I have a preliminary measurement from my shop that cleaned up the heads indicating a .570 lift - IIRC, I just can't find that slip of paper at the moment, but the easiest thing to do would be to re-measure them, both exhaust and intake.
As far as pushrod length goes, get me in the ballpark please. Stock length is 7.500 I believe? I understand I will need to check myself to be sure, but with a small base cam, how much longer than stock would I need to be, approximately? I at least want to order the right length adjustable pushrods so I can check/read the cam when I order it.Is that with the valve seal installed? Remember that makes a big difference. If so your probably good to go.
I am probably going to stick wtih the stock rocker setup for now. I do like the idea of converting over to an adjustable valvetrain, my buddy with a set of GT40 ford heads has the same pedestal setup as my magnum heads and I found these Crane stud/guideplate conversion kit for him http://www.summitracing.com/parts/CRN-36655-2/ - looks pretty trick for $128 all in. Less than the machine work a shop would charge to drill and tap to 3/8 or 7/16 stud I imagine. I could then run a set of chevy self aligning rockers in either ratio, but that is not my plan from the get go.There's really no way I could guess what length pushrods you need because I have no idea how much the grinder is taking the base down. Maybe you can call him and pick his brain to see how much he grinds it down? Whatever he takes off you will need to add to the length of what you think the stock length is to get you close. I thought 7.625 is the stock length but I may be wrong as you said it's 7.5"... An example would be if he says he takes .100" off the base add .100" to the stock length of 7.5" and you come up with 7.6" so you get an adjustable pushrod that covers that size + and - .25~.5" and also decide on what you want to do for rockers (the link to the crane conversion looks decent) and get them (or use the stockers if you wish) and the adjustable pushrod so your ready when the new cam arrives and you can degree it in, set a head on with the gasket and torque it down and install rockers at all 4 corners and measure the pushrod length at all corners and average it out. You can then order what pushrods you need. Summit is fast about sending stuff out so you should have your new pushrods within 3 business days if they have them in stock. If they don't have what you need you can check around. Maybe JEGS might have them.
I am also always leery of ebay but this guy comes recommended by a FABO member and has good feedback and had extended his 7 day inspection/return period to 14 days for me - which is why I want to get all my ducks in a row before I get the cam. I want to be ready to drop it in, degree it, read it, check lift, etc and not wait for summit or jegs to ship something - I like the price, I like his feedback, I like his policy and the numbers I get on Pat Kelly's calc look perfect for me - so I'll give it a shot; I just want to be prepared and ready.
A note on ebay/paypal. Your payment method, short of a bank transfer, can be protected through your credit card's fraud protection program if you use a CC to pay PayPal I believe. This particular seller offers a full refund policy and has a 320+ rating and is 97.7% positive, I read all the negatives he got, they were from dumb-sounding buyers with almost bogus complaints. He also takes Money Orders, so if you use a USPS MO you have the Feds to behind you (as much good as that is at the rate they move) - I'll take a chance if I can return the cam and get my money back if there is a problem.Sounds like he's ok then.
I will re-measure my heads and check the retainer to seal clearance as well as overall lift and coil bind height.Unfortunately even that isn't total protection. Why you ask? Because to buy and sell on E-bay you have to sign up for PayPal, right? PayPal requires you to give them a bank account number and they verify it's good. You can still pay for your purchase with your credit card and say something happens that you file a fraud case with your credit card you may get your money back from the credit card co. but PayPal can go into your bank account without your permission and take the money right back. Just sayin'
Quick Question : what valve spring would/should I use with the regrind cam in question assuming a .480-.512 lift?
