THE CAGED BIRD SINGS

Surprisingly, Schmitt completed his Falcon in a mere 10 months, hardly any time at all for a project this involved. He built it in his own shop, and with help from Tony Thicke he began by back-halving the frame with a new rear clip from Pulley Engineering (870/347-2163). This kit contained a new subframe, subframe connecters, ladder bars, a Panhard bar and even wheel tubs for the big meats that would fill the rear fenders. The rearend is a ’76-issue 9-inch that Schmitt narrowed to 45 inches. He added 3.91 gears, Strange Engineering axles and a limited-slip diff and connected the axle to the new subframe with a set of ShockWaves from Air Ride Technologies. Standard Ford drums cap each end of the axle, and bolted to each drum is a huge 15×12-inch Intro wheel wearing an even huger 29×15.50×15 Mickey Thompson Sportsman tire.

If you’re going to have large amounts of power and the traction to use it, it’s reassuring to have a competent front suspension that can keep the car pointed in a straight line down the strip or hold the road on the street. Schmitt upgraded the front of his Falcon by replacing the stock springs and coils with another set of ShockWaves. Next, he added Fatman Fabrications 2-inch-drop spindles and ’76 Granada front discs. A Chassis Engineering sway bar keeps body roll to a minimum. To get the right look and stance, the owner chose narrower 15×6-inch Intros for the front end, along with 195/50R15 Nitto tires.

Building the suspension to this extent would have been pretty useless if the owner had not planned on an engine that could push the limits of the car’s newfound traction. Donnie McClain in Marion, Indiana, built the engine, which began life as a mundane ’82-spec 302 block. McClain bored the engine 0.030-inch over and added a 3.40-inch SCAT steel crankshaft, bringing the 302 to its displacement limit of 347 ci. Blue Cat 3D Super Racing rods and 10:1-compression pistons make up the rest of the rotating assembly, and the Comp camshaft provides 0.622-inch lift and 254 degrees of duration. Up on the engine’s top end, a Barry Grant Demon 650 carb pumps the air and gas through an Edelbrock Victor Jr. intake manifold and a set of Ford Pro Action aluminum cylinder heads. Comp Cams rockers replace the stock stamped rocker arms. Other engine components include MSD ignition, Doug’s stainless headers and a Canton oil pan. Thanks to all these modifications, this small block out-thunders many big blocks, developing 524 hp at its peak. Chromed and polished components are everywhere to help dress up the engine and include Ford Racing valve covers, plug wire looms and accessory bracketry. A custom air cleaner assembly helps set the Falcon apart, too.

Many would expect to find a C4 or some other automatic behind this hot 347, but in that case, many would be wrong. The owner chose to grab his own gears courtesy of a Ford four-speed Top Loader trans. A Ram Performance clutch provides just the right feel when leaving the line, providing enough feel and a quick bite.

Wagons, when new, are the kind of car that most enthusiasts hate to be seen in. However, part of this dislike has to be due to the fact that wagons were typically your parents’ cars, and that doesn’t quite fit the image. But today wagons are cool, even more than they used to be. As far as we’re concerned, this Falcon wagon is cooler than most modern coupes, and the owner didn’t need to make any huge modifications to improve on the car’s looks. Changes included removing all the chrome trim and shaving the doors and tailgate of their locks and handles. These changes completely smooth the sides of the car, and that’s about the only alteration this two-door hauler needed. 

It did, however, need new floors and steel wheel tubs to accommodate the new rear subframe. Under the hood, the inner fenders are completely smooth, and those holes, no longer in use, have been filled. Schmitt molded the shock tower V-brace to each tower and the firewall, which also now appears smoother than before. After he had completed all the bodywork, the owner took the car to Rick’s Kustom Auto Body and Refinishing in Kokomo, Indiana. There, the crew painted the body in DuPont Dark Cloisonné, a metallic blue with just a hint of purple in the metallic. The painters next added long Butterscotch and Champagne Gold flames, with highlighting and shading in red and black. The front and rear bumpers are painted to match the car, leaving the Falcon with no chrome on the body whatsoever.

Many Pro Street-style cars feature a stripped interior dominated by raw-metal panels and rollcage tubing, but not this Falcon. Although it does have a rollcage and its share of sheetmetal detailing, it’s the two-tone gray Ultraleather that dominates this interior. Collins Trim and Auto in Marion, Indiana, applied this material over a pair of late-model Grand Am bucket seats. Don’t bother looking for rear seats either—this wagon is now strictly a two-seat affair. Four-point safety harnesses keep the occupants safe, and the shoulder harnesses bolt to the rollcage. 

The upper portions of the door panels are painted this same color, while Collins trim covered the lower door panels in more Ultraleather, this time with a 3D flame motif. Between the two seats is a large, hand-fabricated sheetmetal console that cascades up from the dash to house the Air Ride pressure controls, Hurst shifter and Auto Meter Pro Comp instruments. These gauges, along with a matching tach on the steering column, complement the Spartan factory cracker-box-style instrumentation. Like the console, the dash is painted blue to match the body. The wagon’s large body leaves a lot of room for audio equipment, so Schmitt chose to go big on the stereo. He installed a Kenwood head unit inside the glove compartment and then joined it to an Audiobahn amp, two 12-inch Audiobahn subs and an assortment of Pioneer tweeters and midrange speakers.

We asked the owner how he managed to complete the Falcon in only 10 months, and he said he worked on it seven nights a week, breaking only for dinner before heading back out to the garage. In only a few shows he’s earned trophies for best interior, best chassis, best paint, Street Machine of the Year, and even a special pick from our sister title, Super Rod.

The trophies are nice, but what Schmitt enjoys more is owning a creation that he knows he built himself, and seeing other people take an interest in his car. Future plans include more time spent driving the car, and we don’t know of a better way to enjoy 10 months of solid work. FB