anybody use a summit k1103 cam or a k1102 in an rebuilt stock 283 ....i want it driveable (street) with saginaw 4 speed and 3:55 rear gears.....also would like a little rump-rump thur headers.....cam and lifters on sale now for $79.00.......thanks....charlie s......
Save your Money,buy good stuff from a reputable mfg.yea the price is just great for offshore crap,i used to complain about all the Taiwanese mfg. stuff,but hell thats quality compared to the junk they sell today.
I dont believe the Summitt Cams are crap. I have used 3 of them with no issue. I currently have the 1105 in my sedan. I asked one of the techs one time and they told me that they were ground by Crane. I believe Crane may be gone now so I cant say who is grinding them.
i have used several 1102's from summit with no problem , the 283 in my `36 has one. but that's been a while and as already stated things may have changed
"White box cams" The name given the popular fairly inexpensive street type cams. There is a small automated factory on the west side of Michigan that grinds the majority to these. In goes the cast iron blank and out comes a freshly ground camshaft. Then treated,polished,inspected and boxed. Sold under dozens of names. Including General Kinetics, Alliance, Melling, Engine Pro, Elgin, Summit etc. Still made in the USA!!!!!!
If you had to get one of those, make it the smaller one (1102). The 1103's pretty HUGE for a 283. The 283 struggles to make any kind of power. So be careful what cam you stick in it. Hopefully, you have one of the Saginaws with a deep 1st gear. That'll help a lot
The big thing with any flat tappet cam is the lube. Be sure you look up the correct type of motor oil before you start the motor.
Ole Don is right about the oil. Oil today doesn't have the additives it once had (Thanks Big Brother!) but being in the trucking business for 30+ years we run RotellaT 15-40 in the rigs and the hot rods. Being made for diesel motors it still has the propertys needed in a hot rod and is fairly cheap compared to the "name brand" oils. And I have never had an issue with Summits cams either, and have used lots of them. http://www.myspace.com/affordable_customs
I have put a few in customers cars who was looking to save every penny. worked fine, it was the 2pc lifters I didn't care for . The "generic" cams are ground by Clevite and sold under tons of names including Lunatis bracket master series . Can be found cheaper under the Elgin name or General Kinetics, Pro Gear, PBM sold some before they aquired Erson , still sell them but at higher price .
I have an 1103 that I am installing in a 350. It might be a bit much for a 283 without some port work. Google it up, the cam gets decent reviews. It is an excellent value.
I've been running a Summit Racing Cam and Lifters in my daily driver 273 V8 for the past two years. Love it. No problems. Great Price. Can't complain.
i have had several of these cams and had 0 problems with them. they are the best bang for the buck around.
I have the 1102 in my 283- it runs well and pulls to over 5500. It's totally drivable. Go for it. It has worked like charm for well over a year. Gon you tube and do a search for can of worms - you can hear it running- the motor has a blower
Those cams are great for the money but most of them are ground with a wide centerline. I have used one in my kids 68 chevelle with a top bolt beat 305 with a tweaked Q-jet and it went 15.50's with a stock converter,3.73 gears and the timing bumped up. Not bad for a 3800 lb car at high alt level air. Remember a fast GTO went high 14's to low 15's. The cams have smoother idle but it lasted a long time with no issues. I would find a cam that suits your needs just not what it sounds like.
Oil is the big issue. Nowdays, use fleet oil like Chevron Delo or Shell Rotella T as it has additives for diesel engines and they help flat tappet cams. Elgin Cams is separate from Elgin Industries. Elgin Cams is about 10 miles from me in Santa Rosa Calif. Elgin Industries sells inexpensive speed parts and is located in the Mid West. Elgin Cams is still building high end cams for the circle track and road race boys. They will custom grind a drag cam or repair an antique one. Summit cams are OK. I have used two in past builds. I also buy Chet Herbert cams from Doug. They have good durability and run fine. Have one in my BBC right now. If you want an inexpensive cam, try RedLine Cams & Crankshafts in Portland Oregon. They are clearing out some 929 grind (300 HP/327 pattern) and they are going for $25 or so new
I've used two Summit cams without issues, but that was 20+ years ago. Anyway, they're fine for a milder set-up, but I'd recommend working directly with a reputable cam grinder if you're getting serious. That's my experience. Scotty
CHASCUE...the price for a good cam was $100.00 in 1964. man how could you go wrong, if it went flat in 1 year? i don't think summit would stake their rep. on junk. but what do i know, i buy from jeg's...POP.
Pretty sure the Rotella has pulled the zinc out as well, to comply with the new truck regs. I use either the Valvoline Race oil (O'reillys carries it) or Royal Purple, which i've seen pass certain tests without zinc (some kind of other voodoo ingredients- i dont care, i'm sold on it)
The Jalopy Journal
