360 hyd roller question

[martin7170]

Are there any good cams available for late LA 360 hyd rollers or should I convert it back to flat tappet. It will be primarily street driven in a 73 dart, 3200 stall 727 with 3.23 geared sure grip. It is a 1987 360 out of a van.

 

[rumblefish360]

Oh yes, theres a good number of them out there. Best yet, you can call Comp cams or Crane for a custom roller without a custom price tag.

Just tell'em what you got, and the RPM range you want the cam to perform in. Unless you allready have an idea of what you want. You can ask them to grind it for you.

 

[martin7170]

I was looking at the Thumper retrofit hyd roller cams but I'm not sure if they work with a factory setup.

 

[340GTSDart]

I have a Comp Cams retrofit Thumper Roller in my 340. I don't know what the differences are between my 340 and your late model 360 though. FWIW, there wasn't anything special I needed to do, just slip the cam in and drop in the roller lifters. The lifter tie bars were real close to the block, but didn't require any clearancing. I did need custom pushrods, as none of the current offerings from the cam manufacturers were the right length. I got them from Smith Brothers and I think they cost around $160. The cam I got is the "Big Mother Thumper" version and I'm real happy with it.

 

[rumblefish360]

They do require a lash IIRC. Is this so?
I also wasn't top thrilled looking at the specs.
They do have a qiuck rise on the lifter though.
Cranes were slower on the lift and wider on the centerline.
That makes it a bit mellower on idle and the wide centerline works OOTB with F.I.
Dependent on the Crane cam, there was sometimes a lash requirment.

 

[340mopar]

Have you pulled the intake to confirm it has a roller in it? I have an '88 360 out of a van and even though it has the provisions for a roller cam it has a flat tappet in it, they came both ways.


Chuck

 

[340GTSDart]

They do require a lash IIRC. Is this so?
I also wasn't top thrilled looking at the specs.
They do have a qiuck rise on the lifter though.
Cranes were slower on the lift and wider on the centerline.
That makes it a bit mellower on idle and the wide centerline works OOTB with F.I.
Dependent on the Crane cam, there was sometimes a lash requirment.

This particular cam was exactly what I was looking for. It certainly isn't a cam for max power, that's not what I was looking for. The things I like about it:It sounds bad azz idling, low lift being easy on parts, all bark and no bite! And last but not least, being a roller, no more wiped cams. The last flat tappet just cost me 4K in a rebuild due to a wiped cam (1K in this new cam/lifter setup). I guess it's all in what you are looking for. I know there are tons of better choices out there for making more power, but our car is a Saturday night cruiser that is also a great back up car if our truck or Durango break down.

 

[rumblefish360]

Well, you got the cam for you. I see you like it.
Case closed. No badgering from me.
I was just mearly making a mention to my taste. Hope I didn't offend. Theres allways a guy in the wings saying you should have done this or got that.

Believe me, thats not me. But if you ask, I'll tell. You don't ask, I don't tell. Or question or roll eyes etc.... LOL

If theres one thing I'll be doing soon, it's a roller.

 

[340GTSDart]

Well, you got the cam for you. I see you like it.
Case closed. No badgering from me.
I was just mearly making a mention to my taste. Hope I didn't offend. Theres allways a guy in the wings saying you should have done this or got that.

Believe me, thats not me. But if you ask, I'll tell. You don't ask, I don't tell. Or question or roll eyes etc.... LOL

If theres one thing I'll be doing soon, it's a roller.

No prob, it's all good.:thumbup:

 

[66dartgt]

I converted a 360 crate motor over to a roller hyd cam. Called up comp and got a set of lobe specs and started playing with the computer dyno. Something to remember is that the .050 lift figures on roller cams carry more "area" under curve than flat tappets. In other words go smaller young man ! I settled on a set of lobes that gave me 218/224 duration at .050 with about .500" lift. I like it - lots of torque for street driving.