Noyzee

iTrader: (37)

well, some people throw a cam in a car and go dot to dot and call it a day. i know some of the cheep guys do that where as if you spend the coin for a good shop to do it, or do it yourself the time should be taken to degree in a cam.
i have seen it in the past, and saw it with the new cam i just put in.
they want it installed at 108, i put it in dot to dot to start, and it was 104.

now i always advance my cams a little bit, but this was way off. i ended up putting it at 106.5. im going to test p to v once i get the heads back. but its little things like this and double checking push rod length that makes all the difference between a cheep motor upgrade and a good motor upgrade.

htownws6

iTrader: (1)

yeah, there is no such thing as checking too much. check yourself and check others x 3.

ShiznityZ28

iTrader: (11)

We have a local cam doctor that checks our stuff to make sure comp put the right lobes on it.... LOL. and degreeing it is always the right way to go. would not be impossible for it to have advance in it by "accedent"

Noyzee

iTrader: (37)

yea, i put an advance in it when i had it cut. comp recomended a 108, but i always like to advance them a bit more from what they recomend on smaller motors. seems to give them more grunt on the bottom end.

but i know a lot of people who just toss in the cam and line it up dot to dot, or people who cheep out on timming chains and check it and cant advance it correct.

if your looking for the best out of your set up, do it right and check it out

Chris@NitroDaves

Agreed

custm2500

iTrader: (11)

This a good point to make. I am going to install my cam once I can afford lifters gaskets and a chain. I have seen it done a few times on TV but never done one in person. Can someone give a quick overview to refresh myself and any others who will be installing a cam soon. Thanks.

BAKED

iTrader: (14)

There is no way to "quickly describe " how to degree a cam.

It is a fairly legnthy process.

Noyzee

iTrader: (37)

its accually pretty basic.
you find true TDC on #1.
you then put the gauge on the flat of the lifter. go 50 tho one way, 50 tho the other way. add them up. divide by 2 the do the math

if you have done it before this will sum it up quick.
im sure you can google it as well

custm2500

iTrader: (11)

Ok thanks. I have seen it done but never done it myself. I have guys who have done it before so I will lean on them if need be.

BAKED

iTrader: (14)

We use an old lifter that we welded solid so that it wont compress.

After we find TDC we check the intake opening at .006, .050, .250, .300, and then max lift. Then check it closing at the same points. After that we do the same to the exhaust side.

Make sure your timing chain is in good shape or it will throw your measurements off.. Also make sure that your indicator is perfectly alligned with the lifter and set at zero when the lifter is all the way down.

Noyzee

iTrader: (37)

new timming set in my rig. had it sitting in the tool bax for over a year. that and melling oil pump

NoTractionLS1

thanks for the info..about to do a cam in my car so any info helps!

Noyzee

iTrader: (37)

check twice

3fingas

iTrader: (16)

Then 1 more time for shitsngigs.

TT632

iTrader: (3)

I usually look for gross differences when determining how far off the the cam/timing set/crank set is when installing a cam; 1 degree difference is not much. 2 or more degrees, make an adjustment. Any more than that may have to call the manufacturer regarding the cam. With modern machining, using quality equipment and good suppliers you should really expect very close to specified numbers for installation. Unfortunately with an LS1 engine and not having an inexpensive Jesel or other easily adjustable belt drive system you can't make quick changes on the dyno to see if the recomended install position is giving you best power.

The reason why I brought up the above is, like many I use an adjustable belt drive system on my standard big block and sbc engines and maybe one in ten have made best power at the cam manufacturers recomended install position. Some only require a degree or 2 adjustment to make peak power or more power over your desired rpm range. An extreme example; I was using a nitrous specific cam (On a 540 bbc) from comp and had to retard the cam timing more than 6 degrees to make peak power. In this specific case the engine picked up 25 RWHP at the peak so it was worth it.

Pure One

We did a cam on a GTO not long ago that had the right grind number on it but was actually off 27* on the intake side. Also for the newbies, when you spin the crank in the oposite rotation of normal operation for any reason make sure you don't just stop at <example> .050 before the seat. You need to go past this postion and spin back in the correct rotation so that you get all of the slack out of the timing chain. For all of the newbies to cams here is a link to some basic info that might be able to help you out.
http://www.compcams.com/technical/FAQ/LSAproperties.asp

Noyzee

iTrader: (37)

had a stock car apart, so for ***** and giggles we checked it.off 3* from what the book says. good thing is, its advanced with plenty of room. that is probably why she is stock, running high 12's!!!!!!!

TT632

iTrader: (3)

Wow! 27*. Someone really missed the boat on that one. I hope the cam company made it right. Was it an off the shelf grind?

Pure One

We never do any off the shelf cams unless a customer bring us the cam. It was a custom grind. They did make right on the parts. No labor but I can not recall ever seeing any copany make right on that. The car, LS2 GTP, ended up picking making 470 with the correct cam, a set of headers, fast90, vararam, and a spin tech cat back. So the customer was pleased once we got everything straightened out. It seems like about every 5th cam we order is not right anymore. Thankfully we have started having them checked before even cracking the engine.