Comp Cams XE256H-10 is really close to those specs. It was on my short list for my build. Looking to put a set of monster heads on it, keep my low end as much as possible and rev as well. We've done similar with a 270H and AFR heads.
Okay, well I'm going to call cam research and give them those specs on Tuesday so that i can get my cam shaft and springs sometime in the next week or two. I'll work with those specs, but just for clarification, i got a new stall converter and I will be getting 3.55's in the rear end, so will those cam specs still work out fine or will i need a more manly cam?
It would really be a matter of preference and driving style. When it comes to cams though.. you basically end up robbing peter to pay paul and shift the usable range higher up the scale. With a 2.46 1st gear ratio combined with 3.55 rear gears.. you'll have a fairly weak ratio of around 8.75 which generally requires more low end torque to be able to pull the gear and allow it to come up on the cam quicker. Having a lighter car helps some.. but basically, less usable/narrower rpm range in trade for greater peak power production. The stall will help things considerably down low, but only to a point. What stall speed did you end up going with? The thing to keep in mind when going higher lift is that retainer to guide clearance may become more of an issue(likely not a major issue with lifts involved here and easily remedied with a slight guide height cut down or move to a taller valve and spring setup) and the PTV clearance becomes tighter the more aggressive the exhaust lobe and overlap becomes. If you did go any more agressive than the one mentioned above.. I'd keep it around 220 MAX duration @.050. But keep in mind that you WILL give up some low range power and response. Unfortunately.. those slightly mod'd heads will probably not flow sufficiently enough to really maximize a much larger cam than that(especially really high lifts) and you'll end up with a much peakier engine as you use a more agressive cam to crutch their defficiencies. IMHO, that's not the best tradeoff for an automatic with taller low gears matched to a more streetable rear gear like 3.50's. To really step up average power under the curve.. you'd need to go to a full roller setup that allows more area under the lift curves(higher average flow).. which is a whole new ballgame. Also keep in mind that upping power at higher rpm means that other more expensive complementary parts will be required and there's more likelyhood of breaking parts.. or just plain wearing them out quicker. Case in point would be the weaker flowing dual plane manifold you currently have. You could make minor gain by using a taller merge or open spacer.. but that manifold is just too small to expect 6,500 rpm duty from. Again with the snowball effect I mentioned earlier. PS. with proper tuning on that seemingly too small of a cam I mentioned earlier.. you should have no problem dipping into the high 13's.. traction permitting.. with that car. If you want much more than that?.. break open the piggy bank and rethink your build before going much further here.
I went with a 2800 stall because that's the highest I could find/afford that wasn't $500 So hopefully that will help matter a little. And I'll go with that cam choice you mentioned earlier. I'm fine with that kind of engine. Especially since I don't have all that much money to really make the engine rev past 6000. And I don't intend to go higher than that anyway.
ok.. sounds good for a nice daily driver type toy. That extra stall speed will definitely help matters with that trans and gear combo. And don't misunderstand things here. That motor will still rev plenty good. In fact.. you'll want to be sure you have a rev limiter and use enough carb return spring just to be on the safer side. That's because the lighter retainers I have set aside for you combined with the 110 lbs of seat pressures you'll likely end up with here will easily go to 7,000+ before valve surge/float becomes a major concern. The juice style lifters will become your weak link in a high rpm combo anyways. Well.. besides the manifold you currently run. So, let me ask you this now. Do you think you still want a cam that will allow some slight future growth potential? Reason I ask is because.. considering your compression level.. a simple "RPM style" intake swap down the road would be worth a fatter midrange and top end boost if you so desired. Even with this projected milder cam combo.. it would help. And while you could use a slight band-aid approach of just retarding the cam 2-4 degrees to help move the power band up a bit more to better suit it.. we could also add 2-4 degrees of duration and take out a bit of advance during the grinding process too. Nothing wrong with picking a grind you can grow into as long as it's within reason and doesn't penalize you too much in the short term. A few degrees larger will definitely give you more headroom. The other thing I failed to mention is this. While running additional overlap can help shore up those head flow deficiencies.. more efficeint exhaust scavenging becomes more important to maximize its potential. Therefore, using straight thru style mufflers(hence.. "louder") vs quieter chambered style.. will help improve scavenging and be worth even more power gain compared to single pattern cams with tighter LSA's. Just another thought.. and I realized yesterday while working in the shop that I hadn't even touched on the subject with you. If you don't have straight thru style mufflers right away?(not like you need another unexpected cost, right?).. it's not going to kill the cams scavenging by much(so long as the chambered style mufflers are decent enough to begin with).. just that there will be some power potential left on the table, is all.
Maybe a cam with slight growing into could do well. But I'd probably go with a holley intake in the future sometime. But I've just been set back by a crappy rental tool by autozone that broke 3 piston rings rings.. Is it possible to just buy a couple rings by themselves? Or am i going to have to buy a whole new set...? As for the mufflers, i have slightly loud mufflers. Simply for the fact that i don't want cops to hear me having too much fun from a long distance away. So theyre moderately loud. They're the same kind of mufflers that were used on corvairs. My dad suggested them to me.
What size rings are they ? I've got at least one set of spares I had to buy to replace broken ones. They're 4.03 bore, I'd have to check the thickness.
It's a .040 over bore. :/ The piston ring compressor flung open and... Ugh. Never mind. But the only rings that snapped were the 2nd groove and the oil rings. Luckily. The top rings were okay.
if you go to the machine shop that did the work on your motor they might be able to sell you a few instead of a whole set. otherwise I would think you have the buy a complete set
The intakes worth looking at are the air gap styles such as the weiand, edlebrock, pro comp, etc. You'll likely need to run a drop base air cleaner to get them stuffed in there though. Or cut your hood for a scoop. Don't sweat it for now and think about it later down the road. Mufflers are likely a chambered design if they're the old corvair style turbos. Again.. no biggie right now and you can always revisit a swap later on. Not like it's going to be worth 20 horse anyways. The rings. While that's certainly frustrating as most of us have been there once or twice through the years.. it too isn't the end of the world. You'll just need to get in touch with the manufacturer to get the replacement parts needed to finish it up. Trust me.. they're used to it by now. I can't remember which rings you ended up with but IIRC.. they were either file-fit 1.5mm or 1/16th, right? Unless baddad has exactly what you need.. I'd just go straight to the mfgr for replacements. And not to second guess you here.. but you did get the proper end gaps filed into them before assembly, right? Reason I ask(we got your back here).. is that the spec's you were throwing around earlier were WAY off from what is actually required for street engine running a 4 inch bore. Just double checkin', is all.
Yup.. Looks like i Gatta buy a new set...... I guess it's just one of those things that tends to happen eh? Does anybody know where to buy one of those bolts that goes to the end of the crank shaft to hold the balancer on?
Yeah, i ordered the new set of rings, but i did manage to get the correct end gap.. According to total seal's little book it came out to .018 for the top and .014 for the second.. And then i rechecked the oil ring gap to ensure the minimum clearance was .015
not sure if you missed my reply.. but you DO NOT need to buy the complete set. Don't call the vendor you bought them from and go straight to the mfgr for what you need. The bolt can be replaced with anything from Milodon, ARP, etc, or even from the dealer(overpriced and you may as well buy a good aftermarket, IMO).. or even a junkyard donor engine.
ok.. I just checked their site to confirm those numbers.. and you're all good there. And Total Seal is EXCELLENT at sending you what's required if you have problems like this. Call em' on Tuesday and they'll get you back on track again.
Yeah, it looks like the bolt got missplaced at the machine shop.. Luckily, my parents just loaned me the money for the new set of rings since they felt bad and I feel like i might as well since there could be other mess-ups with the other 7 pistons. (Imagine.. all that was just ONE...) As for the rest of the engine. I'm waiting for the valves to get here and then tomorrow i get to call cam research and finalize the new cam.. So should i go with the one you suggested or one i can grow into? I already have the rev limiter set up at 6K (although it can be changed) i'm really not anticipating to rev too much past that (hopefully).. With my luck, it'll probably explode.
