I picked this up off yblocksforever. All I know. Comments “This is bad news for us Y block guys since we have no other options. I pulled this of the FE Forum Discussions with several folks at PRI indicate that the days of the flat tappet cam - as we know it - have come to a close. The only source for cast cam cores - CWC Textron - has apparently stopped shipping castings A high defect rate, coupled with a large OEM contract for other products, has forced a decision to step away from camshaft casting Unless/until someone finds an alternate source -- flat tappets are going away soon.” http://forums.y-blocksforever.com/Topic167706.aspx
When one supplier quits, some entrepreneur often steps in. With new techniques now available for low cost, low volume pattern making, it seems more feasible than ever.
I'll be an optimist like Joel.... but I'll also make sure to hang on to the used cams I have for regrinding?
It’s easier to be an optimist for GM and Hemi’s. Little thinner pickin’s for us y block guys. I hope both of you are right, and we’re included. The guy who posted that is an MEL guy, so even less popular than ours.
Hand writing on the wall as the saying goes. Using early model engines has been increasingly more expensive and difficult as time goes by. Is there a good answer? I sure don't know. Business needs profit to justify a product. Dwindling sales and stuck with inventory don't add up to a good scenario. ????
A high defect rate is a production problem and that's on the manufacturer. Did they forget how to cast cores? If that is one of the cited reasons by the manufacturer then don't blame the consumer. I'm still running a flat tappet cam in my 351W and would do so again. Nothing wrong with a roller cam and they are well proven but I like fewer parts to fail inside an engine.
8620 cores will always be an option, but not cheap. Needs to be rough machined, Copper plated, rough ground, case hardened, then finish ground. The Copper acts as a mask, for the case hardening process. That way, the lobe surfaces are hardened, not the whole shaft.
If you google the company mentioned above. They’re US owned, Michigan, and produce 12 million cams a year. So the defect rate is probably not the problem. Not enough volume to bother with in our entire market. Doesn’t mean someone else won’t enter the market.
I'm not up on new cam cores but one of my buddies used to save all of his good cam cores and haul them to Delta Cam in Tacoma Wa and swap them X number of cores for y number of regrinds. He never had trouble with the regrinds that I know of. Agreed the price of rebuilding older engines has gone sky high. I've got a 330 56 Desoto hemi out in the shed that needs a full rebuild and when I started watching kits on Ebay they were a tad over 700 and now a kit is 1999.99 for what amounts to the same very complete but stone stock kit.
I have a Racer Brown regrind in the 426 in my coupe. I don't drive it a lot and haven't been racing it much the past couple of years. But it's been in the motor since I built it, ten years ago. I would do it again. Gene.
The Jalopy Journal
