cam break in concerns?

What if there is anything i should or can do about my cam break in. It's a comp xtreme enegry 270H cam in a 350 chev. My question is i put the cam in over three months ago with the assembly lube and such and i'm going to be breaking it in soon. I will use a break in oil as well but i'm concerned that all of the cam lube has ran off the cam from sitting so long. Will this be an issue when i brak in my cam? Is there anything else i can do besides add break in oil?

Thanks Jay.S

 

i wouldn`t sweat that, but make sure you got the timing set right, the carb full of gas and preprime the oil system, that way it will start quick and you can run it at the manufucturers rpm for the time they recomend, its all about getting it to start and run quickly......imo

 

Just use a good break in oil, i suggest Brad Penn 10W30, and prime the engine properly not just until you have pressure but when all of the pushrods are oiling to the rockers then you know that the system is completely primed. Hydraulic cams are not known for being very much trouble so i wouldnt worry too much

 

thanks for the info guys. the lifters are brand new as well.

 

Get a bottle of ZDDP and add it to the oil. If you haven't bought the break-in oil yet, then a quick read over on Team Chevelle will be well worth your time. There is a ton of information there.
Just Google Team Chevelle; go to Technical Forums; in Tech Forums go to the Performance section. At the top of the section is a load of information about break-in oil and additives.
If you used the red liquid cam lube, you may want to pay special attention to the type of oil and additives you crank up with, as there have been number of negative posts about it.
Like Rock Island Rocket says, make sure you have oil coming up through the pushrods and onto the rockers before you fire it up.

Very important that you keep the rpm's at recommended level so that the cam & lifters get adequate oil sling off the crank. Begin with the right oil and additives, a fully pre-lubed engine, a quick start-up, and then maintain recommended rpm for recommended time period.

 

x1000000 on using the zinc additive... most of the new oil's don't have it as most new motors are roller cams, if you don't use that you will have those lovely dished lifters and flat cam lobes... after all those cams going bad in the performance world they did some reaserch and found that most cams that failed were damaged from improper break in procedures, and lack of zinc in the new oils...

 

Thanks you guys for all the help and info. and thanks too txcr13 for the chevelle site. One issue that was brought up on that other thread is that i live in canada where it is hard to come by any of these brands of oils.... so i will have to do some more searching into that. This red assembly lube thing is news to me.... Any more details on that?

 

DEASIL OIL ha

 

summit sells a few break in additives.. with the needed zddp for break in, STP has one I think.. so does comp cams.. so does your local mopar dealership.. same with chevy. that's all i can remember.. those you can run with what ever weight the cam company recommends...

 

Would someone please explain to me the proceedure for setting timing on a re-built engine before starting it?

Thanks

 

Comp Cams makes a great break in additive you can buy from Summit(about $12) or any parts store can get it for you. As far as oil and just my 2 cents--we've used the Valvoline racing oil for a few years. I had an engine drop a valve in it's third year of racing and when it came apart on the bench the bearings were like new.

 

Normally cam break in lube is a paste and should still be there.

If I was worried about it I would get some break in lube and pull the lifters ans smear some on the bottom of each lifter. But I wouldn't be too worried about it. Just run it like the directions that came with you cam said.

Roll it up on TDC then move your engine until the timming mark lines up with about 10 degrees. Drop your dizzy in so that the rotor lines up with the #1 spark terminal on the cap. Wire it and fire it.

Once your cam is broken in you can worry about getting your timming and tune exact.

 

JayS-
PM sent to you this morning.

 

Thanks gents for the tips!

 

Just broke in my fresh 283 in a '36 coupe this past weekend. (fairly mild hydraulic cam) Liberally used Isky assy. lube during the build and added a bottle of Comp cams additive. I run Rotella 15-40 in all my stuff, all the time. Be sure to spin the oil pump first until you have good oiling on the top end. x2 on the carb and timing setup. Run for about 20 minutes @ 2000 or so RPM. Shouldn't have any problems.

 

kc if you have the valve covers on already pull the number 1 plug mark the tdc mark on the damper with white chalk where you can see it well - hold your thumb tight over the spark plug hole and bump the engine over with the starter - when the compression stroke starts it will blow your thumb off the plug hole - that's the compression stroke - go ahead and bump it up to tdc - then pull the distributor cap and make sure the rotor bug is looking at the #1 spark plug wire - that should get it fired up - then set it with a timing light - good to go!!

 

Hey guys, I found a that a boat fuel squeeze type primer bulb works great plumbed inline to prime the fuel system. Just re-fired my engine that was sitting for six mo. with redline assembly lube on the cam and lifters, and the comp cam additive in the valvoline oil. It ran great and the oil came out clean as can be. Now if I can get the trans to cooperate we'll be ok. Just my .02....

 

make sure to check your tire pressures before you fire it up.. lol sorry can't help myself..

 

Hopefully the firing goes smooth. I'm just hopeing that I can run my tunnel ram for twenty min on first fire!!!

 

I have not fired up a new or rebuilt engine since the late 80's without the use of an oil pump primer and an oil pressure gauge. Both are really cheap (in most cases) and can save you some serious coin.

 

I go one step further.I set my timing marks to whatever advance I want then stick an old spark plug in #one wire,ground the base of the plug and turn my ignition on.Rotate the dizzy until the the plug fires and you should be real close to right on.

 

so gents i finally got it running! I have some more questions? so after my thirty minute break in and oil change are there any other precautions i should take while driving it such as rpm ranges for first 100 miles or something like that?

 

One thing I do is use old weak valve springs till the cam is broke in, then I change the springs out for good ones.