Truth about roller cams.... BEFORE you make the switch......

Truth about roller cams.... BEFORE you make the switch......

Even though I voted on the “Common knowledge” button, it really isn't until you learn these things.

Different cam grinders use different material on their roller cams!

I’ve only noticed two basic materials. Billet and the regular cast cam core. Did you find a third?

[*]Comp cams recommends the "bronze" distributor drive gear. But are you aware if it's a street car, that the bronze gear shears and loses tolerance after 3k miles? And those shearing flakes are in your oil??? Or, you can order the Crane melonized gear-only for 90 bucks. - BUT, needs to be used when both are new.

I have found this not to be true all the time. But the idea is the Bronze is to take the beating of there is an issue. When a billet cam core is used, there is zero tolerance for problems. A regular intermediate shaft will be eaten up against the harder material so a softer on is used to take the tiny bit of abuse the regular ones can not take an iota of.

Hughes claims the factory magnum gear drive can be used with "their" cams

I did notice that so I am lead to believe there cam cores are like the factory.

IF you get a factory roller cam reground, you can use the factory gear drive - unless they re-heat treat it!!!

Heat treating changes things. No doubt. The below I have purchase but not yet used.

Crane told me not to use their melonized cam gear where the bronze gear had been already, for fear of the wear pattern in the cam. I called competition cams, and they said "no worries, the bronze will wear before it ever wears into their cam gear". Who do i believe????

It appears you have confused the two gears and what there capable of. I’m not quite sure, but.... A new cam can and should use a new gear on the intermediate shaft. If the cam is used, I don’t see any harm on a new gear.

Not all billet cams have the same gear. AGAIN, every cam grinder is different.

This is news to me. How is this so? The gear is part of a 1 piece part.

This is my learnings so far. I've seen it once, I've seen it a 100 times, always the roller cam suggestion but NEVER read the information I just listed above.

There are normally notations on the catalog listing telling/warning you of the need for an upgraded gear.

Roller cams are great, but KNOW what the cam grinder uses, and what you need for your cars purpose going into it. Hope I saved somebody the frustration I'm going through now....

You probably did.

Now, a FWIW notation!

Crane Cams is one place that will have OE intermediate shaft compatible cam shafts. When you look at a Crane Cams part number, IF it ends in “IG” it is OE intermediate gear comparable. “IG” stands for iron gear.
If there is no “IG”, then you need ether the bronze or Cranes “melonized” gear. Which is also sold by Hughe Engines.