[Excaliber]

No question in the 50's Ford did NOT have anything that could be considered a worthy engine for racing conditions. The 272, 292, 312 Y blocks were hopelessly outdated from the day they were designed. Compared to the 265, 283 and coming soon 327 it was no contest. In that respect GM hit a MAJOR home run in 1955 with their introduction of that engine family.

Because it was SO superior to ANYTHING else available at the time it quickly gained acceptance within the race community. It had a good 6 or 7 year head start on developement and MOST important, on 'after market' parts availability. The early Ford V8 "Windsor" series had few in any 'after market' hot rod type parts. What was available was expensive in comparison.

It would literally be DECADES before small block Ford engine 'hot rod' parts became readily available at reasonable prices, much to the frustration of Ford lovers everywhere. The Mustang, notably the Fox body series, is what finally allowed the Ford small blocks to get some decent after market parts and research going for it!

Pound for pound, cube for cube, the Ford Windsor engine family is a worthy contender. IF you had the money in the early 60's, and Shelby, through Ford, did, that was true in the 60's as well as today.

Not to mention the race bred 427 side oiler, a serioulsy competitive engine 'back in the day' AND in modern times.

350 GM small block? Like Blykins said, bore me to tears. It's cheap, it's easy, it's requires almost zero work and no imagination! Reminds me off some women you might find walking the street late at night, cheap and easy...