rabinaba

I’m putting an LS1/T56 into my 1981 Corvette. Since it’s not in the car yet, I figured now would be the perfect time to add a cam. I’ve done some research, and I’ve narrowed down to three cams: the Summit Ghost Cam (SUM-8715), TSP 220R, and TSP 240R.

I’m trying to accomplish a few things here. First and foremost, I really want to avoid a choppy/lobey/surging idle (it’s just not an appealing sound to me) and I want the car to be drivable. Second, I want to make at least 400 hp (but more is always better). And third, I don’t want to sacrifice mid/low range torque.

Any ideas how these cams compare to each other and what I should expect from them?

G Atsma

Ghost cam, hands down....

the_merv

iTrader: (88)

I get the name, saw the specs I wonder if you'll be able to even hear it.

Rich-L79

I got right at 400 on an LS1 with a 218/226 Bullet cam and AFR Enforcer heads. And a Fast102 and NW tb and shorty headers and high flow chatted mids.
Actually slightly gained TQ down low.

G Atsma

There's video somewhere around here of idle sounds. You know it's not stock, but it won't shake your fillings loose. Just a nice unsteady idle.

wlink14

Of those 3, I would go with the ghost cam. You will still lose low rpm power though.
I thoroughly enjoy my 216/220 114LSA cam from Trick Flow on my 6.0. You can just barely tell something is "not stock". With idle tuning a can make it thump a little if I want. No power loss down low and pulls cleanly up top, easy on valvetrain. You do not need much duration to make horsepower with LS heads as they flow very well.

rabinaba

Maybe I’ll look into that one as well. I’m not married to these three, they’re just the ones I thought were most appropriate for my application.

But yeah, that loss of low end torque kind of sucks. Wish I could find a dyno chart or something, but I can’t even find what hp people are making from it!

rabinaba

What makes you say this? Not pressing, just curious what you think makes it a better fit.

LS1 TJ

Your 81 is pretty light car and with a T56 with gears like 3:73's I doubt you will notice any less low end torque.
Years ago I did a 71 C3 with a stock crate LS1/4L60E combo. 3:73 gears. It was very snappy and quite fun to drive. A small cam would of been fun but IMO not really needed for just a cruiser.

rabinaba

You know what, that’s a good point about the gears. I didn’t even think of that.

G Atsma

It has the exact qualities you're looking for-
- Minimal low end power loss
- Minimal lope.
- Plenty of power throughout the USEFUL RPM range.

LS1 TJ

If you do go with a bigger cam I would upgrade the valve springs and push rods.
I don't know who can help but your 81 rear center section is not known to be the most robust. Best I can offer advice wise is check over on Corvetteforums.com for upgrades.

Keith

What about the WS6 store LS1 high lift hot cam?

218/227 .600/.600 112+2

Che70velle

iTrader: (6)

I put that cam in a 6liter I built for my nephew several years back. 11:1 LS3 heads and intake, long tubes in a Silverado. It was VERY stout. Ran exceptionally good.

Pulse Red

Unpopular opinion. Out of those options, with that criteria, I would choose the TSP 220r high lift.

I think they will probably all make similar power. Assuming you stick with the standard LSA, 40 IVC on the TSP 220r vs 43 on the Ghostcam is better for the street, although your car is very light, so not critical. The TSP 224r with 0 overlap will be noticeably more rowdy than the other two. With -4 overlap vs -2.5 for the Ghost cam, the 220r should be better there. You could run the TSP 220r on 114 LSA and have a 42 IVC and -8 overlap, that would be very quiet and smooth.

​​​I know people say the TSP lobes are not cutting edge, but I went from a CamMotion 218/226 .595/.587 116+4 with the latest lobe tech to a TSP 216/220 .600/.600 112+2 and the TSP was just as smooth and quiet as the CamMotion, despite the consensus that the CamMotion would be substantially better in that regard. Performance and power of the TSP was better, despite being smaller.

I really like my TSP cam and would certainly buy another one.

Ananta1369

SDPC LS6 Power Max camshaft - should easily put you over the 400hp crank mark with the mannerisms that you are looking for.

Dur. @ 0.050” Lift (1.7 Rocker) LSA Intake Exhaust Intake Exhaust
204/222 0.551” 0.570” 112(+2)

rabinaba

Yeah I like the TSP and when I spoke with them, they specifically recommended the 220R. That said, they claim it “only” adds about 30-35 hp. I feel like if I’m going through the trouble of disassembling the engine and adding a cam, that I should be getting something that adds a bit more power than that. For reference, the 224R adds 45-50 hp (not sure what the Ghost Cam adds).

Ugh, why is this so difficult!

rabinaba

Valve springs are definitely getting replaced, regardless. They’re almost certainly worn out. Push rods are up for debate, but I’m leaning towards those as well.

Abs

definitely go with the ghost cam. Light car and 3.73 gears will be fine on the low end. Ghost cam basically keeps stock low end because the intake lobe is pretty wide/aggressive. Not overly to the point of failures though, as many run it with no trouble. What heads will you be running? Ghost cam is good everywhere but especially from 4k to 6500k, so you will likely hit 400hp with stock heads and an ls6 intake. Probably 420 with stock 243s. The lsa is wide so peak torque wont be insane but figure on 360 with stock heads or 380+ with 243s.

Here's a graph got from mavns thread when his fbody had stock heads and a fast 102. When he added TEA heads and better exhaust, he was at like 460hp and ran low 11s in the 1/4.


I have a feeling @Summitracing will also recommend this cam. If you had a heavier car and 3.42 or less gears, I might recommend their stage 2 high lift truck cam. 218/227, .600, .600, 112+2. Same specs as ws6store's HL hot cam but with more aggressive lobes and more power.

This is my own selfish tangent. I wish summit racing had something between the ghost cam and their 8707 (226/238, .600, .600, 113+3). I would absolutely buy their their 3 truck cam if it had more lift. Something like 222/230, .600, .600, 112+4 would be amazing. Or 224/232, .600, .600, 113+4.

99Silver6.0

iTrader: (2)

Im running that grind in my car. Idling it at 650. Power under the curve is nice and strong, been really happy with it. Chop on it would be more pronounced if I changed exhaust again but Im too lazy.