I am wanting to put a cam in my ls1, and do not konw what one to get. I do not want to change out any of the valve train, only the cam. So what would be the best cam for the best overall power gains (hp and torque), with keeping the stock valve train.

Fry

 

You can't run any aftermarket cam with stock springs.

 

There is no "best cam" for any criteria, diff people will have a diff opinion and diff cars react differently. If you get low lift, like a Hotcam or Z06 cam, then you can run the Z06 springs but otherwise you need to buy better springs. And while you are swapping cams it is a very good idea to just get new springs and pushrods at the least.

 

well I thought that the gm hotcam worked with the stock ls1 valvetrain. I guess I was wrong. As for a good setup what would that be.

Fry

 

The GM hot cam kit comes with LS6 springs..... I have it and like it. But I am by no means an expert on cams. It gets allot of flack around here..... Do you have a manual or auto? That play a small part in it too. The springs are a little hard to replace in the car. I did mine during a rebuild so it wasn't as much of a pain, and I didn't have to worry about lifters falling.

 

Since the cam is the mechanical "brain" of the engine, it will really change your engine's personality, and what you end up with depends on which cam you put in. I sugest you be brutally honest about what you want from the car, then search on those items and read a lot of posts. I say this because too little cam is a waste of time and money, while too much cam will ruin the car. Some things to consider are: Intended use of the car, trans type, driveabilty, emissions status, PCM tuning, maintainence, reliabilty, and cost.

For me the TR224 114 is is the perfect street cam for a car that needs to pass emissions; but that's just me.

 

Check out our search feature. I bet there's enough cam information in this forum to keep you reading for months...and that's if you never slept.