1986 block, 1987 heads- CAM HELP
 

I bough an engine with TBI and I’ve swapped it to carb. I want to put in a new camshaft but not sure what all I should replace because the cam in the block is setup for TBI. Because the degree would be off center a little. Would the stock cam be alright? And if I do add a cam, would I have to install new lifters, rods, valve springs, timing chain? Or would simply moving the cam timing a few degree be easier then spending roughly $500 more into a ****ty stock engine. Or just leave the cam alone and run it?

Suggestions and advice would be great.
Thanks

Re: 1986 block, 1987 heads- CAM HELP
 

The stock TBI cam is really small - around 179* intake duration @ .050" lift. The old 193* intake/202* exhaust cam used in the 307-400 small blocks is a big improvement and would work with the valve springs. The TBI heads are poor flowing heads so going too big on a cam would not work well. Many have had good luck with an RV cam (204*/214*)

Re: 1986 block, 1987 heads- CAM HELP
 

No reason the TBI cam won't work with a carb. But as mentioned above, it's quite small with an emphasis on low RPM torque. Something like a Summit Racing SUM-K1101 cam & kit would be an improvement, without killing low RPM performance.
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/sum-k1101

Be sure to read everything you can on breaking in a flat tappet cam!

As moderate as it is, a 204/214 cam would be a bit big in a 305 with tall gears, like 2.56 or 2.73.

Edit: Yes, if you install a new cam, you must use new lifters and probably will need a new timing set.