Hot Rods Beating a dead horse- how to choose a cam manufacturer for SBC

Sorry, Chris...got their address mixed up with another, Tacoma is right. They just ground me a Winfield SU1R spec, and I can't wait to use it! New core, too.

 

I believe the 539 heads are 1957 283hp F.I. (one year only). As for a cam, I love my 097 (315 h.p. '61 Corvette f.i.). The solid lifters make the engine sound good and don't need continuous adjustment attention if polylocks are used. Engine is 283 +.060, '58 small intake/port heads (1.74"), about 10.5:1, single Edelbrock carb on Offenhauser manifold.

vic

 

That's the cam I usually get from them, love SU-1A's

 

Yeah I have 4 flathead cars right now. Like I mentioned above, I've been building this thing in my head for a while. I've always wanted an early Ford with an early Chev powering it...but never had the right car. I always imagined a 40 coupe but this 46 popped up for 1/4 price of what 40's go for so I jumped on it. Plus I have always loved 41-48 Fords. I gave it my magic touch with lowering, tires, caps, chrome and interior, all that is left to do it replace the tired ol flathead with my 283.

I can only experience 1962 by watching American Graffiti...maybe this car will help me experience it a little more...

 

There is more to cam performance than duration alone, and the science around cam design has come a long way since the 60's when that cam was designed. By juggling lift, duration and lobe separation angle it should be easy to get a modern cam that will give a smoother idle and stronger bottom end torque while providing the same top end performance that you'll get with that cam.

But I believe you're going to be mating that 283 up to the stock Ford drive train, so in this case having a little softer bottom end is probably not a bad thing. So yeah, that cam should be fine for you.

 

My experience with my '57 283 rebuild goes a bit deeper than cam selection. I will try to be brief -- originally I just "threw" the motor together with the aid and opinions of others.
I used rebuilder .030" oversize pistons which has the wrist pin location approximately .020" higher in the piston which lowered the compression ratio. I also used thick composition head gaskets measuring .032" which also lowered the C.R. Using the standard non power pack heads dropped the total C.R. down to just barely 8 to1. I was also running an L79 cam. 4.11 rear gears with a 29" tall rear tire and the coupe was a total dog. Way under power and the car only weighs 2400 lbs.
Phase two -- remove motor and start over. Deck the block .022", steel shim head gaskets at .015", power pack heads with a .005" clean up p*** and a 3896929 very mild hydraulic camshaft with a little distributor work and the car now is a kick to drive and hums right along at speed with no problem. I did the math some time ago but I believe my C.R. is now in the low to mid 9.0 range.
I erred on the side of caution with the cam selection because I did not want a low end slug -- small cubic inches and a bit of compression make all the difference in my little 283.
Hope some of this helps.

 

Great car BTW.

 

solid lifter -no exceptions
.420 to .440 lift
268 degree to ,272 degree duration
boost the compression a little and it should wake that 283 right up.

 

You need to call ,one or more of the mentioned mfg's, get the tech, explain what you have done, what you want, expectations are. I used engle when racing, crane and some of the others. If you want a good motor you need to put as much as you can afford in the heads.

 

Has anyone tried those Summit cl***ic profile cams? For the price they are a tempting option.

 

Look at the Summit #1102. I think it would be perfect for your smaller c.i. motor. I'm currently looking at the 1103 for my '55 to tone it down a little.

 

Let's not over- think this. This cam will work well. ..Modern tech, not a lot of duration, at all.
Should idle fine in a stick shift car.

 

We use Isky for everything

Sent from my XT1585 using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

I ran an Engle 95 in my 327 for years. It's tame by todays standards, but it was the perfect cam for the small cid Chevy. I have the specs at work, I'll see if I can find them.

 

Isky's has had some changes lately which are for the good. The sons run it and some "newer" styles are available. I just put one in our 1/2 mile dirt 3000# super stock and it took off and comes out of the corner like it was shot out of a cannon. We are stuck with a flat tappet and iron heads but unlimited cubes. We current have a 422" and the Isky was perfect for it.
I ran a L79 in a 283 for years and found it good but better with 4* advance. Good luck.

 

I have one in my 355 Chevy, a 268/276 grind and it pulls amazingly. The idle is pretty good but the cam is audible and has great street manners, I can drive it in traffic. Under the hood it is quiet too. I read up on some Comp Cam comparisons and those were noisier under the valve covers.

 

My Ford weighs around 3500 and Lunati suggested a 9.5 minimum CR and recommended gears with my cam. The 3.56 was not making it so I went with a 3.89 rear, much better. It tended to lug around town too much, now I can do 30-35 with no issues. At 70 I pick up maybe another 250 RPMs over the old rear.

 

Someone probably already suggested it, but the 327-350 horse cam in a 283 is fantastic.

 

I talk with Richard Iskenderian weekly we Order 2-3 Cams a week, back in early 2000 when we started with the LS engines no one else wanted to do cams for the them so We sat down with them and made all the masters they have for LS engines at the time they are still one of only 2 companies that do Induction hardened cams for the LS engines. But for all the New 327's that we build we do them Mechanical cam.

 

I'm going to put a Schneider cam in my 289 Ford that will go in my 48 tudor. Their website is easy to use and there are a ton of good grinds to choose from for a good price.

Sent from my SM-N900P using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

In a 2800 lb car my 355 is real comfortable with a 3.26 gear and no OD. its funny when we first put the engine together we were running a 4.10 gear, and running high elevens through the mufflers. @ 118 through the lights. We went to a 3.26 gear to make it more driving around friendly, and actually shaved about .100 off our time but added nearly 5 MPH through the lights.

I was traveling 24 miles one way to work and nearly all of it interstate so the 3.2 gear made it nice on the freeway.

We are running a 3.5 gear in the A bone. I should be able to keep it in the sweet spot on the highway. I am going with a healthier cam when I freshen it this time. Not drastic but it'll want a few more revs to be happy. With the gear if I set my suspension up right I should be able to just skim my fronts on launch. I know that I won't be putting on much of a show but standing up and cutting a straight line gets you to the big end faster. The Ol' Man used to say if your engine won't keep up you have to make your ch***is keep up.

 

Is that the L79 cam?

 

Yes it is. That has been my go to camp for any street small block for a long time. With proper tuning you could actually squeeze 375 out of the 350 horse L-79.

Works real well with the smaller bore motors. A little lumpy until the engine warms, then just really mild lope. Broad flat power band.

A lot of people don't like the older grinds, but GM designed them for good torque over a very wide range. They work.

 

I always p*** this article on for people interested in building small block Chevy street engines. I find myself rereading it many times.

http://www.superchevy.com/features/sucs-0732-chevy-l79-engine/

 

When I built my 62 Chevy II in 64 using a 59 283, 4speed (from TomLieb) and stock cam; I knew I was some day going upgrade the cam. A friend built a 283 with the 30-30 but I was looking to hide mine better and found out about the 151. I ended using it and a 60 Rochester FI unit and had a real sleeper when installing the 4.56 gears for the weekends.

 

Good article, they were good motors. I usually have something L-79 in my ****nal. I love the intakes and any time I see one I snag it.

I don't run my L-79 Cams straight up, well not in my own motors. But I spin mine faster than they are supposed to go.

 

Thanks guys! I actually like the sounds of the L79 a lot more then the 300HP version. I think that just may be the grind!

 

Good read, thanks.

 

My favorite method involves lawn darts, a blindfold, and a large chart.

The "300hp" cam if I'm not mistaken was used in nearly every hydraulic lifter sbc with the exception of L79 327s and L46/L82 350s (L46 and L82 use the same cams). 283s, 307s, 327s, 350s, 400s. The cam was used into the '80s with the LM1 350, IIRC. It is also used in the 195/260hp 350 GM crate engine. The 350hp 327 and 300hp 327 both had 11:1 compression to make that power. Modern cam is the way to go since we are octane deprived nowadays at the pump and our compression ratios must suffer. Wasn't premium like a 110 octane leaded back in the day? Here the best that can be had now is 93.

 

Unfortunately, the oil today does not mimic the oil from 58-62 and will wear out a cam in no time unless you run a lot of additives. I doubt anyone is going to inspect the inside of your engine. A hydraulic roller is a better choice, regardless of the brand given todays oil. With regard to cams- a cam that repro'd and small, I would go with the Sealed Power for around $40. At least buy some lifters with the added hole in the face to increase oiling to the cam.