Cam selections...

[Turbo6Smackdown]

I was wondering, if there was some sort of chart some of the big wigs here could lay out, detailing which cams to go with, and why. For example, "Don't use 214/214 for the street, because of this. " You know an application, what supporting parts are needed, and their reasons, sort of thing. Can anyone do this? Bison? Shane? Jay?

 

[streetknight]

Subscribed...

Cam selection will make or break a combo, the problem is everyone has their own pick. Every single person I've asked about cam choice has recommended something different, so it's really confusing....

 

[LOLGN]

The basics are that a larger cam moves the powerband up in the rev range at the expense of power down low. To take advantage of a larger cam vs smaller cam you'll need a looser converter, heads that will be able to take advantage of the increased revs and of course a shortblock that will allow that sort of thing. There's no question a relatively larger cam will make more power than a smaller one but it comes at a price. Having the turbo is a huge advantage in that you don't really need big revs to make big power like you might with a n/a motor. It's possible to go very fast with stock stuff/small stuff, I believe bison was running a 212/212 when he put his stock shortblock car well over 130mph. I'm sure he along with other more knowledgeable people will chime in but it's food for thought.

 

[buttonfly]

I am about cammed out. I have been searching all the old threads too. Saying there are mixed opinions is an understatement. GNrick forwarded me some good info from a old GSCA extra singing praises about a 200/200 cam. I've also read about the other theory of with the high boost levels 24psi and up that most of us run, the larger cam helps with cylinder wall pressure. So you guess is as good as mine! lol

 

[Turbo6Smackdown]

I heard that it's better to push a smaller cam harder, than a big cam, on the city streets. Big cams destroy low end correct? Well who wants that? That's why we need a cam chart

 

[GNBRETT]

Mine is tiny. My cam that is.....:tongue:

 

[JDSfastGN]

On a street buick, unless you go off the wall you aren't gonna make or break the combo imo. I can say from experience that I have always been impressed by the 204/214. Its a good flat tappet cam. We have a car with a small 6152e that has gone 126 mph with this cam. But I would go roller if the money is available.

 

[phillyturbosix]

I have my engine apart being rebuild now and this was a big concern of mine and I've done a lot of research. It's a stock build I'm doing with coated bearings, fordged pistons, and everything else stock for the most part. The cam took me several weeks to pick out. Cam selection depends on several things.

IF you are going to be anal with the oil changes and use products with tons of zinc like ZDDP then you can go flat tappet hydrolic cam. This cam will also work on pretty much any street/strip app and you can do deep into the 11's with the proper care. For this cam there are several vendors here on the forum that can sell you one of their cams. 206/206 is fine 208/208 Full Throttle, Cotton's, TA Performance, and Weber are all good cam guys. You can even call one of them and have them guide you thru your cam selection and what your goals are from this type of cam. My personal pick for a cam was to use Weber Racing. They have a killer 208/208 grind for a Comp cam that they put years of research into. It's proven grind over and over for years and guys had a nice long life out of them. Guys all over swore by this grind. I have one on the way to me as I post this for my build.

IF your not good with oil selection, want to play it safe all around, and you are going to race hard more then anything, then I would recommend a roller cam set up. It's still good to keep up on the oils with zinc but you don't have to worry as much. With a roller cam you can pretty much pick any vendor all their prices are close together for the most part and the service from any vendor on the boards here are all good. Again this is something you'll have to talk with the vendor you pick so you get the right set up from them.

Don't try to piece things from all over the place. Pick a vendor and stick with them and have them help you. Plus you can always search around on these forums and you'll find many answers. Also keep in mind if you want to keep the noise down go with GM lifters and not the ones that come with the cam if you buy a cam kit. They have a heat treated seat and they are quiet! Some of these after market lifters are noisy as hell! Let us know what you go with!

 

[Pronto]

I would be interested in learning why the durations range from split with more on intake and more on exhaust and equal. What would the reason be to choose one over another? I've done some minor research on some turbo sites and more intake seems to be popular.

 

[charlief1]

The biggest issues with a split duration is to load either the intake charge or exhaust charge. Most companies load the intake to produce power but the more reading I do the more I'm convinced that loading the exhaust is the best way to produce a faster spool for lower RPM cars. That and you need an LSA of 112 to 115 for the most effective idle control.

 

[buttonfly]

I bought a 212/212 comp. I havn't put it in yet. I wasnt MPH'ing the car last year at the track. Everything else was spot on. I am going through the trans because I believe it was costing me. We also think we can couple the converter better up top with more revs. What do you guys think. Its one of those things if I dont like it or it doesn't perform I can always change again. Nothing is forever. Car will usually see 26-27 psi 93 pump plus alky

 

[3.8L V-8 eater]

I have my engine apart being rebuild now and this was a big concern of mine and I've done a lot of research. It's a stock build I'm doing with coated bearings, fordged pistons, and everything else stock for the most part. The cam took me several weeks to pick out. Cam selection depends on several things.

IF you are going to be anal with the oil changes and use products with tons of zinc like ZDDP then you can go flat tappet hydrolic cam. This cam will also work on pretty much any street/strip app and you can do deep into the 11's with the proper care. For this cam there are several vendors here on the forum that can sell you one of their cams. 206/206 is fine 208/208 Full Throttle, Cotton's, TA Performance, and Weber are all good cam guys. You can even call one of them and have them guide you thru your cam selection and what your goals are from this type of cam. My personal pick for a cam was to use Weber Racing. They have a killer 208/208 grind for a Comp cam that they put years of research into. It's proven grind over and over for years and guys had a nice long life out of them. Guys all over swore by this grind. I have one on the way to me as I post this for my build.

IF your not good with oil selection, want to play it safe all around, and you are going to race hard more then anything, then I would recommend a roller cam set up. It's still good to keep up on the oils with zinc but you don't have to worry as much. With a roller cam you can pretty much pick any vendor all their prices are close together for the most part and the service from any vendor on the boards here are all good. Again this is something you'll have to talk with the vendor you pick so you get the right set up from them.

Don't try to piece things from all over the place. Pick a vendor and stick with them and have them help you. Plus you can always search around on these forums and you'll find many answers. Also keep in mind if you want to keep the noise down go with GM lifters and not the ones that come with the cam if you buy a cam kit. They have a heat treated seat and they are quiet! Some of these after market lifters are noisy as hell! Let us know what you go with!

In the market for a roller cam. Who helped you at Weber??? Was the 208 / 208 one of the choices that is offered with there cam kits or is this a cam they are going to grind for your combo specifically???

 

[SGRIM]

I will make this thread a sticky if enough good info goes into it!

 

[phillyturbosix]

In the market for a roller cam. Who helped you at Weber??? Was the 208 / 208 one of the choices that is offered with there cam kits or is this a cam they are going to grind for your combo specifically???

All you have to do is call Weber and Steve or his brother will walk you thru it. One prop I will give Weber is they don't rush you off the phone and will talk to you and make sure that you pick the proper cam. While I did not talk rollers with him because I'm fine with a nice hydraulic grind, I'm sure he's got some great ideas for rollers as well. That's what he swears on. My car is a show/street car and it's only going to get a few hundred miles a year so spending the extra for the roller was out of my budget. I build a good strong budget motor. I had a lot of help from the guys on the forms here and other forums so I put a lot of research into the cam. One of the biggest things you have to consider is customer service as well.

I let my engine builder recommend/buy all the parts. He was in price range with everyone else and I figured I'd let him make a few bucks on the parts on me as long as the prices were close and they were. The only issue was the cam and that's why I took that project on to make sure I get the best possible cam. My builder likes Melling cams and while they make great oil pumps I didn't want to play with a unknown cam. Sometimes tried and true is the way to go. Remember it's all about the combo. Call/e-mail all the vendors and see what their suggestions are. Once you find 2 vendors that are recommend pretty much the same cam then that's the one I'd go with as far as a roller.

 

[SHADOWII]

Now that's....

I will make this thread a sticky if enough good info goes into it!

a great idea! It may save a lot of searching. Considering going bigger also.:biggrin:

 

[V6gofast]

[ It's possible to go very fast with stock stuff/small stuff, I believe bison was running a 212/212 when he put his stock shortblock car well over 130mph. I'm sure he along with other more knowledgeable people will chime in but it's food for thought.[/QUOTE]

I have had larger engines go near 140 mph with less cam than that . The
cam isn't the magic answer it's just part of the equation. And just for the
record I have sent many hours on the phone with buick guys who never
spent a dime with me.

 

[buttonfly]

I know the cam threads seem to have beaten to death, but I was really finding some good info surface in this thread, and I would hate to see it die off. I am always learning, adn I would love to hear everyones insight into this. Like I said I am going to try the 212/212, hey if it works great if it doesnt o well thats the fun of it.

 

[phillyturbosix]

This thread happen to pop up just when I was in the heat looking for a cam so it was perfect timing for my input while it's fresh in my head I pondered on the cam for about 2 weeks before I made my pick. It pretty much comes down to pick a vendor you feel comfortable with and CALL them. Some of these vendors are too busy trying to keep their business afloat and don't have the time for tedious e-mails. So call one of the vendors and talk it out. Maybe a follow up e-mail is fine. But you have to make sure everything flows in a nice combination together. I was lucky I had many of the vendors and other guys on the boards PM and e-mail me all kinda tips and ideas. I'm very grateful for that and their information helped me a lot. Tried and true is the way go to and that's what these vendors are on here. They all have their own tried and true cams they like. It's almost like asking a guy what brand under ware he likes. While there is only a handful out there everyone has their favorite.

Don't rack your brain too much and call one of them up and talk it out. One thing I would highly suggest is stay AWAY from used or unknown parts. Buy new and don't play the mystery game. It is NOT worth it to save a few bucks here and there. Most guys I've talked that bought used or unknown condition parts in the end they have a pile of mis-matched crap that won't work and does them no good. Most people are selling that stuff because they found out it don't work with any combination and are hoping someone else will take their pile of headaches! And why you ask... because they didn't do the proper research and just went with the deals they found!

 

[jpwalt1987]

I have had larger engines go near 140 mph with less cam than that . The
cam isn't the magic answer it's just part of the equation. And just for the
record I have sent many hours on the phone with buick guys who never
spent a dime with me.

I will soon be removing the 224 solid roller I have and purchasing a hyd roller from DLS. Dan has helped me a ton even though I havent spent a ton of money with him. You WON'T go wrong with buying from him as long as you take his advice. He's good people!!:biggrin:

 

[87action]

camshaft

I would like to know why you're removing this. May be interested in it.