SBC camshafts

[smitty62]

I may be opening a Pandora's box here, but I would very much like to hear of your experiences regarding the best street (read torquey) camshafts. Please, no opinions or hearsay--just personal experiences with certain cams and specs. Be sure to explain why you feel the way you do. I'm not interested in cams that won't idle below 2000 rpm or have no vacuum--let's leave that for someone elses posting-ok?

[bigjimzlll]

I have a comp 268H in my 355...very torquey..runs out of rpms at 5200..Its a very good street cam..im going to a solid cam, because I want MORE power..I have a 2500 stall converter so I dont know how it would work with a stock converter

[smitty62]

Sounds pretty good--how's it idle?

[crazy longhorn]

I ran a Crane fireball II H 290 in a 327(216 dur @ .050,& .454 lift). This was a nice torky cam (2000-5000 range), with a good,but not smooth idle.......pulled 15" vac @ idle. the truck had a saginaw 4 spd & 3.73 gears,& was good for playing, or towing. i have a Crane energizer 266 in the 355 in my 78 K 20, this is a smooth idling stick(.440 lift & .210 dur @ .050, 1600- 4600 range). I havent played with the plow too much, as I just got it together......but think it will work well for its intended usage. in the longhorn i run an XE 268 comp(.477/.480 lift, 224/230 dur @ .050).......torkey as hell in my 383, but I do run a 2400 stall verter. Good luck......AL

[smitty62]

Do you think the xe268 might not work well with a stock converter?

[smitty62]

ttt

[bigjimzlll]

smitty the 268H idles real nice..a little lope..vacuum at 17 inches..the xe series looks pretty good..you would have to make sure you have the right springs. They build a lot of low rpm cylinder pressure, so you have to be careful of timing and octain

[crazy longhorn]

I dont think the XE 268 would match too well with a stock converter. my feelings are about 216-218 duration @ .050 are about as far as i would go with a stock converter. all of the cams that I ran were ground on 110 lobe separation angles. If you tighten the sep angles up to say 106, the eng will idle choppier, & could use a little extra stall even though the duration @ .050 doesnt look that bad. If i had my choice , i would be "rowin" a 6 spd richmond box in that old longhorn, then I could run a lot more cam! I guess it depends on what you want to do with the truck, the longhorn is not a hauler(just a toy), but does have good street manners. If you want a dual purpose truck, i have found its better to be a little conservative on cam selection........then you can work it all week, & play on the weekend. good luck ....crazy longhorn

[PanelDeland]

Smitty, not saying the guys on this forum are wrong but' the very best people to ask what cam to use are the manufacturers tech folk.They spend years learning what combo's work and I think most of them even have databases to plug your combo into to get a good match.Anyway they are one more resource for info on cams.
If you call Crane, Comp Cams or one of the other manufacturers be sure and have all your specs close to hand. These folks will wantn to know every detail of your engine so they can help with getting the idle and performance you are looking for.They will also want to know how you will be using the vehicle.
Things you will need to be able to tell them
1) comp ratio
2)combustion chamber volume & head type/style
3)Transmission type and rear gear ratio
4)intake and exhaust you will be using
5)Idle quality expected
6)Vehicle weight
7)tire size(effects gear ratio)
8)I'm sure I've left something(s) out but someone will call me on it!!

[nate68]

i'm running stock converter with my xe268 but its in a 400 and its a 700r4 which i believe he stall is higher. i ran a 2000 stall with it in my th400 and it was too much stall for that motor.
i ran a 268h with a stock converter in my 350 and it could have used just a little bit looser stall like a 1900 or so, that motor's compression was a little low also.
u might want to try like the xe below the xe268 i think its a xe262. crane has a ton of grind's for good low end torque motors.

[crazy longhorn]

looking over Comps footnotes, they do list the XE 268 as the largest cam with stock converter. the next step up is stated to need 2200 + stall. Im @ 2400-2500 on stall, & have a good idle in gear with my 383. I also run 4.10 gears, so the verter probably doesnt flash as high as a taller geared truck. As you get into a smaller cube eng, the cam will also be effectivly "wilder". i guess if my verter is too loose.......I have to go with a bigger cam!

[67shortie]

Originally posted by PanelDeland
Smitty, not saying the guys on this forum are wrong but' the very best people to ask what cam to use are the manufacturers tech folk.They spend years learning what combo's work and I think most of them even have databases to plug your combo into to get a good match.Anyway they are one more resource for info on cams.
If you call Crane, Comp Cams or one of the other manufacturers be sure and have all your specs close to hand. These folks will wantn to know every detail of your engine so they can help with getting the idle and performance you are looking for.They will also want to know how you will be using the vehicle.
Things you will need to be able to tell them
1) comp ratio
2)combustion chamber volume & head type/style
3)Transmission type and rear gear ratio
4)intake and exhaust you will be using
5)Idle quality expected
6)Vehicle weight
7)tire size(effects gear ratio)
8)I'm sure I've left something(s) out but someone will call me on it!!

Great advise here, call the cam manufacturer and ask. A couple of more suggested cam people are www.ultradyne.com and www.lunati.com ask about a street/power cam that builds nice torque and cylinder pressure where you want it. They all deal with questions you are going to ask, so....ask away