rotation. A Crane double-roller timing chain is used.
Heads: AMC Guru Barry Allen (304/934-6865) ported the iron AMC 291C heads to flow 280 cfm through the intake ports and 230 cfm through the exhaust ports. The valvetrain consists of Manley 2.125/1.710 valves, Comp 946 springs, and titanium retainers. Indy guideplates, Comp 31/48-inch pushrods, and Crane Gold 1.6:1 roller rockers complete the plan.
Induction: A 975-cfm Demon carb with mechanical secondaries bolts to the ported Edelbrock Torker intake manifold. A 3-inch-tall K&N air filter is used at all times to keep dust and small objects out of the motor. Jack was toying with a hoodscoop for cooler, denser air but skipped the idea for bonus sleeper points and cleaner top-end aero numbers.
Exhaust: Jack is especially proud of the fact his fully muffled Rambler runs as fast as it does with a set of 131/44-inch Hooker headers. Heck, you'd figure a 9-second car would have bigger tubes, right? The headers blow into a dual, 3-inch system using a pair of Walker bullet mufflers that terminate beneath where the rear seat used to be.
Power: Jack's a home-brewed kind of guy, and his 426 has never been on a dyno, but it pushes the 3,050-pound (race weight) Rambler to 135 mph in the quarter. Let's see, that works out to about 600 hp! Remember, there's no nitrous on this thing. . . .
Transmission: AMC engines are known for their ability to really rev (when properly modified), so Jack gets by with a two-speed, 1.76-geared Powerglide that's fitted with a JW Ultra-Bell and VPT 8-inch 5,300-stall torque converter for wheels-up launches. A Perma-Cool fluid cooler keeps it alive during street cruising. Jack could have used an AMC-specific Chrysler TorqueFlite or GM TH400 three-speed automatic but says they take more power to run, weigh more, and would actually slow him down. So far, the transbrake has not been used.
Rearend: Though lots of AMC guys swear by the Model 20 axle after modern one-piece axleshafts are installed, Jack runs a narrowed, 31-spline Ford 9-inch with 4.33 gears in a Detroit Locker-equipped Strange centersection. The drop-out centersection makes gear changes much easier than with a Salisbury-style AMC axle.
Suspension: We were shocked by how close to stock this thing is. Up front, the stock Rambler trunnions and six-cylinder coil springs are assisted by Competition Engineering three-way-adjustable 90/10 drag shocks. That's it! At the rear, the stock Rambler springs got an added leaf (five leaves total), CalTracs bars, and Rancho 50/50 shocks. The springs are moved inboard, and the wheelhouses are minitubbed for tire clearance. Talk about basic, but it puts daylight under the front tires every time and generates 1.47-second 60-foot times.
Brakes: The stock 9-inch drums give way to super-light Aerospace discs and billet-aluminum calipers. At the rear, Ford Explorer disc brakes aren't exactly flyweight but do place a little added mass on the slicks for traction. This basic but effective braking system easily slows the car from 135-mph trap speeds.
Wheels/Tires: It doesn't get much simpler than a set of Weld Pro Star rims, 15x3.5 inches up front and 15x8 inches out back. Front skins consist of Mickey Thompson 26-inch Sportsmans for low rolling resistance, while ample traction is doled out by a pair of 27x11.5-15 Hoosier Quick Time Pro slicks pumped to 12 psi.
Body: Because he started out with a super-clean, low-mileage car, the original Beale Street Blue paint was good to go, minor dents and all. A vintage Mister Fiberglass pin-on flat hood sheds a few pounds off the nose and promotes healthy static and dynamic weight distribution.
Interior: Less is more for this Rambler. The mint, original, rubber floor mat is retained (eat your heart out, Glad) as is the original plastic radio-delete plate. Kirkey racing seats weigh one-fifth what the old bench seat did, and it joined the pristine rear bench in seat heaven. Auto Meter gauges and a Hurst Quarter Stick clash with the stock steering wheel, while a six-point rollbar by Dave Miller stiffens the unibody and adds safety. The transbrake button has not yet been connected.
Performance: While Jack admits the car has gone 9.998 at 135.3 mph only once, that qualifies it as a 9-second car in our book. We watched Jack bang off a string of 10.20s at the AMC Nationals and can attest to its regular 135-mph trap speed. The amazing thing is how docile the car is. We looked all over, and trust us, there is no bottle.
What: '69 AMC Rambler two-door sedan with all-original paint, not so original driveline
Where: Howell, Michigan, a really loud place around October 31.
Engine: All AMC, it has a 0.030-inch oversize '71 401 block packing an offset-ground 3.850-inch-stroke forged 401 crank for 426 cubes. Venolia 6.0-inch rods with 2.0-inch journals swing BRC pistons to yield 13.67:1 compression. Jack and his son Bill built the engine with balancing done by Eric Williams, honing and decking by Dave Woods, and oil-passage modifications by Ken Smith to allow safety at 8,000 rpm. An MSD ignition module, distributor, and wires fire each plug 40 degrees BTDC.
Camshaft: A sick Comp solid roller cam with a 108-degree lobe separation angle lifts the valves 0.707/0.672 inch and holds them open for 277/284 degrees of crankshaft rotation. A Crane double-roller timing chain is used.
Heads: AMC Guru Barry Allen (304/934-6865) ported the iron AMC 291C heads to flow 280 cfm through the intake ports and 230 cfm through the exhaust ports. The valvetrain consists of Manley 2.125/1.710 valves, Comp 946 springs, and titanium retainers. Indy guideplates, Comp 31/48-inch pushrods, and Crane Gold 1.6:1 roller rockers complete the plan.
Induction: A 975-cfm Demon carb with mechanical secondaries bolts to the ported Edelbrock Torker intake manifold. A 3-inch-tall K&N air filter is used at all times to keep dust and small objects out of the motor. Jack was toying with a hoodscoop for cooler, denser air but skipped the idea for bonus sleeper points and cleaner top-end aero numbers.
Exhaust: Jack is especially proud of the fact his fully muffled Rambler runs as fast as it does with a set of 131/44-inch Hooker headers. Heck, you'd figure a 9-second car would have bigger tubes, right? The headers blow into a dual, 3-inch system using a pair of Walker bullet mufflers that terminate beneath where the rear seat used to be.
Power: Jack's a home-brewed kind of guy, and his 426 has never been on a dyno, but it pushes the 3,050-pound (race weight) Rambler to 135 mph in the quarter. Let's see, that works out to about 600 hp! Remember, there's no nitrous on this thing. . . .
Transmission: AMC engines are known for their ability to really rev (when properly modified), so Jack gets by with a two-speed, 1.76-geared Powerglide that's fitted with a JW Ultra-Bell and VPT 8-inch 5,300-stall torque converter for wheels-up launches. A Perma-Cool fluid cooler keeps it alive during street cruising. Jack could have used an AMC-specific Chrysler TorqueFlite or GM TH400 three-speed automatic but says they take more power to run, weigh more, and would actually slow him down. So far, the transbrake has not been used.
Rearend: Though lots of AMC guys swear by the Model 20 axle after modern one-piece axleshafts are installed, Jack runs a narrowed, 31-spline Ford 9-inch with 4.33 gears in a Detroit Locker-equipped Strange centersection. The drop-out centersection makes gear changes much easier than with a Salisbury-style AMC axle.
Suspension: We were shocked by how close to stock this thing is. Up front, the stock Rambler trunnions and six-cylinder coil springs are assisted by Competition Engineering three-way-adjustable 90/10 drag shocks. That's it! At the rear, the stock Rambler springs got an added leaf (five leaves total), CalTracs bars, and Rancho 50/50 shocks. The springs are moved inboard, and the wheelhouses are minitubbed for tire clearance. Talk about basic, but it puts daylight under the front tires every time and generates 1.47-second 60-foot times.
Brakes: The stock 9-inch drums give way to super-light Aerospace discs and billet-aluminum calipers. At the rear, Ford Explorer disc brakes aren't exactly flyweight but do place a little added mass on the slicks for traction. This basic but effective braking system easily slows the car from 135-mph trap speeds.
Wheels/Tires: It doesn't get much simpler than a set of Weld Pro Star rims, 15x3.5 inches up front and 15x8 inches out back. Front skins consist of Mickey Thompson 26-inch Sportsmans for low rolling resistance, while ample traction is doled out by a pair of 27x11.5-15 Hoosier Quick Time Pro slicks pumped to 12 psi.
Body: Because he started out with a super-clean, low-mileage car, the original Beale Street Blue paint was good to go, minor dents and all. A vintage Mister Fiberglass pin-on flat hood sheds a few pounds off the nose and promotes healthy static and dynamic weight distribution.
Interior: Less is more for this Rambler. The mint, original, rubber floor mat is retained (eat your heart out, Glad) as is the original plastic radio-delete plate. Kirkey racing seats weigh one-fifth what the old bench seat did, and it joined the pristine rear bench in seat heaven. Auto Meter gauges and a Hurst Quarter Stick clash with the stock steering wheel, while a six-point rollbar by Dave Miller stiffens the unibody and adds safety. The transbrake button has not yet been connected.
Performance: While Jack admits the car has gone 9.998 at 135.3 mph only once, that qualifies it as a 9-second car in our book. We watched Jack bang off a string of 10.20s at the AMC Nationals and can attest to its regular 135-mph trap speed. The amazing thing is how docile the car is. We looked all over, and trust us, there is no bottle.
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