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HARVEY'S LIFETIME OF
INNOVATIONS
"MY FIRST
CAMSHAFT"
BY HARVEY J. CRANE, JR.
15 AUGUST 2011
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I GROUND MY
FIRST CAMSHAFT FOR MR. BUD SWANSON OF OJUS FLORIDA IN THE SUMMER OF
1946. I WAS 15 YEARS OLD!
THIS CAMSHAFT WAS FOR A HENDERSON MOTORCYCLE. THIS ENGINE WAS A FOUR
CYLINDER "IN LINE" AIR COOLED ENGINE. BUD WANTED A "RACING CAM" FOR THE
ENGINE TO BE USED IN HIS MIDGET RACE CAR TO REPLACE HIS "HEAVY" FORD V8
60 HP ENGINE HE WAS USING AT THAT TIME.
I WAS THE
OLDEST SON OF A HIGHLY SKILLED SELF EMPLOYED MACHINIST. I ASKED MY
FATHER TO ALLOW ME TO USE HIS BROWN & SHARP UNIVERSAL CYLINDRICAL
GRINDER TO ATTEMPT TO GRIND THIS CAMSHAFT AND HE SAID OK.
I THEN FABRICATED A DEGREE WHEEL FROM A PAIR OF 180 DEGREE PROTRACTORS
AND ATTACHED IT TO THE FRONT END OF THE CAMSHAFT.
THIS WOULD ALLOW ME TO ADJUST THE "DURATION" OF THE LOBES WHILE I
"GROUND THE BASECIRCLE SMALLER SO I COULD RAISE THE CAM LIFT".
I THEN GROUND THE "FLANKS" BY HOLDING THE CAMSHAFT IN MY HANDS WHILE I
ALLOWED THE FLANKS OF EACH LOBE TO TOUCH THE GRINDING WHEEL IN ORDER TO
GET THE DURATION CORRECT.
THIS PROCESS WAS LATER FOUND TO BE CALLED A "BELLY GRIND" CAMSHAFT. THE
BELLY GRIND PROCESS WAS USED BY SEVERAL RACING ENGINE BUILDERS AT THAT
TIME.
I FOUND OUT MANY YEARS LATER THE SAME PROCESS WAS USED BY SEVERAL BRIGGS
& STRATTON ENGINE BUILDERS.
I ASSEMBLED MY FIRST RACING ENGINE IN 1948, WHEN I WAS 17 YEARS OLD!
I GROUND MY
SECOND CAMSHAFT IN AUGUST OF 1953 ON A "FACTORY" TYPE CAMSHAFT
RE-GRINDING MACHINE THAT I PURCHASED NEW!
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CRANE
ENGINEERING COMPANY
FOUNDED JANUARY 1, 1953 |
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ONE EMPLOYEE WAS HIRED IN THE EARLY PART OF 1953 FOR LATHE WORK ON THE
RACING REAR AXLE PART OF HIS BUSINESS. A SECOND EMPLOYEE WAS ADDED
DURING THE SUMMER TIME TO PORT FORD FLATHEAD ENGINE BLOCKS. A THIRD
EMPLOYEE WAS HIRED IN THE FALL FOR GRINDING CAMS.
THE FIRST RACING CAMSHAFTS WERE GROUND ON A NEW STORM VULCAN CAMSHAFT
GRINDER ORDERED IN EARLY 1953 AND DELIVERED IN AUGUST.
HARVEY WAS DRAFTED OUT OF THE NATIONAL GUARD INTO THE ARMY IN SEPTEMBER
OF 1953. HE WAS DISCHARGED TWO YEARS LATER IN SEPTEMBER OF 1955.
AT FIRST, ALL
CAMSHAFTS REGROUND WERE SIMPLE "COPY TYPE" RACING CAMSHAFTS.
HARVEY'S FIRST CAM PROFILE ENGINEERING WAS STARTED ON JANUARY 1, 1957
WHEN HE BEGAN TO DRAW "DISPLACEMENT" GRAPHS OF THE LOBE PROFILE. WHEN
COMPARING THESE GRAPHS THRU A LIGHT TABLE, IT BECAME APPARENT TO HARVEY
THAT THE FIRST SMALL AMOUNT OF LIFT DID NOT REALLY CHANGE THE OVERALL
"AREA UNDER THE LIFT CURVE". THIS AREA OF LIFT WAS USUALLY LESS THAN
.015 INCHES OF CAM LIFT. THIS WAS LATER DISCOVERED TO BE THE "RAMP"
AREA.
WHEN THESE
DISPLACEMENT GRAPH NUMBERS WERE INCREASED TO FOUR DECIMAL PLACE DATA
(.0001") WITH ONE CAM DEGREE SPACING (USING A HOME MADE 24 INCH DIAMETER
DEGREE WHEEL), TRUE "DIFFERENCES" NUMBERS COULD BE CALCULATED. THE FIRST
DIFFERENCE OF LIFT IS CALLED VELOCITY. NOW THE VELOCITY COULD BE
PLOTTED!
HARVEY ATTEMPTED TO SUBTRACT VELOCITY DIFFERENCES TO ARRIVE AT
ACCELERATION BUT THESE NUMBERS WERE TOO "ROUGH" TO PLOT! A LARGER
DIAMETER DEGREE WHEEL WOULD BE REQUIRED! INSTEAD OF MAKING A LARGER
DIAMETER DEGREE WHEEL HE USED A NEW BRIDGEPORT ROTARY TABLE TO ROTATE
THE CAMSHAFT FOR MEASUREMENT. NOW, EXACTLY ONE CAM DEGREE LIFT DATA WAS
MUCH MORE REPEATABLE. NOW, THE ACCELERATION NUMBERS COULD BE PLOTTED
WITH MUCH LESS "SCATTER".
FINALLY THE FOUR DECIMAL PLACE LIFT DATA COULD BE "REVISED" AND THE NEW
DATA COULD BE USED FOR "CUTTING A MODEL LOBE" IN THE SAME NEW BRIDGEPORT
MILLING MACHINE.
IT WAS NOT UNTIL HE MET RICHARD MOSER IN 1965 THAT HE COULD AFFORD REAL
COMPUTER DESIGNED CAM PROFILES. |
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A CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY OF
HARVEY J. CRANE, JR.
AND HIS DEVELOPMENT OF CRANE CAMS
START OF THE BUSINESS
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1953 CRANE
ENGINEERING COMPANY FOUNDED BY HARVEY J. CRANE, JR. AS THE SOLE OWNER.
THE BUSINESS IS LOCATED IN 500 SQUARE FEET, RENTED INSIDE HIS FATHERS
GENERAL MACHINE SHOP BUILDING AT 20960 N. DIXIE HIGHWAY, HALLANDALE
FLORIDA. |
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1958 - 1960 CRANE
ENGINEERING COMPANY EXPANDS IT PRODUCT LINE WITH RACING CAMSHAFTS FOR
THE NEW GENERATION OF "OVERHEAD VALVE V-8 ENGINES FROM CHEVROLET,
PONTIAC, OLDSMOBILE, BUICK, CADILLAC, FORD,
MERCURY, DODGE, PLYMOUTH AND CHRYSLER.
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1961 PETE ROBINSON, A GEORGIA TECH ENGINEER FROM ATLANTA USES A CRANE
R-298HI ROLLER TAPPET CAMSHAFT IN HIS SUPERCHARGED 352 CU.IN. CHEV V-8.
PETE UPSETS THE FIELD, WINNING THE TOP ELIMINATOR AT THE NHRA NATIONALS.
PETE'S WIN PLACES HARVEY CRANE'S RACING CAMSHAFT COMPANY IN THE MINDS OF
DRAG RACERS ACROSS THE NATION.
1962 JIM NELSON AND DODE MARTIN, BUILDERS OF THE DRAGMASTER CHASSIS USED
BY PETE ROBINSON TO WIN THE NATIONALS, TAKE TOP ELIMINATOR AT THE 1962
NHRA WINTER NATIONALS, IN POMONA, CALIFORNIA. THEIR 413 DODGE DART "B"
WEDGE ENGINE USES A CRANE ROLLER CAMSHAFT TAPPET CAMSHAFT TRO AGAIN STUN
THE DRAG RACING WORLD.
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1963 CRANE
ENGINEERING CO, INC. A CORPORATION IS FORMED AND HARVEY SELLS A 20%
OWNERSHIP TO HIS HIGH SCHOOL FRIEND, DAVID SMITH, AND NAMES HIM AS SALES
MANAGER. HARVEY CRANE RETAINS 80% OWNERSHIP.
1963 UNITED STATES PATENT NUMBER 3,108,580 IS ISSUED TO HARVEY J. CRANE,
JR. (NEVER ASSIGNED TO THE CORPORATION) ON OCTOBER 29, 1963. THIS PATENT
COVERS FOUR BASIC CLAIMS ON A MECHANICAL ROLLER TAPPET DESIGN. THIS
"SHIELDED ROLLER" TYPE DESIGN IS USED BY O.E.M. MANUFACTURERS FOR THEIR
HYDRAULIC ROLLER TAPPETS 17 YEARS LATER, (AFTER THE PATENT EXPIRES).
1964 CRANE ENGINEERING COMPANY INTRODUCES THE FIRST ROLLER-TIP, NEEDLE
BEARING FULCRUM, GOLD ANODIZED GOLD ROCKER ARMS FOR STUD-MOUNTED
CYLINDER HEADS. THE NEW CRANE GOLD ROCKERS QUICKLY BECOME A "MUST-HAVE"
FOR ANY SERIOUS RACING ENGINE ASSEMBLY.
1965 CRANE ENGINEERING "SUPER PORT-FLOW" CYLINDER HEADS ARE THE FIRST
FULLY PORTED, READY TO INSTALL, RACING CYLINDER HEADS AVAILABLE.
INITIALLY OFFERED FOR 283-327 CHEV V-8, THEY ARE SOON OFFERED FOR
396-427 BIG-BLOCK CHEV, AND FORD 302-351 V8 APPLICATIONS.
1965 HARVEY OUTGROWS HIS FATHERS SHOP AS 3,500 SQUARE FEET IS ALL HIS
FATHER WILL RENT TO HIM. HE PURCHASES 8 LOTS IN HALLANDALE'S ONLY
INDUSTRIAL ZONED AREA AND CONSTRUCTS 15,000 SQUARE FEET. HE MOVES 35
EMPLOYEES INTO THE NEW PLANT IN JANUARY OF 1966. THIS PLANT WILL
EVENTUALLY BE ENLARGED TWICE, TO A TOTAL OF 45,000 SQUARE FEET.
1965 FIRST COMPUTER ANALYSIS PERFORMED ON A HARVEY CRANE DESIGNED
"DRAWING BOARD" CAM, BY J. H. NOURSE OF YPSILANATI, MICHIGAN.
1967 FIRST CAM PROFILE DESIGNED ON A COMPUTER BY HARVEY CRANE, USING A
CAM DESIGN PROGRAM WRITTEN BY J. H. NOURSE. THIS PROGRAM IS RUN OVER THE
PHONE LINES ON A TIMESHARING COMPUTER (COMSHARE, INC.) LOCATED IN ANN
ARBOR, MICHIGAN.
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15 YEARS LATER
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1968 HARVEY
PURCHASED A NUMERICAL CONTROL MOORE JIG GRINDER FOR GRINDING
MODEL/MASTER CAMS TO TEN MILLIONTHS LINEAR RESOLUTION AND 2 ARC SECONDS
ANGULAR ACCURACY. HIS BANK WOULD NOT FINANCE THE $65,000 COST, AS HIS
NET WORTH IS LESS THAN THE MACHINES VALUE!
1968 PURCHASED HIS FIRST NORTON CAM-O-MATIC FULLY AUTOMATIC CAMSHAFT
GRINDER. IT REQUIRED MORE THAN 1 YEAR TO BECOME OPERATIONAL.
1969 FIRST "NON-SYMMETRICAL" HYDRAULIC FLAT TAPPET PROFILES DESIGNED ON
A TIME SHARING COMPUTER BY HARVEY CRANE.
1970 HARVEY'S "HOMEMADE" CAM PROFILE ANALYSIS CAMSHAFT MEASURING MACHINE
IS AUTOMATED. THE MEASURING TIME REQUIRED FOR 1 LOBE IS REDUCED FROM 5
HOURS TO FIVE MINUTES.
1971 FIRST EXTRA HIGH LIFT (.669" VALVE LIFT) ROLLER CAM PROFILE WAS
DESIGNED. THIS 288 DEGREES OF DURATION AT .050" CAM LIFT AND .4460" CAM
LIFT PROFILE WAS "RIDICULED" BY HIS COMPETITION AS "WOULD-NOT-WORK". IT
BECOMES THE STANDARD OF THE DRAG RACING CAM INDUSTRY.
1972 HARVEY INTRODUCES "FIREBALL" CAMS AT SEMA SHOW. ($48 LIST) THE
NEAREST COMPETITION IS PRICED AT $55.00 LIST! THESE WERE THE FIRST
BUDGET PRICED PERFORMANCE STREET CAMS.
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20 YEARS LATER
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1973 HARVEY
DESIGNS A NON SYMMETRICAL "NO-RAMP" EXTRA HIGH LIFT ROLLER PROFILE. THIS
NO-PULSE(R) OPENING RAMP IS ALSO RIDICULED BY FELLOW CAM DESIGNERS AS
"BAD DESIGN" PRACTICE. LATER MANY DESIGNERS AND OEM ENGINE'S ADOPTED THE
SAME BASIC OPENING SIDE RAMP.
1974 UPON HARVEYS INSISTENCE, THE CORPORATION PURCHASED UNIVERSAL
CAMSHAFT COMPANY, MUSKEGON, MICHIGAN. THIS IS THE ONLY SUPPLIER OF SAE
8620 STEEL BILLET ROLLER CAMSHAFTS TO THE HIGH PERFORMANCE INDUSTRY.
1975 A DATA GENERAL NOVA 2 COMPUTER IS PURCHASED FOR $60,000 FROM J.H.
NOURSE OF ANN ARBOR MICHIGAN. THIS ALLOWED "IN HOUSE" CAMSHAFT PROFILE
ANALYSIS OF THE IN HOUSE CAMCHECK MEASURING MACHINE RAW DATA FILES AND
THE NEW DESIGN OF PROFILES.
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24 YEARS LATER
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1977 ON MARCH
4, 1977 HARVEY CRANE CHOOSES TO STEP DOWN AS THE PRESIDENT AND CHIEF
EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF HIS CORPORATION. HE REMAINS THE CHAIRMAN OF THE
BOARD OF DIRECTORS. HE STILL OWNS MORE THAN 70 PERCENT OF ALL THE STOCK.
HE DEVOTES HIS FULL TIME TO CAM ANALYSIS AND CAM PROFILE DESIGN.
TWO MONTHS LATER, IN MAY, A NEW LINE OF ROLLER CAMS ARE CONCEIVED BY
HARVEY, THE REVOLUTIONARY "HI-LOW NO-POP" ROLLER CAM PROFILES ARE
DESIGNED. A FULL SERIES OF PROFILES ARE TOOLED WITH NEW NC PRODUCED
MASTER CAM PLATES. 17 YEARS LATER (1994), THEY ARE STILL USED FOR DRAG
RACING CAMSHAFTS.
FOUR MONTHS LATER IN JULY, "BLAZER" STREET PERFORMANCE HYDRAULIC
PROFILES ARE CONCEIVED, DESIGNED AND A FULL SERIES ARE TOOLED FOR
PRODUCTION.
1978 HARVEY CONCEIVES THE NEW "TR" ROLLER PROFILE SERIES WITH "INVERTED"
OPENING SIDE FLANKS. A COMPLETE LINE IS DESIGNED AND TOOLED FOR
PRODUCTION. STILL USED FOR CIRCLE TRACK AND ROAD RACING ENGINES.
1979 FIRST HYDRAULIC ROLLER TAPPET CAM PROFILES DESIGNED. NO ONE
BELIEVED HYDRAULIC ROLLERS WOULD WORK IN PERFORMANCE ENGINES.
1981 HARVEY CONCEIVES THE FAMOUS "HMV" SERIES (HYDRAULIC MAXIMUM
VELOCITY) SERIES. THESE WERE THE FIRST "QUIET" CAMS WITH ONLY 56 DEGREES
OF "HYDRAULIC INTENSITY".
1982 A NEW 85,000 SQUARE FOOT PLANT IS CONSTRUCTED IN DAYTONA BEACH,
FLORIDA TO HOUSE THE MICHIGAN PLANT MACHINERY AND INVENTORY. 92 TRACTOR
TRAILER LOADS ARE MOVED FROM MUSKEGON MICHIGAN TO DAYTONA BEACH IN
DECEMBER. 10 PEOPLE ARE MOVED (THE OTHER 250 PLUS UNION EMPLOYEES ARE
LAID OFF) TO DAYTONA BEACH AND "CRANE CAMS DAYTONA" IS FORMED TO REPLACE
UNIVERSAL CAMSHAFT COMPANY. 100 NEW PEOPLE ARE HIRED AND TRAINED TO
PRODUCE PRODUCTION CAMSHAFTS.
1982 A CONTINUOUS PATH COMPUTER CONTROLLED MOORE JIG GRINDER IS
PURCHASED TO REPLACE THE NC (POINT TO POINT) GRINDER. VAN NORMAN/BERCO
MASTER CAM PLATES ARE NOW GROUND DIRECTLY, WITHOUT THE USE OF
INTERMEDIARY MODEL CAMS. |
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30 YEARS LATER
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1983 HARVEY
CONCEIVES THE "IR" ROLLER SERIES OF PROFILES. THESE HAVE INVERTED FLANKS
ON BOTH THE OPENING AND CLOSING SIDES. A FULL SERIES IS TOOLED FOR
PRODUCTION. THESE PROFILES HAVE 30 DEGREES OF MAJOR INTENSITY.
1986 THE HALLANDALE, FLORIDA PLANT IS CLOSED AND 55 EMPLOYEES ARE MOVED
TO DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA. MORE PEOPLE ARE HIRED TO FULLY STAFF THE
EXPANDED (TO 145,000 SQUARE FOOT) BUILDING.
1986 HARVEY CRANE TAKES HIS FIRST REAL VACATION, GONE FOR THREE MONTHS.
1987 HARVEY PIONEERS THE FIRST USE OF IBM COMPATIBLE "PERSONAL"
COMPUTERS FOR THE DESIGN AND ANALYSIS OF CAM PROFILES. |
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36 YEARS LATER
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1989 HARVEY
CRANE IS FIRED BY COMMITTEE OF 10 "OWNER OPERATORS" ON JANUARY 24, 1989.
HE IS THE LARGEST INDIVIDUAL SHAREHOLDER WITH 17% OF THE STOCK. HARVEY
HAS BEEN SELLING HIS PERSONAL STOCK TO THE ESOT PLAN. THESE SHARES
OF HIS STOCK ARE THEN GIVEN TO THE EMPLOYEES AS AN ANNUAL BONUS. HE
PLANS ON STARTING A NEW CAM MANUFACTURING COMPANY, BUT IS WARNED HE HAS
A ONE YEAR "NON-COMPETE" CONTRACT.
1990 HARVEY CRANE FORMS A NEW CORPORATION. CRANE CamDesign, Inc. IS BORN
ON JANUARY 25, 1990. HIS CUSTOMERS WILL BE THE COMPETITORS OF HIS EX
CAMSHAFT MANUFACTURING COMPANY! |
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46 YEARS LATER
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1999 THE
OFFICERS OF CRANE TECHNOLOGY GROUP, INC. (CTG) (THE NEW NAME OF CRANE
CAMS, INC.) SENDS A REGISTERED LETTER TO HARVEY CRANE'S LAWYER
THREATENING TO SUE IF THE NAME OF CRANE CAMDESIGN IS NOT CHANGED!
THEREFORE HARVEY IS FORCED TO CHANGE THE LEGAL CORPORATIONS NAME TO
harvey CRANE, Incorporated. OF COURSE, HE COULD "FIGHT IT", BUT THE
LEGAL COSTS WOULD BE FAR HIGHER.
HARVEY THEN FILED FOR A REGISTERED TRADEMARK ON THE WORDS HARVEY CRANE
AND TRADEMARK NUMBER 2,427,062 WAS ISSUED SEVERAL YEARS LATER.
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54 YEARS LATER
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2007 MAXINE
DONER CRANE, HARVEY'S WIFE OF 32 YEARS DIED ON FEBRUARY 23. |
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58 YEARS LATER
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2011 HARVEY ANNOUNCES HIS "RETIREMENT" DATE, THURSDAY, THE 18th OF
AUGUST 2011, THE DAY AFTER HE TURNS 80 YEARS OLD.
BUT, THE RETIREMENT ONLY REALLY MEANS "STOP PUTTING THE KEY IN THE
OFFICE DOOR AT NINE AM EACH DAY".
HARVEY WILL CONTINUE (TILL HIS DEATH) WORKING WITH HIS "FRIENDS" HELPING
THEM CONTINUE MAKING A PROFIT IN THEIR BUSINESS.
BUT, ONLY AT A DATE CONVENIENT TO HIS TRAVELS IN HIS MOTOR HOME ALONG
WITH HIS DOG "STORMY".
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