When picking a big cam
Thread Starter
On The Tree
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 188
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From: Houston/ Austin, TX
When picking a big cam As an outsider looking in at the LS1 aftermarket community, I just thought I would post my $.02 on this topic.
I have seen alot of companies selling their "signature" cams (T-Rex, magic stick, G5X3) simply because of who runs the quickest ET and it kinda makes me laugh.
Its not all about the "quickest drag car." There is ALOT more to a drag car than the cam. Getting the fastest "cam only" record is all for bragging rights and for selling cams.
You are better off copying their suspension and drivetrain setup than copying their cam if you are looking for ET.
Dont look ONLY at dyno's either. A dyno wont tell you how it will respond in between shifts.
Max HP helps out a bunch because when racing, you dont spend much time under 4k rpm anyway, but those cars are running 5k+ stalls and are by no means street cars. Converters under 3500 rpm will benefit with a cam that makes power at that level and will actually lower your ET vs a HUGE cam that will lag until it hits its powerband.
All im trying to say is, dont fall into the trap of buying a cam simply because its the fastest ET or makes the most power on a dyno.
Buy a cam because it fits your driving style and lasts as long as you want it to. Steeper lobes and rediculious lift are gonna be hell on springs and lifters and RPM is gonna be hell on the bottom end. You cant have your cake and eat it too.
Sorry, just had to let that out. I know Im gonna get flamed from the sponsors, but bring it, im ready
I have seen alot of companies selling their "signature" cams (T-Rex, magic stick, G5X3) simply because of who runs the quickest ET and it kinda makes me laugh.
Its not all about the "quickest drag car." There is ALOT more to a drag car than the cam. Getting the fastest "cam only" record is all for bragging rights and for selling cams.
You are better off copying their suspension and drivetrain setup than copying their cam if you are looking for ET.
Dont look ONLY at dyno's either. A dyno wont tell you how it will respond in between shifts.
Max HP helps out a bunch because when racing, you dont spend much time under 4k rpm anyway, but those cars are running 5k+ stalls and are by no means street cars. Converters under 3500 rpm will benefit with a cam that makes power at that level and will actually lower your ET vs a HUGE cam that will lag until it hits its powerband.
All im trying to say is, dont fall into the trap of buying a cam simply because its the fastest ET or makes the most power on a dyno.
Buy a cam because it fits your driving style and lasts as long as you want it to. Steeper lobes and rediculious lift are gonna be hell on springs and lifters and RPM is gonna be hell on the bottom end. You cant have your cake and eat it too.
Sorry, just had to let that out. I know Im gonna get flamed from the sponsors, but bring it, im ready
Most of us know what u are talking about. I agre with you on max power is not everything. What counts is under the curve.
With that said i drove a 4400 stall on the street and it drove fine.
THE BIGGER THE CAM IS THE BIGGER THE STALL YOU WANT ( I CANT TURN OFF THE CAPS)
With that said i drove a 4400 stall on the street and it drove fine.
THE BIGGER THE CAM IS THE BIGGER THE STALL YOU WANT ( I CANT TURN OFF THE CAPS)
Originally Posted by disco192
I posted it in another thread.... just thought it deserved its own... sorry for the re-post for those of you who read it last time.
-Stu
-Stu
I wish some of these new enthusiasts who want a fast car were paying more attention to suspension, weight reduction, part matching, and practice. But then again, I guess that isn't as cool as telling your friends that you got the new "Godzilla" cam???
Launching!
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 272
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I've owned 4 ls1's . 3 f-bodys. 1 y-body. had a cam in everyone of them. everything from the hotcam to the g5x-2. if you want somthing that drives like a honda then get a honda, as for me i'm sticking with my huge cams, and SPINNING past everyone else 
what cracks me up is that people think that a .600 lift cam is big... hahaha what do you think a nascar cam is? or some of these sbc guys running .730 cams making 650 rwhp. when you start out with a .500 lift cam and go to a .600 then that is only a 20% increase.
i love the feel, sound, power from a big cam and i guess that is why most people buy them. sound..... power.... feel.... win
rant off
mike
what cracks me up is that people think that a .600 lift cam is big... hahaha what do you think a nascar cam is? or some of these sbc guys running .730 cams making 650 rwhp. when you start out with a .500 lift cam and go to a .600 then that is only a 20% increase.
i love the feel, sound, power from a big cam and i guess that is why most people buy them. sound..... power.... feel.... win
rant off
mike
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Originally Posted by dazman
I've owned 4 ls1's . 3 f-bodys. 1 y-body. had a cam in everyone of them. everything from the hotcam to the g5x-2. if you want somthing that drives like a honda then get a honda, as for me i'm sticking with my huge cams, and SPINNING past everyone else
what cracks me up is that people think that a .600 lift cam is big... hahaha what do you think a nascar cam is? or some of these sbc guys running .730 cams making 650 rwhp. when you start out with a .500 lift cam and go to a .600 then that is only a 20% increase.
i love the feel, sound, power from a big cam and i guess that is why most people buy them. sound..... power.... feel.... win
rant off
mike
what cracks me up is that people think that a .600 lift cam is big... hahaha what do you think a nascar cam is? or some of these sbc guys running .730 cams making 650 rwhp. when you start out with a .500 lift cam and go to a .600 then that is only a 20% increase.
i love the feel, sound, power from a big cam and i guess that is why most people buy them. sound..... power.... feel.... win
rant off
mike
Big cams really help LS1.com sponsors make more profits. Most of these sponsors recommend these big cams because they know you will also need more performance parts (profit)to make that big cam streetable, rear gear, stall converter, tuning, etc.
It's all about profit "screw the consumer".
It's all about profit "screw the consumer".
TECH Enthusiast
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 611
Likes: 0
From: Austin, TX
Originally Posted by gollum
Big cams really help LS1.com sponsors make more profits. Most of these sponsors recommend these big cams because they know you will also need more performance parts (profit)to make that big cam streetable, rear gear, stall converter, tuning, etc.
It's all about profit "screw the consumer".
It's all about profit "screw the consumer".
it could also be that they want to design parts that make our cars faster...
did someone rain on your party and the reason why you are acting like this? - directed at Gollum.
Cams make power... and in LS1's they make a big increase over stock cams. Second to cylinder heads I'd say the camshaft is the most important part in your engine.
My friend ran a 225/225 112LSA and a 233/239 112LSA cam with ported 5.3's, LS6 intake, ported TB, LT headers. Difference was about 1.5mph in the 1/4... but the driveability was day and night with the smaller cam. Slight cam surge with the larger cam, but overall his liked the smaller cam. It also made a ton more torque in the low to mid ranges and he stated driveability was better. On a plus note for the bigger cam he said he didn't blow the tires off as easily and in the upper RPM range it screamed.
90% of the subscribers to this website only drag race anyway.... so these big cams suit their needs.
-Mark
Cams make power... and in LS1's they make a big increase over stock cams. Second to cylinder heads I'd say the camshaft is the most important part in your engine.
My friend ran a 225/225 112LSA and a 233/239 112LSA cam with ported 5.3's, LS6 intake, ported TB, LT headers. Difference was about 1.5mph in the 1/4... but the driveability was day and night with the smaller cam. Slight cam surge with the larger cam, but overall his liked the smaller cam. It also made a ton more torque in the low to mid ranges and he stated driveability was better. On a plus note for the bigger cam he said he didn't blow the tires off as easily and in the upper RPM range it screamed.
90% of the subscribers to this website only drag race anyway.... so these big cams suit their needs.
-Mark
Last edited by gnx7; Apr 5, 2005 at 12:58 PM.
This is just another thread in the grand scheme.... Do what makes you happy. There is enough sound clips, opinions and articles on all the popular cams out there for even the most uneducated bafoon to make a cam selection and pretty much get what he was looking for. There's threads on pros and cons, what other parts you'll need to upgrae and even estimated power increases for every damn part you can think of on the forums. Granted every car is different, but not to a major extent. And personally I would look at numbers from forum member cars and time slips before I ever believed anything from a sponsor...
Whats good for the sponsors is our need for competition. There's always someone better and faster, so were never really never satisfied with what we have. Perhaps performance parts will compensate for our inability to drive. heh heh
Whats good for the sponsors is our need for competition. There's always someone better and faster, so were never really never satisfied with what we have. Perhaps performance parts will compensate for our inability to drive. heh heh
I think that a few have misread the post that disco has made. Hell, maybe it was I that misread it. I don't know.
But I do feel that there a a lot of younger guys that chase ofter these bigger cams don't fully understanding their place in the market. Correct me if i am wrong, but that was the way I was reading it. I simply replied along the same lines because I know some younger guys that have fallen into this area. I simply agree that there are other ways to make a car faster. By no means was I trying to knock the signature cams I think it was called. I run one myself. I love a big cam. It fits my needs in my drag car. I am always trying to follow the latest versions and see where things are going. But it does disturb me when I see a someone who has a daily driven, 7 year old F body, with high mileage running one of the largest cams out there. There is a market of cheap F bodies now that a lot of younger guys are getting there hands on. They see the latest craze and chase after it. It is only my opinion, that taking an older motor that has more than likely been beat on, throwing a T-rex in it, and spinning it to 7000 rpms isn't a great idea for the daily driver.
Don't get me wrong, I love many of the big cams. But instead of just looking out for myself and my needs, I wish there was a little more caution and education passed on to the new guys. I enjoy helping anybody by looking at what is best for their needs.
PS.
No need to get fired up and start ranting guys. There is no flaming intended here on my behalf. I am just trying to look out for some.
But I do feel that there a a lot of younger guys that chase ofter these bigger cams don't fully understanding their place in the market. Correct me if i am wrong, but that was the way I was reading it. I simply replied along the same lines because I know some younger guys that have fallen into this area. I simply agree that there are other ways to make a car faster. By no means was I trying to knock the signature cams I think it was called. I run one myself. I love a big cam. It fits my needs in my drag car. I am always trying to follow the latest versions and see where things are going. But it does disturb me when I see a someone who has a daily driven, 7 year old F body, with high mileage running one of the largest cams out there. There is a market of cheap F bodies now that a lot of younger guys are getting there hands on. They see the latest craze and chase after it. It is only my opinion, that taking an older motor that has more than likely been beat on, throwing a T-rex in it, and spinning it to 7000 rpms isn't a great idea for the daily driver.
Don't get me wrong, I love many of the big cams. But instead of just looking out for myself and my needs, I wish there was a little more caution and education passed on to the new guys. I enjoy helping anybody by looking at what is best for their needs.
PS.
No need to get fired up and start ranting guys. There is no flaming intended here on my behalf. I am just trying to look out for some.
this has been discussed many times before. hell, i think we all should just stick with the stock cam seeing as how Magnus ran 10.9 @ ~119 
yes there will be people who are suckered in by the numbers and just want to be in the "in" crowd. those people will continue to throw money into there cars paying no mind to the overall combo while those who are smart will pick the correct conglomerate of parts for there application.
yes there will be people who are suckered in by the numbers and just want to be in the "in" crowd. those people will continue to throw money into there cars paying no mind to the overall combo while those who are smart will pick the correct conglomerate of parts for there application.
AH YES Why doesn't the Z28 lope? What aftermarket cam gives the best torque increase? I have seen alot of cam tests that are after the almighty HP. I drive a stock Z28 A4 2.73 like alot of other people I know. We don't go to the drag strip and most of our driving is done below 2,000 rpm. I believe my car turns about 1800 at 65mph. I put a lid on it and it had a flowmaster on it when I got it + all the free mods. I don't know if a rear gear change would make this thing more fun to drive or if a torque convertor would wake up the car better. But if someone knew what kind of cam has that "hot cam sound" but is really a torque monster just waiting to get loose I might be tempted. I had trouble reading your cam chart post but the text held alot of good information.How can say a 233/233 torque cam idle decent and still pull 14 inch of vac? But another cam requires
that you need a stall?
that you need a stall?
Launching!
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 272
Likes: 0
Originally Posted by gollum
Big cams really help LS1.com sponsors make more profits. Most of these sponsors recommend these big cams because they know you will also need more performance parts (profit)to make that big cam streetable, rear gear, stall converter, tuning, etc.
It's all about profit "screw the consumer".
It's all about profit "screw the consumer".
if you want to go faster then fast then you will need a big cam, and guess what, you will need an intake too, and heads, and oil pump and timing chain and springs, and a stroker bottom end. or you can just get a little cam and go slower.
hell, its not that hard..... big cam - go fast... small cam - go slower then fast.... no matter what which way how when you want to say it, if you dont have a HUGE cam then you will be in the back of the pack when the hammer drops. NOW.... is this saying that small cams go slow.... no... just slower then fast.
mike