ERA or Superperformance 427 Thoughts and Observations

[Learjockey1]

Guys, I am new to the site and first post. I appreciate the candor and wealth of information. Bottom line up front, I have done the searching, lurking, collecting books and magazines for over 25 years and finally decided to make the move. I am looking at two cars, the 427 ERA and SPF MKIII Cobras with soft top and side curtains. I have not driven an ERA or SPF as I am over here in Germany, so the Audi’s, Porches, Mercs and BMW’s reign. I desire my American V-8 roots and require a car to sustain 90-120 mph cruising with sustained periods of 140-160 and still take me through the Alps and small towns. I am looking for a feeling of polish, essence, and finish that only comes with RD time and engineering passion. Subjects such as pedal arc, pedal pressures, great brakes, control feedback, cowl shake, solidness and smoothness, warmth and pleasantness, of the car are what I consider. Unwanted or excess vibrations will disqualify. A car with fine qualities speaks to a person that horsepower and ft lb numbers cannot. The ERA website excites my technical side and answers many questions; however, waiting till the middle of next year is not my favorite option. Good weather here is limited. The SPF’s sell the dream, but when comparing the frames seem to be lacking in the strength of the X- braced ERA and Jag/Dana rear, however, no one ever seems to complain too much about the SPFs seemingly lighter frame and 8.8 diffs (with the exception of shock brackets and CV shafts) with heavy 429/460’s in them. I am leaning toward a nice used ERA with frames above 600. A 427/428 FE would be nice but a lighter Roush or Motorsport 351-351/427 small block with a 500 or 600 TKO would fine as well. I understand the pros and cons. My question, is it better to wait and pay a bit more for the ERA or just get one of the many reasonable priced readily available SPF’s already powered with a Roush and overdrive 5th gear TKO?
I have been around the cars, planes, boats, and motorcycles my whole life and do all of my own maintenance. I have strong mechanical and machine skills and am a bit of an anal retentive, obsessive/compulsive, perfectionist. Doing my own car is not a problem but finding the time to use the skills is getting harder with the job. Again, I am looking for an essence and feel quality. I am not interested in any other brands or cars, so I would like your observations comparing these two only.

Thanks in advance for your time and consideration.