I also sent Martin an email with the same question, hence some of the wording, but I thought also getting 1st hand tips from someone who actually has and lives with some of these cams would be very helpful.

I'm looking to purchase a cam kit. I've already decided to order from Tick. They did great work on my t56 years ago along with the great customer service that came with it. I also respect the gobs of knowledge Martin willingly spreads, and amount of advice he gives for free to all of us on Tech.

I have an 01 Formula 6spd, lid, 1.75" LT's, 3" xpipe with dual 3" single chamber flowmasters. Stock gearing for now (will be 3.90-4.10 once I upgrade to a 9"). Minor weight loss. Gets driven maybe 1000mi a year. Monster st 2 clutch. Tick MC.

Ok, I sort of have it narrowed down to 4 of his cams. First question is, am I open to using any cams from the LS2 category or do I need to stick to the LS1 choices only?

From my research I like the LS1 TM3 (235/243) the LS1 SH2 (231/235) and if I am open to the LS2 cams, LS2 TM2 (231/235) and LS2 SH2 (233/240). Or I guess basically all of the "almost" big but not small cams.

My only cam history is a Hot Cam in my old LT1 and I regretted going too small after about 1 week. My Firebird is our 3rd car, rarely gets driven. Kind of a weekend warrior, if even that much. But when I do have it out it's usually to accomplish a mission. I'm fine with big and obnoxious but every once in a while the old lady may have to drive it if her car were to be in the shop or something. I would say the only thing holding me back from a big polluter size cam is being scared of having a tuning nightmare, and I would love midrange torque, not looking for a cam that only screams between 5000-7000. I mean I did find a dyno graph layover of a before and after bolt on car and I was impressed how the torque went higher than stock as low as 3500rpm on the Polluter, On the other hand our local track closed down a few years ago so I doubt it will ever see actual track time. So I guess I'm trying to find out if one of the cams I mentioned above is right for me? Or what would be the different characteristics of them and maybe I could make a decision then. Cam/intake might come in the future but is nothing I see in the cards in the next year. Rear end will be next I have a feeling.

I would appreciate any help you all could give me.

 

Out of what you listed the LS1 SH2 would be the best fit IMO. Honestly if you aren't going to race it at the track I would consider backing it down a hair from that.

 

I'd also consider the lift and intake centerline of those cams as well

 

What do you mean, I should consider at the lift and intake center line?

 

Out of the 4 I would pick the LS2 231/235 but your best bet would be to see what Martin recommends.

 

OP,

Those cams are all pretty close, i doubt you will notice a huge difference.

 

I like the specs of the SH Stage 1 V2 the best. http://www.tickperformance.com/tick-...r-ls2-engines/

 

since you are saying little to no track time and you want torque, i'd go torquemax 1 or 2. i think 3 is a little too aggressive. but again, see what martin says.

 

Martin recommended the SNS stage 3. Mainly based off my points of regretting going so small with the HotCam previously, that it is not my Daily and that I will for sure be putting more gear in it in the future. And now on that last note I'll have to decide if I'm going to swap gears when I upgrade to a 9" ($2,500?) or put 4.10's in my 10 bolt ($500?) which I could for sure pull off much sooner. I guess I'll have to make that decision based on drivability of this cam and the 3.42's. I think I'll be ordering it tomorrow.

I have already found a local tuner with a dyno and he recommended by a few different LS guys. I will for sure be getting a few baseline pulls so I can post before/after rusults. I'll be doing the obvious pump and chain but the only other power changing part would be IF I decide to get an UDP and install it at the same time.

 

This cam just seems to have that perfect blend of not too small and not too big....easily streetable in a cam only LS1 but the added cubes and compression of the LS2 is even more golden !!!

 

Since you only drive 1000 miles a year I would be looking in the high 230/240 range. Will you be doing head work? If so I would mill them to bump up compression. Will be a fun combo making power in the 3k range and will pull to 7k.

 

LS1 TM3 (235/243) "Or I guess basically all of the "almost" big but not small cams. Kind of a weekend warrior, if even that much. But when I do have it out it's usually to accomplish a mission". I'm kinda surprised at the choice but Martin went by what you told him. Those make over 400 hp, cam only. TurboBuick6 is right, a bump in compression, say 243 heads and .040 gasket, would add some low speed torque and might make the tune easier and the drive better. Your valve events will be IVO is 8.5 ° BTDC IVC is 46.5 ° ABDC EVO is 54.5 ° ATDC EVC is 8.5 ° BBDC and a whopping 17 ° of overlap.
I would not invest in your 10 bolt. I also have 18x10 wheels with 285/30-18" hard tires and have a problem with wheel hop.


I wish I could talk to you guys about the SH Stage 1 V2 but I don't want to bugger up formulaon18s thread.

 

Well I pulled the trigger on the 235/243 SNS stage 3. I upgraded to the BTR springs and titanium retainers. New chain and ported LS6 pump along with install gasket and bolt kit. I am very excited, I found a highly recommended local tuner and I will for sure be posting a before and after dyno result thread. If you'd like to see results subscribe to this thread and I'll link the new thread in a couple weeks when it's all wrapped up.

Now I'm trying to decide if I should get an UDP to install during the cam install since it's apart anyway

 

Well I pulled the trigger on the 235/243 SNS stage 3. I upgraded to the BTR springs and titanium retainers. New chain and ported LS6 pump along with install gasket and bolt kit. I am very excited, I found a highly recommended local tuner and I will for sure be posting a before and after dyno result thread. If you'd like to see results subscribe to t

 

Thank you for your business! You will be very pleased with the SNS Stage 3 performance. It has repeatedly shown that it will gain at least 60rwhp over the stock camshaft, and 65rwhp-70rwhp gains aren't out of the ordinary.

Actually had a guy gain 76rwhp last week! Best thing about this cam is the IC event isn't so late that you're losing a lot of trapped mixture at low engine speeds. It is a late enough IC event though to make big gains past 4500-5000rpm in high speed torque production.

 

Thank you for your time Martin. I did a little searching last night of my previous posting and noticed I had talked to you a couple years back and tied up your time only to change my mind (financial decision) and not purchase anything. So thank you for your help twice,lol. I ordered online Thursday evening, any idea how long it takes for you guys to put an order together and ship out? Hoping to get a baseline dyno run this coming weekend. I really wish we still had a local track to see what it will trap after Cam and Tune. It trapped 108 FULLY stock (only the spare tire & jack removed and a fresh paper filter) in 75* weather and we are around 800' altitude and usually high humidity here in the KC area. By the time I did the Lid and full exhaust our track closed down. I figure I'm in the 110-112mph area now, but that is all speculation. We have a 1/8th mile track about 35mi away and the closest 1/4mi track is in Topeka,KS almost 75mi away. But I may have to make the trek this spring, and hopefully I don't have to bring it home on a trailer with a busted 10 bolt.

 

I suspect you are correct on the 110 assumption, maybe 111 w/good air.
The Martin camshaft with a quality tune should have you in the 115/116 range. Some CNC heads is where the 120+ begins

 

We've had a few customers with this camshaft in full weight 6 speed vehicles trap in the 118-119mph range. The main difference between those cars and this one are the rear gears. The cars that have gone 118-119 all had 3.90-4.11 rear gears.

 

Ok Martin I have a question. I just received an email from you guys that my order status has changed. It is now awaiting shipment. Does this mean it's boxed ready for pick up or you are awaiting shipment to complete my order? At first I took it as bad news as you were waiting to complete the order, but now I'm just thinking you are awaiting pickup?

 

Ok, now that formulaon18s has bought a cam and the thread has cooled off I feel I can ask about the SH Stage 1 V2 .
I ran it thru the cam calculator and see IVO 4.5, IVC 44.5, EVO 52, EVC 0, 4.5 overlap and 7.91 DCR. Intake lift is .615 and exhaust lift is .575
I've read that the LS6 intake gets peak flow at around 6200 rpm which equates to IVC of 42 so 44.5 would allow a bit more cylinder filling. EVC of 0 helps cut reversion. IVO of 4.5 presents more curtain area at the point that the piston starts sucking on the port and the LSL lobes fast ramp and .615 lift expands that curtain area. In the "Help me Understand Valve Events" thread, many suggested EVO of 47 would squeeze more torque out of the cycle as the expense of high RPM contamination so the SH 1 V2 LS2's EVO of 52 would help it carry RPM better. All of this helps me understand why 99Bluz28 and A.R. Shale Targa like it.
What I don't get is the exhaust valve lift of .575 ? Could someone explain to me why the 3719 Xtreme is a better choice than the XFI or LXL lobe in this application.