Anyone know what the specs were on an Isky 505 Magnum cam? Int/Exh lift, duration LSA, etc? Thanks, JohnK
That is for a Y block and is the biggest cam they made for the Y block . It's for race only and has a very big duration . You have to have head work done so you won't bottom out the lifters . Goggle - John Mummert at---fordyblocks.com and you can get the specs there . If I remember correctly it's around a 512 lift at a 108 separation and lots of duration . Very good drag race cam but too much for the street . Retro Jim
I had a 505C for my Packard. it had a 320 degree duration. 512 lift. Don't remember the lobe centers.
That cam was a milestone grind as it was the first to pass the .500 lift mark. After everyone else did it, Isky came back to the top with the .550 Magnum. I would run the .505 over a 30-30 GM grind Van
I had the same cam for a Y block . Didn't know they had the same grind for everything else ! Most cams don't have the same grind for different engines . Excuse me ! Retro Jim
Is your cam a roller for a SBC and uses a '2-gear' -ie - 'no idler gear', gear drive? Is it stamped '505T' on the nose? Not sure of the specs anymore, but I had an Isky 505T that I bought used at a swap meet back in the early-'70's and tried it in a couple of different 'built to the hilt' small block Chevy 'street' engines back then. It was way too much cam for the street in a 283, but it worked pretty good and pulled like a bear in a 350! Even in the 350 though, it was definitely a pretty serious 'street cam' and not something you'd want in a 'drive 40 miles to work everyday and then go to church in, on Sunday',commuter car! It sure was fun though!! Mart3406 ============================
Actually that is not true. Most grinds are or were derived from Winfield grinds and cam grinders just pick the one they think will work for what you want to do. It's not really the dark art lots of people like to think it is.
I ran a Isky 550 Super Lagerra (?) sp. in a 427 Ford yrs ago. Ran good, but the lifters that they used with it were lousy IMO. They weren't connected with a bar like the ones today.
52pig - where'd you find it? How much did it cost you? I'd like to find one for a 327 I'm gathering parts for. mart3406 - when you had yours, you used solid lifters, right? what heads did you use on the 350? combustion chamber size, valve size, etc. all- I'm trying to determine how much one of these would cost vs the cost of a new one. After reading these posts I'm inclined to think I should just go with a new one. too many unknown factors.
Cam grinding machines use "master" patterns. Some companies offer the same "grind" on cams for differant engines. Compare a company's specs & you might see the same grind for a 350 Chevy, a 302 Ford & a 318 Mopar. Wanna bet they all work the same in every engine ? I put a 505 magnum in a 292 Chevy 6 with all the proper valvetrain parts, when the cam "came in" either the rear tires smoked or the fronts came off the ground. Made driving on the highway a challenge when passing another car on a two lane road.
---------------------------- I'm not sure, but your 505 Magnum may be a solid lifter (and possibly, even hydraulic lifter) flat tappet cam. The 505T that I had was a definitely a roller cam. That's why I asked if there was a "T" after the '505' stamped on the nose. One quick way to tell a roller from a flat tappet cam, other than the shape of the lobes, is that Isky and most other manufacturers roller cams are machined from steel billet blanks, while the 'regular' (solid and hydraulic) flat tappet cams are made from cast iron blanks. Besides having casting marks and small 'sand grain' casting irregularities visible at various places, the hardening process used on the cast iron turn the camshaft a 'flat black' color - while the steel billet roller blanks have a very smooth, machined finish and a slightly shiny 'natural steel' or sometimes, a slight burnished 'copper' color. Somebody here on the list must have a '60's or '70's vintage Isky catalog that should give you the specs and tell you exactly what you have. From what I gather the 505T roller cam I had was originally intended for a small inch, maybe a 265 or 283 inch or so, 'rev to the moon' "gasser-type" race engine. It was definitely intended as a 'race' piece because besides being a roller cam, it was reverse ground and used a two-gear' gear drive too. I bought the cam used at a swap meet back around 1974, so I never got an actual spec card with it, but I know the cam was old even back then, because the rear journal had the oiling notch machined in it that is required for use on the early, - ie - '1955 to 1958' only', SBC blocks. The cam first went into the 283 in my mostly street-driven 4-speed 64 Chevelle. i didn't really expect it to work too well and it didn't. Idle was 1200-plus rpm and there was no real torque below about 3500. The cam did start to make some power by about 4000 rpm and when when the revs got above 5500, hang on! Between 5500 and 7000, you'd swear that little 283 was at least half again or more, bigger than it was! It was kinda' like driving a car with an 'on and off' toggle switch for a throttle. One minute nothing and then when the revs would eventually came up and it hit the powerband, it'd peg you in the seat and pull like a freight train! But generally, for driving around on the street like a normal citizen, it was pretty miserable. The next engine I built specifically to use the cam and it worked out pretty good. The engine was a .030 over 350. Pistons were some some 'used' 11 to 1 TRW 350/350 forged 'stock-type replacement' bought at a swap meet. (Used pistons - yeah, I know I was cheap ) The first heads were a pair of home-ported Chevy 462 'double hump' castings, milled about .040, with stock 2.02 and 1.60 valves. Later I caught a deal and swapped the 462's for a pair good used 'Racing Head Service-ported' 292 angle-plug 'turbo' castings with small-stem 2.05 valves. The heads had come off of a small-inch Mod/Prod car and had 57 cc chambers and were ported to the max. The RHS heads were definite overkill for a street engine, but I got a deal on them and the car probably picked up another 20 or 25 hp or so above 6000 rpm and the power band was extended from about a 6200 rpm peak to 'somewhere around' (or slightly beyond ) 7000 rpm. On the street though, below 5000 rpm, there was little, if any, real difference in performance between the 'el cheapo' home-ported 462's and the 'good' RHS "race" heads. Back to 505T roller cam though. Putting it into a 350 made a world of difference as far streetability and a having a more usable power band goes. In the 350, the idle was now down to about 900 to 1000 rpm. Still pretty choppy, but acceptable and drivable on the street with a 4-speed. Actually the idle quality and idle speed were not a lot, if even any. worse than a stock 302 Z/28 set-up and there were still quite of few of those little nasties roaming the streets back in the early and mid-70's. The real difference in going to from a 283 to a 350 was in the powerband and in overall power. In the 350, the cam would start making at least a usable amount of torque by about 2500 rpm, and start to pull pretty good at anything above 3000. This was at least 800 to 1000 rpm lower than in the the 283. Around 4000 rpm, it would start to pull hard and between 5000 and about 6200 rpm, it was one wild ride! With the home-ported 462 castings, peak power see,ed to be at about 6200 rpm. It would still rev to over 7G, but didn't make really make any more power buzzing it that high. (It sure sounded good at 7Gs though! ) The 'good' RHS heads extended the top end power band by at least another 600 to 800 rpm and peak power with them was closer to, or even just slightly above 7000 rpm. Find out what the specs are for the cam you've got. I think that Isky came out with some flat tappet - solid - and maybe even some hydraulic versions of the 505 that are probably more streetable the old 505T roller. If I had your cam, if it seemed to be anywhere close to what you might want/need for your application , I'd at least give it it try before tossing it and buying a new cam. That's what hot-rodding is about, trying new things and different combinations and if you can do it on the cheap with some used and supposedly 'obsolete' parts, so much the better. If you've got, try and if you don't like it change it and buy a new cam then. When I built my 350, everyone told that my 505T wouldn't work either, but I think it turned out pretty good for back then Mart3406 ---------------- PS. - I'll ask again for you: 'C'mon guys, does anybody here have an old Isky catalog that they can look up the actual specs for an Isky "505 Magnum" cam in and help this guy out???' ===============================
I say again. When I bought my 505C for the Packard I took it to a local cam grinder and he put it on his cam master. Plotted all the lobes and compaired them to the masters he had on hand to see what he could grind from what he had. It was a "Hard face overlay" by the way. If you really want to know what your cam is. Maybe not what it was. Take it to a cam grinder and get him to plot the curves.
WOW!! I amazed this thread got the responses that it did. I never expected the kind of info that was posted. thanks everyone. Funny though how the original post changes slightly as it progresses. Someone assumed I already had a 505 Magnum. I don't (yet) but would like to get one for my build. Mart3406... GREAT response!!! When (and if) I do get one it will be going into a .030 over 327. I'll be using camel hump 2.02 heads with 64cc chambers (slightly ported - home done I think). Induction will be via a vintage Hilborn mechanical fuel injection (stacks). Based on your post, I'd think performance somewhere between your 283 and 350 but closer to your 350. Agree? My goal is to build a "vintage" 327 circa 1964 for street use primarily.
Definitely still interested! I appreciate the image of the catalog pages. Now if I could just lay my hands on one of these buggers... for a reasonable price, of course.
Isky 505 AND mechanical injection on the street? you must be a glutton for punishment! Rich Fox is right, they can pretty much put any grind on any cam, depending on clearance, etc. They even made the 505 for flatheads!
38flattie - Yeah, that's what I hear alot! I've talked to several guys who run MFI in SBCs on the street with no problems. The one guy is a member here and runs a 283 and a 327 with MFI. I've talked to him a couple times on the phone and he's given me some solid advice to use when I build mine. I'd REALLY like to build this old school and, as such, would like to find a 505 to use. Hey! Why not? a guy can dream, can't he???
Talked to a guy the other day who thought he saw a listing in the Isky catalog for a nostalgia line of cams. He was pretty sure that there was a listing for a 505. Looked at the online catalog but didn't see a "nostalgia" listing. May have to get a 2011 catalog...
raced a 430 in a 1957 Ford on a 1/2 mile dirt track in the 60's. 505T, flat tappet, same duration as all 505T's, 290, lift .505, timing 37-73 and 73-37. rough idle, lots of power, 7,000 RPM
Go back to your original thread on the 30/30 from a couple years ago. I posted all the specs on that thread. The 505 is still in the current catalog.
Heres a link to the page on your old thread. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=563684&highlight=isky+505&page=3
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