we ran a bronze gear in the hemi, back in the day, never had a problem w/ it. never did wear, was race only then tho. hughs advertises a steel gear that will work on any kind of cam, i will definitly go w/ it when the time comes-----------------bob
I am running a billet steel roller cam in my 408. I originally intended on going with a bronze distributor/oil pump gear. While ordering parts from Summit, Their rep questioned the use of a bronze gear in a street driven car. He stated bronze gears are for race only applications. After researching the issue, the general consensus was not to expect to get much more than 10,000 miles before replacing the bronze gear. This information caused me to look for other options. I ended up buying the "special gear" from Hughes engines. This gear is only available without a pump shaft. I bought a bronze gear with shaft and then Hughes Engines removed and replaced that gear with the "special gear". There was a small machining charge for doing this conversion.
To me it was worth the price not to be constantly worrying about that gear wearing out and/or grenading inside my nice new 408.
