ok. so it's time to select a camshaft for my Av8. Have a 31 roadster with an 8BA, 4 inch crankshaft, two 97's, '39 transmission and a '40 Ford rear end. I am too old to worry about racing or top speed. Just want a reliable rod that sounds right. So I was about to order an Isky 77-B. Then I started to thinking. The folks at Delta Camshaft in Tacoma know more about camshaft grinding than anybody. Why not take a stock Ford camshaft to them and have it ground to to what I need. It might not save money, but I would have the satisfaction of using an old Ford part. Comments, please.
I had Delta Cam grind me a Literio L100 cam for my last 8ba. Low end didnt suffer bad, really pulled at the top and sounded amazing. This was last year. Shipping round trip and the grind was like 150 bucks total. You cant beat that
I had Delta cams regrind an old FJ40 cam for me. They had 2 different profiles. Unfortunately they ground it to the one I was not wanting. After talking with them and troubleshooting they said to send everything back and they would fix it free. I can say that the customer service after buying from them I experienced while diagnosing the trouble was absolutely the best. Definitely would not hesitate to have them grind a cam for me again.
I sent the stock camshaft out of my 59A to PETE from Fordbarn for a regrind to Isky 1007b spec. I'm unsure if PETE is still doing such work but what a beautiful piece of jewellery when it arrived back and so much more interesting and affordable than purchasing something new. I too wanted for only "a reliable rod that sounds right" Engine runs great and sounds wonderful...
I've been using Schneider Cams for more years than I can rememder, especially for flathead cams. NEVER have had a problem with cam selection or performance. Call Jerry Cantrell at Schneider a and tell him what you have. He will ask what seems like 9,000 questions but every question helps him better custom grind the cam that will do just what you want and need. Not too long ago, I built a 276 flathead for a friend's latest project, a 34 hiboy roadster. He was adamant that the engine sounded like a"hot rod"! A couple months af term the car was finished, he drove it to the NSRA western nationals in Bakersfield. An over 200 mile trip each way. I met him there and he asked if I would like a ride. So, we got in and he cruised the fairgrounds. As we cruised, he remared that the cam sure sounded lumpy. I replied that it's what he wanted. He replied that he wasn't complaining, just admiring the cool sound! It also ran like a bat out of hell too! Jerry is reasonably priced, fast, and very fussy too. Call him at 619-297-0227. His well worth the effort .
I ran the exact cam in my 286” 8BA in my Model A coupe. It was a great choice It was very streetable, pulled like crazy right off idle and was very happy at 2200-2400 cruising for long periods on the interstate. I had a quick change and would play with gear ratios and it worked well with pretty much any street ratio I tried. I have a video clip of it running somewhere, it sounded great too, but most importantly it pulled great on the bottom and midrange especially. Edit:here is link to video of it running.
I have a relieved 59A that ,when asked, Pete recommended the 1007B for. As you can imagine, I was concerned about low compression and loss of torque. I also have an 8ba that I bought an L 100 cam for. When built , it will probably be 3 5/16 by 4 and can better use the L100. JMHO
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