Texas Speed or Brian Tooley cam's?
#22
TECH Veteran
X2 plus he gives honest answers and don't sugar coat stuff. The records at the tracks speak for theirselves....
#23
TECH Senior Member
iTrader: (5)
Do you guys prefer camshafts from either one of these companies? I've heard positive things about BTR and mixed opinions on the TSP cams due to the reliability of them. I am on the fence between these two but wanted to check here before making a purchase. I am looking at a stage 3 cam from BTR or a 233/239 cam from TSP. Thanks for reading!
I am running the TSP 233/239 cam. Ive installed this cam over a year ago. No issues at all.
Its a great cam. Its probably the biggest cam i would run especially in a daily driver.
#25
No Brian, No bias here. I went with a Bullet cam because they grind their own cams. I could have gone anywhere else and paid half of what I did through them.
#26
LS1Tech Premium Sponsor
iTrader: (3)
We do grind our cams in-house on CNC cam grinders. Not all companies use CNC for grinding, so do your research. We use top-quality cores like those from Callies. All of our lobes are new, proprietary designs that are only offered by TSP because they were designed by our engineering team that has many years of experience in the automotive industry, specifically in camshaft design. Our lobes were designed for excellent power and longevity, and they also specifically target a quieter valvetrain. There's a LOT that goes into the design and grinding of a camshaft. We also test what we produce. We have both a SuperFlow engine dyno and Dynojet chassis dyno under the roof of our 30,000 SF facility. The fact is you won't find any other cam retailer in this market that is spending the time and money to grind their own cams to build the best product available. We guarantee accuracy of our camshafts to within 1/4 of a degree! No other cam company does that. This means you aren't going to get a cam with an ICL that is off a few degrees. Every cam is burn tested, so you don't have to worry with any of our cams being scorched and ultimately peeling apart. Every cam gets polished. We also offer a two-year warranty on all of our cams, and if anyone has any issue whatsoever we will take care of it immediately. We check the accuracy of our cams using a $50,000 Andrews machine, not a $4,000 Cam Doctor that isn't all that accurate.
BTR is a great group of guys that offers both Comp Cams and Cam Motion. We still offer Comp Cams camshafts for those that want one, and we still support their products. Comp is a great group as well that we've done business with directly for years. Some responded to the cam peeling issue by offering Cam Motion, but we decided to take it all in-house. With anything, when you take it in-house you have maximum control over the processes and parts. We weren't comfortable offering cams ground on antiquated machinery like a Berco grinder. We use Landis CNC grinders that are identical to what the manufacturers use. We did not take grinding in-house because it was the cheaper option. It was a seven figure endeavor, but we felt it was the best option for both our company and our customers. Our cams are true custom grinds because they are custom lobes only for TSP. Many want a custom-grind cam, but the reality is you're getting a cam with lobes that are offered by every other dealer for that company. We even offer custom lobes for those that want their own lobes for their line of cams. That is a true "custom-grind" camshaft. Picking lobes out of a catalog and changing the LSA and ICL don't really constitute a custom-grind cam, but I suppose it's all relative. If you wonder if our product works, just check out the "Dragonfly" Mustang. He ran 8.0's with a TSP cam, PRC stage 1 ported heads, and a stock bottom-end!
In reality, there are two types of businesses in this market: resellers and manufacturers. The customer always benefits when manufacturers continue to push the envelope, make products better, and offer them for a better price point. Reselling the same parts over and over does little to push progress forward. If that weren't true, we would all still be making 400 RWHP with our LS1's. Texas Speed manufactures and sells, and we have a 12,000 SF machine shop in-house that does nothing but LS and gen 5 LT camshaft, cylinder head, and engine building and production. Being a larger company doesn't automatically mean that you offer "cookie cutter" parts. It means you have more means to be a manufacturer and offer better products for a better price because we took out the middle man. We are the manufacturer and builder on these parts, so that benefits the customer. All of our camshafts are 100% American made start to finish.
Our new cam lobes offer quieter valvetrain operation and added longevity than other offerings. Just ask any of our customers with one of our cams. We have literally ground thousands of cams in-house, so there are lots of them out in customers' hands. Check out our spring cam specials, too! You can get a single spring cam package starting at $579.99 and a dual spring cam package starting at $649.99!
https://texas-speed.com/p-1157-tsp-beehive-spring-cam-package-ls1ls2ls6truck.aspx
https://texas-speed.com/p-5007-texas-speed-dual-spring-cam-package-ls1ls2ls6truck.aspx
Feel free to give us a call with any questions or concerns, and if you're local definitely come by! You can see our state-of-the-art production facility for yourself.
Trevor
Texas Speed & Performance
BTR is a great group of guys that offers both Comp Cams and Cam Motion. We still offer Comp Cams camshafts for those that want one, and we still support their products. Comp is a great group as well that we've done business with directly for years. Some responded to the cam peeling issue by offering Cam Motion, but we decided to take it all in-house. With anything, when you take it in-house you have maximum control over the processes and parts. We weren't comfortable offering cams ground on antiquated machinery like a Berco grinder. We use Landis CNC grinders that are identical to what the manufacturers use. We did not take grinding in-house because it was the cheaper option. It was a seven figure endeavor, but we felt it was the best option for both our company and our customers. Our cams are true custom grinds because they are custom lobes only for TSP. Many want a custom-grind cam, but the reality is you're getting a cam with lobes that are offered by every other dealer for that company. We even offer custom lobes for those that want their own lobes for their line of cams. That is a true "custom-grind" camshaft. Picking lobes out of a catalog and changing the LSA and ICL don't really constitute a custom-grind cam, but I suppose it's all relative. If you wonder if our product works, just check out the "Dragonfly" Mustang. He ran 8.0's with a TSP cam, PRC stage 1 ported heads, and a stock bottom-end!
In reality, there are two types of businesses in this market: resellers and manufacturers. The customer always benefits when manufacturers continue to push the envelope, make products better, and offer them for a better price point. Reselling the same parts over and over does little to push progress forward. If that weren't true, we would all still be making 400 RWHP with our LS1's. Texas Speed manufactures and sells, and we have a 12,000 SF machine shop in-house that does nothing but LS and gen 5 LT camshaft, cylinder head, and engine building and production. Being a larger company doesn't automatically mean that you offer "cookie cutter" parts. It means you have more means to be a manufacturer and offer better products for a better price because we took out the middle man. We are the manufacturer and builder on these parts, so that benefits the customer. All of our camshafts are 100% American made start to finish.
Our new cam lobes offer quieter valvetrain operation and added longevity than other offerings. Just ask any of our customers with one of our cams. We have literally ground thousands of cams in-house, so there are lots of them out in customers' hands. Check out our spring cam specials, too! You can get a single spring cam package starting at $579.99 and a dual spring cam package starting at $649.99!
https://texas-speed.com/p-1157-tsp-beehive-spring-cam-package-ls1ls2ls6truck.aspx
https://texas-speed.com/p-5007-texas-speed-dual-spring-cam-package-ls1ls2ls6truck.aspx
Feel free to give us a call with any questions or concerns, and if you're local definitely come by! You can see our state-of-the-art production facility for yourself.
Trevor
Texas Speed & Performance
The following users liked this post:
Cristian Castanaza (03-19-2021)
#27
Moderator
iTrader: (20)
We do grind our cams in-house on CNC cam grinders. Not all companies use CNC for grinding, so do your research. We use top-quality cores like those from Callies. All of our lobes are new, proprietary designs that are only offered by TSP because they were designed by our engineering team that has many years of experience in the automotive industry, specifically in camshaft design. Our lobes were designed for excellent power and longevity, and they also specifically target a quieter valvetrain. There's a LOT that goes into the design and grinding of a camshaft. We also test what we produce. We have both a SuperFlow engine dyno and Dynojet chassis dyno under the roof of our 30,000 SF facility. The fact is you won't find any other cam retailer in this market that is spending the time and money to grind their own cams to build the best product available. We guarantee accuracy of our camshafts to within 1/4 of a degree! No other cam company does that. This means you aren't going to get a cam with an ICL that is off a few degrees. Every cam is burn tested, so you don't have to worry with any of our cams being scorched and ultimately peeling apart. Every cam gets polished. We also offer a two-year warranty on all of our cams, and if anyone has any issue whatsoever we will take care of it immediately. We check the accuracy of our cams using a $50,000 Andrews machine, not a $4,000 Cam Doctor that isn't all that accurate.
BTR is a great group of guys that offers both Comp Cams and Cam Motion. We still offer Comp Cams camshafts for those that want one, and we still support their products. Comp is a great group as well that we've done business with directly for years. Some responded to the cam peeling issue by offering Cam Motion, but we decided to take it all in-house. With anything, when you take it in-house you have maximum control over the processes and parts. We weren't comfortable offering cams ground on antiquated machinery like a Berco grinder. We use Landis CNC grinders that are identical to what the manufacturers use. We did not take grinding in-house because it was the cheaper option. It was a seven figure endeavor, but we felt it was the best option for both our company and our customers. Our cams are true custom grinds because they are custom lobes only for TSP. Many want a custom-grind cam, but the reality is you're getting a cam with lobes that are offered by every other dealer for that company. We even offer custom lobes for those that want their own lobes for their line of cams. That is a true "custom-grind" camshaft. Picking lobes out of a catalog and changing the LSA and ICL don't really constitute a custom-grind cam, but I suppose it's all relative. If you wonder if our product works, just check out the "Dragonfly" Mustang. He ran 8.0's with a TSP cam, PRC stage 1 ported heads, and a stock bottom-end!
In reality, there are two types of businesses in this market: resellers and manufacturers. The customer always benefits when manufacturers continue to push the envelope, make products better, and offer them for a better price point. Reselling the same parts over and over does little to push progress forward. If that weren't true, we would all still be making 400 RWHP with our LS1's. Texas Speed manufactures and sells, and we have a 12,000 SF machine shop in-house that does nothing but LS and gen 5 LT camshaft, cylinder head, and engine building and production. Being a larger company doesn't automatically mean that you offer "cookie cutter" parts. It means you have more means to be a manufacturer and offer better products for a better price because we took out the middle man. We are the manufacturer and builder on these parts, so that benefits the customer. All of our camshafts are 100% American made start to finish.
Our new cam lobes offer quieter valvetrain operation and added longevity than other offerings. Just ask any of our customers with one of our cams. We have literally ground thousands of cams in-house, so there are lots of them out in customers' hands. Check out our spring cam specials, too! You can get a single spring cam package starting at $579.99 and a dual spring cam package starting at $649.99!
https://texas-speed.com/p-1157-tsp-b...2ls6truck.aspx
https://texas-speed.com/p-5007-texas...2ls6truck.aspx
Feel free to give us a call with any questions or concerns, and if you're local definitely come by! You can see our state-of-the-art production facility for yourself.
Trevor
Texas Speed & Performance
BTR is a great group of guys that offers both Comp Cams and Cam Motion. We still offer Comp Cams camshafts for those that want one, and we still support their products. Comp is a great group as well that we've done business with directly for years. Some responded to the cam peeling issue by offering Cam Motion, but we decided to take it all in-house. With anything, when you take it in-house you have maximum control over the processes and parts. We weren't comfortable offering cams ground on antiquated machinery like a Berco grinder. We use Landis CNC grinders that are identical to what the manufacturers use. We did not take grinding in-house because it was the cheaper option. It was a seven figure endeavor, but we felt it was the best option for both our company and our customers. Our cams are true custom grinds because they are custom lobes only for TSP. Many want a custom-grind cam, but the reality is you're getting a cam with lobes that are offered by every other dealer for that company. We even offer custom lobes for those that want their own lobes for their line of cams. That is a true "custom-grind" camshaft. Picking lobes out of a catalog and changing the LSA and ICL don't really constitute a custom-grind cam, but I suppose it's all relative. If you wonder if our product works, just check out the "Dragonfly" Mustang. He ran 8.0's with a TSP cam, PRC stage 1 ported heads, and a stock bottom-end!
In reality, there are two types of businesses in this market: resellers and manufacturers. The customer always benefits when manufacturers continue to push the envelope, make products better, and offer them for a better price point. Reselling the same parts over and over does little to push progress forward. If that weren't true, we would all still be making 400 RWHP with our LS1's. Texas Speed manufactures and sells, and we have a 12,000 SF machine shop in-house that does nothing but LS and gen 5 LT camshaft, cylinder head, and engine building and production. Being a larger company doesn't automatically mean that you offer "cookie cutter" parts. It means you have more means to be a manufacturer and offer better products for a better price because we took out the middle man. We are the manufacturer and builder on these parts, so that benefits the customer. All of our camshafts are 100% American made start to finish.
Our new cam lobes offer quieter valvetrain operation and added longevity than other offerings. Just ask any of our customers with one of our cams. We have literally ground thousands of cams in-house, so there are lots of them out in customers' hands. Check out our spring cam specials, too! You can get a single spring cam package starting at $579.99 and a dual spring cam package starting at $649.99!
https://texas-speed.com/p-1157-tsp-b...2ls6truck.aspx
https://texas-speed.com/p-5007-texas...2ls6truck.aspx
Feel free to give us a call with any questions or concerns, and if you're local definitely come by! You can see our state-of-the-art production facility for yourself.
Trevor
Texas Speed & Performance
#28
TECH Fanatic
Now that's how you shut down opposition, speculation, and let the minows know just what you are about.
Brilliant insite as to what TSP is doing, & guys I guess as much as it costs TSP to keep ahead of their competition, it is a major plus for us to benefit from their endeavours into the LS world.
Brilliant insite as to what TSP is doing, & guys I guess as much as it costs TSP to keep ahead of their competition, it is a major plus for us to benefit from their endeavours into the LS world.
Last edited by ls1 1990 VN; 02-12-2016 at 11:16 PM.
#31
FormerVendor
iTrader: (2)
As a camshaft vendor, I chose to sell Cam Motion manufactured camshafts. When it comes to quality, refinement and performance, I put Cam Motion manufactured Smallwood Race Development cams at the top of the industry.
The way I see it, Cam Motion is the company that has raised the standards of quality and customer service for the LS community when it comes to cams. They not only offered the excellent 8620 steel alloy camshaft cores as their standard core, but they now offer your choice of 3 different steel alloys to choose from. They raised the bar by polishing every single camshaft they sell. And, they supply a cam doctor report to verify the accuracy of every single camshaft they sell. If other companies in the LS camshaft world are now working to improve their quality and customer service, I think we all have Cam Motion to thank for establishing a new standard.
Smallwood Race Development is also excited about the upcoming advancement and further improvements coming for our camshafts as Cam Motion just purchased an automated cam polisher costing hundreds of thousands of dollars. With 4 cam grinders, 3 of which are CNC, and their new automated polisher, Cam Motion's quality and turnaround times will help SRD continue to raise the bar.
Support after the sale is as important to me as the sale itself, so let me share this: I had a customer who received a bent camshaft, with one phone call to Kip, a new camshaft was made and shipped overnight to my customer at no cost to me or my customer. Along with this personal experience, I have heard many other stories from Cam Motion's customers reporting this same incredible level of customer support. There are even a few guys on this forum whom Kip fixed other manufacturers noisy cams for them by polishing out the improperly finished lobe surfaces. Cam Motion's commitment to customer service helps assure SRD can give the best customer support available.
As many know, Smallwood Race Development uses our own proprietary cam lobe designs. It is very important to me to get the exact cam lobe designs I need to meet my criteria. I know of no other manufacturer who offers Cam Motion's unmatched capability and efficiency at creating custom lobe designs to my specifications. I can also trust Cam Motion to sell my lobes to no one else but SRD. This is yet another reason why so many vendors are now using Cam Motion.
I think we in the LS community are really lucky to have so many great vendors to choose from. I am certainly proud to be one of them. And at SRD, we intend to continue raising the bar and setting new standards.
The way I see it, Cam Motion is the company that has raised the standards of quality and customer service for the LS community when it comes to cams. They not only offered the excellent 8620 steel alloy camshaft cores as their standard core, but they now offer your choice of 3 different steel alloys to choose from. They raised the bar by polishing every single camshaft they sell. And, they supply a cam doctor report to verify the accuracy of every single camshaft they sell. If other companies in the LS camshaft world are now working to improve their quality and customer service, I think we all have Cam Motion to thank for establishing a new standard.
Smallwood Race Development is also excited about the upcoming advancement and further improvements coming for our camshafts as Cam Motion just purchased an automated cam polisher costing hundreds of thousands of dollars. With 4 cam grinders, 3 of which are CNC, and their new automated polisher, Cam Motion's quality and turnaround times will help SRD continue to raise the bar.
Support after the sale is as important to me as the sale itself, so let me share this: I had a customer who received a bent camshaft, with one phone call to Kip, a new camshaft was made and shipped overnight to my customer at no cost to me or my customer. Along with this personal experience, I have heard many other stories from Cam Motion's customers reporting this same incredible level of customer support. There are even a few guys on this forum whom Kip fixed other manufacturers noisy cams for them by polishing out the improperly finished lobe surfaces. Cam Motion's commitment to customer service helps assure SRD can give the best customer support available.
As many know, Smallwood Race Development uses our own proprietary cam lobe designs. It is very important to me to get the exact cam lobe designs I need to meet my criteria. I know of no other manufacturer who offers Cam Motion's unmatched capability and efficiency at creating custom lobe designs to my specifications. I can also trust Cam Motion to sell my lobes to no one else but SRD. This is yet another reason why so many vendors are now using Cam Motion.
I think we in the LS community are really lucky to have so many great vendors to choose from. I am certainly proud to be one of them. And at SRD, we intend to continue raising the bar and setting new standards.
Last edited by Martin Smallwood; 02-17-2016 at 10:22 AM.
#32
LS1Tech Premium Sponsor
iTrader: (4)
I'm proud to have you in the industry Martin your a great guy!
I think manufacturers need to show some pictures of the manufacturing equipment used to produce these parts. I for one am very proud of the landis camshaft grinding setup @ TSP. I'm also very proud of the true camshaft inspection equipment used @ Tsp. Nobody can argue the quality of a landis camshaft grinder.
there is a very limited amount of polishing done at tsp as it has to be kept to a minimum to keep the camshafts profile as designed. Over polished camshafts will cause deviation from design data. This can be seen in a ultra accurate camshaft measuring machine such as a adcole inspection machine.
My inspection equipment is open to anyone who would like to inspect a camshaft they have. It's a excellent instrument for comparing grinding consistency as well as angle repeatability.
Needless to say the Ls camshaft world is at a very good place. The winner is the consumer as development, engine dyno testing, and spintron testing continues!
I think manufacturers need to show some pictures of the manufacturing equipment used to produce these parts. I for one am very proud of the landis camshaft grinding setup @ TSP. I'm also very proud of the true camshaft inspection equipment used @ Tsp. Nobody can argue the quality of a landis camshaft grinder.
there is a very limited amount of polishing done at tsp as it has to be kept to a minimum to keep the camshafts profile as designed. Over polished camshafts will cause deviation from design data. This can be seen in a ultra accurate camshaft measuring machine such as a adcole inspection machine.
My inspection equipment is open to anyone who would like to inspect a camshaft they have. It's a excellent instrument for comparing grinding consistency as well as angle repeatability.
Needless to say the Ls camshaft world is at a very good place. The winner is the consumer as development, engine dyno testing, and spintron testing continues!
Last edited by Jason 98 TA; 02-16-2016 at 11:05 PM.
#34
LS1Tech Premium Sponsor
iTrader: (3)
Let me know if you have any other questions. I'll be glad to answer them. I will have another post up very soon showing pictures of what we do and how we do it, just as we did for our engine and cylinder head production that we linked on our website. We like providing a virtual tour, so to speak, for those customers that are not local and cannot come in for a tour themselves.
Thanks!
Trevor
Texas Speed & Performance
#35
Staging Lane
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Cumberland Md
Posts: 59
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Any one of these companies here are great choices for cams. I have talked with TSP and Martin. Both are great helping you with your build. You absolutely cannot go wrong with any of these major players being talked about or chiming in on the discussion. TSP, BTR, SRD, and Tick just to name a few.
So basically it comes down to what flavor you willing to try.
So basically it comes down to what flavor you willing to try.
#36
#37
As camshaft vendor, I chose to sell Cam Motion manufactured camshafts. When it comes to quality, refinement and performance, I put Cam Motion manufactured Smallwood Race Development cams at the top of the industry.
The way I see it, Cam Motion is the company that has raised the standards of quality and customer service for the LS community when it comes to cams. They not only offered the excellent 8620 steel alloy camshaft cores as their standard core, but they now offer your choice of 3 different steel alloys to choose from. They raised the bar by polishing every single camshaft they sell. And, they supply a cam doctor report to verify the accuracy of every single camshaft they sell. If other companies in the LS camshaft world are now working to improve their quality and customer service, I think we all have Cam Motion to thank for establishing a new standard.
Smallwood Race Development is also excited about the upcoming advancement and further improvements coming for our camshafts as Cam Motion just purchased an automated cam polisher costing hundreds of thousands of dollars. With 4 cam grinders, 3 of which are CNC, and their new automated polisher, Cam Motion's quality and turnaround times will help SRD continue to raise the bar.
Support after the sale is as important to me as the sale itself, so let me share this: I had a customer who received a bent camshaft, with one phone call to Kip, a new camshaft was made and shipped overnight to my customer at no cost to me or my customer. Along with this personal experience, I have heard many other stories from Cam Motion's customers reporting this same incredible level of customer support. There are even a few guys on this forum whom Kip fixed other manufacturers noisy cams for them by polishing out the improperly finished lobe surfaces. Cam Motion's commitment to customer service helps assure SRD can give the best customer support available.
As many know, Smallwood Race Development uses our own proprietary cam lobe designs. It is very important to me to get the exact cam lobe designs I need to meet my criteria. I know of no other manufacturer who offers Cam Motion's unmatched capability and efficiency at creating custom lobe designs to my specifications. I can also trust Cam Motion to sell my lobes to no one else but SRD. This is yet another reason why so many vendors are now using Cam Motion.
I think we in the LS community are really lucky to have so many great vendors to choose from. I am certainly proud to be one of them. And at SRD, we intend to continue raising the bar and setting new standards.
The way I see it, Cam Motion is the company that has raised the standards of quality and customer service for the LS community when it comes to cams. They not only offered the excellent 8620 steel alloy camshaft cores as their standard core, but they now offer your choice of 3 different steel alloys to choose from. They raised the bar by polishing every single camshaft they sell. And, they supply a cam doctor report to verify the accuracy of every single camshaft they sell. If other companies in the LS camshaft world are now working to improve their quality and customer service, I think we all have Cam Motion to thank for establishing a new standard.
Smallwood Race Development is also excited about the upcoming advancement and further improvements coming for our camshafts as Cam Motion just purchased an automated cam polisher costing hundreds of thousands of dollars. With 4 cam grinders, 3 of which are CNC, and their new automated polisher, Cam Motion's quality and turnaround times will help SRD continue to raise the bar.
Support after the sale is as important to me as the sale itself, so let me share this: I had a customer who received a bent camshaft, with one phone call to Kip, a new camshaft was made and shipped overnight to my customer at no cost to me or my customer. Along with this personal experience, I have heard many other stories from Cam Motion's customers reporting this same incredible level of customer support. There are even a few guys on this forum whom Kip fixed other manufacturers noisy cams for them by polishing out the improperly finished lobe surfaces. Cam Motion's commitment to customer service helps assure SRD can give the best customer support available.
As many know, Smallwood Race Development uses our own proprietary cam lobe designs. It is very important to me to get the exact cam lobe designs I need to meet my criteria. I know of no other manufacturer who offers Cam Motion's unmatched capability and efficiency at creating custom lobe designs to my specifications. I can also trust Cam Motion to sell my lobes to no one else but SRD. This is yet another reason why so many vendors are now using Cam Motion.
I think we in the LS community are really lucky to have so many great vendors to choose from. I am certainly proud to be one of them. And at SRD, we intend to continue raising the bar and setting new standards.
#38
Old School Heavy
iTrader: (16)
Here is a little story: Decades ago when I was a young racer, I got a job at the biggest machine shop in the area. While I was working there, they took delivery of a massive, state-of-the-art $250,000 production crank grinder from Italy. This thing was the talk of the town when it came in. Everyone stopped work to clear the way and watch the install. It was huge, shiny and up on a big platform. It was truly a site to behold. From then on, whenever a new customer would come in, the owner would parade them past this machine in an effort to impress them.
When it came time to cut the cranks for my race engines, I happily started carrying them over to be ground on the impressive new machine. As I picked up the second crank, an old timer who had worked there for 30 years stopped what he was doing an interrupted me. He said: No no son. That is not where your cranks need to be. He took me back over to his work station and gave me a guys number. He said this is who you want to cut those cranks.
Surprised and unsure of what he was telling me, I started calling around. Turned out that all of the most experienced people that I knew were all going to this same guy. So, I loaded up my cranks and took them to his shop. When I walked in to his modest shop, I was surprised to see his small, old, weathered crank grinder in the middle of a rather small, but well appointed shop. Lined up to the side of his machine were rows and rows of crankshaft with tags on them. Those tags were labeled with the names of people that I highly respected.
As years went by and I learned more, I came to appreciate that Steve could have any machine he wanted, but he chose to use and refine that particular machine. And using that machine, he consistently produced the best custom crankshaft work in the area and still does to this day.
#40
LS1Tech Premium Sponsor
iTrader: (3)
That, unfortunately, would be very misleading to the layperson who does not know anything about this type of machining. The average racer/enthusiast has no idea what attributes are important for the machine to make a great finished product.
Here is a little story: Decades ago when I was a young racer, I got a job at the biggest machine shop in the area. While I was working there, they took delivery of a massive, state-of-the-art $250,000 production crank grinder from Italy. This thing was the talk of the town when it came in. Everyone stopped work to clear the way and watch the install. It was huge, shiny and up on a big platform. It was truly a site to behold. From then on, whenever a new customer would come in, the owner would parade them past this machine in an effort to impress them.
When it came time to cut the cranks for my race engines, I happily started carrying them over to be ground on the impressive new machine. As I picked up the second crank, an old timer who had worked there for 30 years stopped what he was doing an interrupted me. He said: No no son. That is not where your cranks need to be. He took me back over to his work station and gave me a guys number. He said this is who you want to cut those cranks.
Surprised and unsure of what he was telling me, I started calling around. Turned out that all of the most experienced people that I knew were all going to this same guy. So, I loaded up my cranks and took them to his shop. When I walked in to his modest shop, I was surprised to see his small, old, weathered crank grinder in the middle of a rather small, but well appointed shop. Lined up to the side of his machine were rows and rows of crankshaft with tags on them. Those tags were labeled with the names of people that I highly respected.
As years went by and I learned more, I came to appreciate that Steve could have any machine he wanted, but he chose to use and refine that particular machine. And using that machine, he consistently produced the best custom crankshaft work in the area and still does to this day.
Here is a little story: Decades ago when I was a young racer, I got a job at the biggest machine shop in the area. While I was working there, they took delivery of a massive, state-of-the-art $250,000 production crank grinder from Italy. This thing was the talk of the town when it came in. Everyone stopped work to clear the way and watch the install. It was huge, shiny and up on a big platform. It was truly a site to behold. From then on, whenever a new customer would come in, the owner would parade them past this machine in an effort to impress them.
When it came time to cut the cranks for my race engines, I happily started carrying them over to be ground on the impressive new machine. As I picked up the second crank, an old timer who had worked there for 30 years stopped what he was doing an interrupted me. He said: No no son. That is not where your cranks need to be. He took me back over to his work station and gave me a guys number. He said this is who you want to cut those cranks.
Surprised and unsure of what he was telling me, I started calling around. Turned out that all of the most experienced people that I knew were all going to this same guy. So, I loaded up my cranks and took them to his shop. When I walked in to his modest shop, I was surprised to see his small, old, weathered crank grinder in the middle of a rather small, but well appointed shop. Lined up to the side of his machine were rows and rows of crankshaft with tags on them. Those tags were labeled with the names of people that I highly respected.
As years went by and I learned more, I came to appreciate that Steve could have any machine he wanted, but he chose to use and refine that particular machine. And using that machine, he consistently produced the best custom crankshaft work in the area and still does to this day.
As mentioned, there are a lot of choices when it comes to camshafts. I'm glad to have many companies in the market because it drives all of us to push forward. Any of the companies mentioned in this thread will sell you a quality part. Like I said, the consumer always wins in a competitive marketplace. None of the cam retailers are going to make every cam sale. We all offer our products to the market and provide as much information as possible for the customer to make an educated decision as to what will work best for him or her. It doesn't take the best machinery to produce the best part, and I wouldn't expect anyone to argue that. But, it does provide added accuracy, quality control, and streamlined procedures. That helps in producing a better part. Technology is a great thing. As with anything in life, you just have to use it as it is intended.
Trevor
Texas Speed & Performance
The following users liked this post:
Ozz1967 (03-24-2021)