Hugger

iTrader: (21)

I have been researching a possible new cam for my car. While searching for setups similar to mine; I notice that a lot of companies that sell/advertise custom grinds (mostly comp) use a proprietary lobe design instead of the ones I am able to find such as an XE, XE-R, XFI, or LSK. Do any of you cam gurus think that these proprietary lobes are making more power than the "off the shelf" lobes listed above or is the difference so nominal that it really doesn't matter? Does any one sponsor/company have a lobe that is known to be better performer than say a traditional XE-R lobe with roughly the same lift or even an LSK with less lift? Thanks in advance.

Josh

Chris Gage

iTrader: (18)

Hmmm, interesting

CNB

iTrader: (4)

TTT for you.

PREDATOR-Z

Companies such as Thunder Racing use Comp propietary lobes. The difference usualy lies in the .200 and .400 lifts ramp shape.
As for benefits it really depends on the application....

Rise of the Phoenix

iTrader: (27)

Bringing this back from the dead. Great original post with not much imput. I would love to know which companies, such as Thunder Racing, Futral, etc. use propriatary lobes.

01ssreda4

iTrader: (96)

Search "cam motion" We have had a lot of lobe discussions in threads where we talked about them. Basically from what I know, EPS and Thunder i know have special lobes through Comp. Cam motion makes their own cams as well as Futral's for him to his specs. To my knowledge they are unique, although i have never called Cam Motion to confirm this. But I don't see it being any other way.

Rise of the Phoenix

iTrader: (27)

Yeah, I've read a lot about Cam Motion and like what I've seen. I know that Ed Curtis' cams are proprietary lobes ground by Comp. So does Futral have proprietary lobes through Cam Motion?

Samer

I know that Geoff from EPS have his own proprietary lobes (LSG).
It looks like every company have its own lobes. Comp, Cam Motion, Futral, Kateck, Livernois, SDPC, Thunder, 21Century, Vengeance, Lunati, TSP....etc.

As for the benefits of different lobes, there are HUGE benefits in terms of performance and valvetrain stability.

Sales2@Texas-speed

iTrader: (5)

We've got a handful of our own "TSP" lobes with Comp that we had made for us. Almost anybody can have their own lobes, truth be known!

01ssreda4

iTrader: (96)

Do you market these lobes? Do they have specific names and characteristics to go with each one? Was each one designed with a different purpose in mind? Are these lobes on your shelf cams? Could you order a shelf grind with a "custom" lobe? You've got my attention, tell us more.

Sales2@Texas-speed

iTrader: (5)

We have them on a few of our shelf cams, namely the LS3/L99 camshaft with VVT. They were designed for those specific applications, be it for better piston to valve clearance, better stability with relatively heavy valvetrain components, etc. We do not offer them on custom grinds.

KCS

iTrader: (20)

This is probably the most critical piece of info thus far. Whomever it is designing these "proprietary" lobes really need to know their ****, not to mention the application the lobes will be applied to.

A lobe that works well in an LS6 may destroy everything in an L92.

01ssreda4

iTrader: (96)

I honestly think on high hp applications, lobe design can be critical. On a cam/bolt ons LS1 street car, not so much. One may make 5 more hp, one may be a tad easier on the valvetrain. The bottom line is, with any cam or mods in general, routine maintenance has just gone through the roof. Way above your typical average production engine/car. I don't think a cam exist that makes great power and you drop springs in and forget them for 200k. Doesn't happen. Its a push pull battle and something has to give. Some lobes may very well be better for some applications and worse for others. I could name a dozen cams off the top of my head that are proven performers. Don't tell me someone is going to grind the same cam on a slightly different lobe and it will blow that cam out of the water with less maintenance. Aint gonna happen.

Samer

Believe me, it happened !!
Some famous cams with old lobes are now blown away by smaller cams with new lobes that are also easier on the valvetrain.

Unaffliated Racing

iTrader: (15)

Yes, anyone can have their own proprietary lobes IF you'd like to shell out $500+ for each design........

PREDATOR-Z

Yeah! that approach can be an awsome marketing gimmic as well , good Koolaid.

Rise of the Phoenix

iTrader: (27)

Would love to hear some more thoughts on this. Great thread with not a lot of imput.

Isolde

iTrader: (4)

I'd like to see a cam using the exhaust lobes from the '01 LS6, for all the lobes, but on a much tighter LSA, around 110. That should still be an install-then-forget cam, that should do 200K miles, but would build torque better than the crate 330 HP 5.3, because the crate cam has way too much non-overlap, and needs a bit more intake duration.

Advanced Induction

iTrader: (2)

It is less about making power, and more about what is appropriate (IMO). Anyone with a catalog can pick out a relatively aggressive cam and make power - that is the easy part. Finding the appropriate compromise between power potential and trade offs in driving manners, RPM headroom, longevity etc. are where we begin to muddy the waters.

More info on that stuff including a graph in this thread: https://ls1tech.com/forums/15159589-post27.html

Seems it up and died...

87gtNOS

please elaborate! Thanks