nuzee

iTrader: (2)

Has anybody used the Crane Powermax cam, 208/216 .500/.500 113lsa? I'm browsing around for a torquey street cam with a strong low-end & mid-range. Not too interested in peak horsepower or RPM building. So, I am looking at short duration cams with optimum cam timing events. The 108 ICL and relatively tight LSA are attractive to me. It seems the trade-off for having a good idle is at the cost of lift.

So what do you all think? Am I on the right track, for a STREET cam?

SSCamaro99_3

iTrader: (1)

If I'm not mistaken my stock 99 cam is 198ish/205ish .500/.500 115 or 116 lsa. I don't see this being worth the money to do the swap. You should most likely be looking at the Comp cam with .533 lift (can't remember the rest of the specs), GM Hotcam, or either of the LS6 cams. Hope this helps.

pekkaz

Comp 212/218 114lsa, was it .522/.527, has very good low and mid range torque. With headers it pulls good to around 6200. Works well without a torque converter. With a converter look somewhere in Comp 218/218 or TR220 range if you want nice idle. I don't believe lift is an issue with the idle, tight lsa is.

nuzee

iTrader: (2)

Appreciate the input, thanks.

These are some lessons I learned awhile back:

1. Can't always trust published factory cam specs.

2. It is sometimes misleading to compare different cam grinds by only duration and lift.

3. Under-camming doesn't hurt as bad as over-camming.

Here is a link to the cam:
http://www.cranecams.com/master/apps/chevy72.htm

The idea of doing a cam swap without changing my relatively new valve springs, 5000 mi., is appealing. Later as the miles add up and as my wallet recovers, I might do a 1.85 rocker arm/valve spring upgrade.

And the biggest reason why I'm interested in a Crane is that everybody and their mother has a CompCam. Probably for good reason. I just want to try something different.

Cal

iTrader: (1)

Yeah I've learned those same lessons, my over-cammed car had a 320* advertised duration which I think is around a 270* @ 0.050. Now days with roller cams you want to look close at the ramp design. I think this time you may be erroring a little on the low side, though. LS1's seem to be able to handle the bigger cams much better than the old-school motors did. Lift won't affect your idle hardly at all, but will increase valvetrain noise and be harder on springs. Stock heads can use at least 0.550 lift and respond best with at least 220* duration. A fast ramp cam will also be harder on springs, but will give you a lot of lift and duration without making the engine run so rough. I'd take a hard look at the TR220 112 for your needs; I think it's a pretty good balance of all these factors. You can't use stock springs with it, but I think the benifits are worth the costs.