Cam re-grind

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bighammer

bighammer

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I just got to the point of deciding to replace the cam in my 360. I'm looking for the recommendation of some of the gear head guys that know this stuff way better than me...

Here is what I DO have:

1970 Dart Swinger
LA 360
Roller cam
Weiand Action Plus
HP manifolds
2 1/2 dual exhaust
3.23 gears
PTC 2,500 stall converter

Currently the car has 14" rims, but I'm going with 15" and not too tall of tires, TBD

Oregon Cam Grinding suggests:

224/232 @ .050", 274/282 adv, .519/.528 lift, 112 sep

I have no reason to doubt what they recommended, but I'm not too sure of what it is exactly that they spec'd out. Those numbers above ^ mean absolutely nothing to me.

Can I get some input here? I'm looking for some performance here, but this car is being built strictly for the street.

Thanks guys!
 
That is certainly a mild performance grind. one you will definitely KNOW is in the engine. I like the 112 LSA. Flat torque curve, good vacuum signal. Split pattern is good for use with mannyfolds. I see nothing wrong with it.

Now, what have you got for valve train? I don't know if they told you, but most cam regrinds require a longer pushrod. No big deal. Just get a pushrod length checker and come up with the proper length. There's probably an off the shelf pushrod that will work, especially if you have adjustable rockers. And with a roller cam, I suspect you would.
 
Read up on the subject so it does mean something to you. Teach a man to fish bro. Don't be a :tool:.
 
So hears the deal, I have that same cam that was regrinded by oregon cams. I haven't driven the car yet but am getting there real soon. My block is an 89 Roller La but did 110 degree. It's sounds nasty at idle and is rediculously responsive. Funny enough the pushrods were the right length with my adjustable valve train. I've got a bit of head work done with bigger valves and heavier springs. I'm excited to see how she will run but if she runs like she sounds it will be a thumper.
 
PoisonDart74 said:
Read up on the subject so it does mean something to you. Teach a man to fish bro. Don't be a :tool:.
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Thanks for the reply. Ya, I've done a fair amount of reading up on the subject. There certainly is a lot to learn. And I've learned a lot here on this site, and I'm truley grateful to those who unselfishly took the time to literally spell it out for me. Their efforts to help out dummies like me needs to be applauded.

But I'm no real mechanic, just a wanna-be I guess. I own a small business, struggling to survive, self employed for the last 27 years. This, as well as other obligations, is what occupies a lot of my time. Your comment seems to imply something innapropriate, either towards me or Rob, not sure who it was directed to. But not necessary either way.

Again, thanks and a big two thumbs up to the real assets here on FABO. You know who you are!
 
Not sure if you are asking me or GTMOPAR.. Mine still has the factory spec'd cam, stock roller 360
 
Surprised they can change the lobe separation that much on a regrind. I'm assuming the stock cam has a wider lobe separation angle.
 
RustyRatRod said:
That is certainly a mild performance grind. one you will definitely KNOW is in the engine. I like the 112 LSA. Flat torque curve, good vacuum signal. Split pattern is good for use with mannyfolds. I see nothing wrong with it.

Now, what have you got for valve train? I don't know if they told you, but most cam regrinds require a longer pushrod. No big deal. Just get a pushrod length checker and come up with the proper length. There's probably an off the shelf pushrod that will work, especially if you have adjustable rockers. And with a roller cam, I suspect you would.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the 'heads up' on the pushrod info. Stock valve train still in it, I don't even know if the rockers are adjustable, I'll check on that.
 
gtmopar said:
So hears the deal, I have that same cam that was regrinded by oregon cams. I haven't driven the car yet but am getting there real soon. My block is an 89 Roller La but did 110 degree. It's sounds nasty at idle and is rediculously responsive. Funny enough the pushrods were the right length with my adjustable valve train. I've got a bit of head work done with bigger valves and heavier springs. I'm excited to see how she will run but if she runs like she sounds it will be a thumper.
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2.02 intakes? I'm hoping to go that route eventually. Sounds like a healthy engine. :burnout:
 
I bought the cam from whitepunknitro it was a new in the box billet mopar performance can that was a few steps over stock. Ken at oregon cams gave me several different options before we decided on that route. I didn't want to have to spin the thing to the moon to make power so it's a fair compromise I figure. I'll try to post some videos of it idling soon. Granted it's open headers but cams hard. I would recommend it if he can cut yours the same.
 
bighammer said:
I just got to the point of deciding to replace the cam in my 360. I'm looking for the recommendation of some of the gear head guys that know this stuff way better than me...

Here is what I DO have:

1970 Dart Swinger
LA 360
Roller cam
Weiand Action Plus
HP manifolds
2 1/2 dual exhaust
3.23 gears
PTC 2,500 stall converter

Currently the car has 14" rims, but I'm going with 15" and not too tall of tires, TBD

Oregon Cam Grinding suggests:

224/232 @ .050", 274/282 adv, .519/.528 lift, 112 sep

I have no reason to doubt what they recommended, but I'm not too sure of what it is exactly that they spec'd out. Those numbers above ^ mean absolutely nothing to me.

Can I get some input here? I'm looking for some performance here, but this car is being built strictly for the street.

Thanks guys!
Click to expand...

Looks ,like a good choice. I have something similar from Howards (110 lobe centers/229/ 233 @ .050"/.515'-.520" lift), on a LA blank in a Magnum 360. with proper tuning (18 initial/34 total @3000) real mellow at a 850 rpm idle.
 
rkite said:
Surprised they can change the lobe separation that much on a regrind. I'm assuming the stock cam has a wider lobe separation angle.
Click to expand...

I always thought LSA was pretty much set in stone, but Oregon has me sold. They took my 331 Hemi cam and ground it on a 106 from a 113.

Now, I will say this. The base circles of the lobes are getting pretty close to the camshaft core. It's kinda funny looking, like some of those old school cheater cams. And I knew ahead of time it would require custom length pushrods. Didn't matter, because I went with adjustable pushrods anyway. Them guys at Oregon really know their stuff. I cannot brag on them enough.
 
RustyRatRod said:
I always thought LSA was pretty much set in stone, but Oregon has me sold. They took my 331 Hemi cam and ground it on a 106 from a 113.

Now, I will say this. The base circles of the lobes are getting pretty close to the camshaft core. It's kinda funny looking, like some of those old school cheater cams. And I knew ahead of time it would require custom length pushrods. Didn't matter, because I went with adjustable pushrods anyway. Them guys at Oregon really know their stuff. I cannot brag on them enough.
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R.R.R, had a couple of conversations , with the Oregon cam staff. I was impressed by the choices they had available. Unfortunately, my stock cam core , had 2 flat lobes on it. I never thought , to ask about cam cores available on their end.You live, you learn.
 
Mark I think it's perfect for the rest of your combo. Your engine will not have adjustable rocker arms unless someone installed them. The only adjustable small block Mopar's I know of are the old 273 commando's and the 340 T/A engines.

Did they tell you the stock valve springs are not up to snuff for that much cam? You also need to check for valve spring retainer to valve guide interference with that much lift. To be honest I'll be surprised if there's not interference with that much lift. I've checked a few sets of stock heads and found .500 lift at the valve was the absolute maximum any heads would take before you have to have a machine shop cut the guides down and install PC or Teflon seals.
 
fishy68 said:
Mark I think it's perfect for the rest of your combo. Your engine will not have adjustable rocker arms unless someone installed them. The only adjustable small block Mopar's I know of are the old 273 commando's and the 340 T/A engines.

Did they tell you the stock valve springs are not up to snuff for that much cam? You also need to check for valve spring retainer to valve guide interference with that much lift. To be honest I'll be surprised if there's not interference with that much lift. I've checked a few sets of stock heads and found .500 lift at the valve was the absolute maximum any heads would take before you have to have a machine shop cut the guides down and install PC or Teflon seals.
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Correct, and a custom pushrod length, will be necessary here, as well . Thanks, Fishy,,,,
 
bighammer said:
Hmmmm. Gonna have to do more research I guess, lol
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Why? Don't let any of that stuff scare you off. Machining valve guides for retainer clearance is very easy. Measuring for correct pushrod length is too. There's nothing about any of this that you cannot do, or pay a machine shop a very reasonable price to do if you are uncomfortable with it. There's nothing to it that should make you rethink your plans. It's not that big a deal, really. You've chosen a great grind. You should follow through with it. I think it will run fantastic.
 
I'm having an oregon (pronounced ORY-GUN) cam put in the new stroker motor. It was a mopar purple 284 / 484 cam hydraulic. After a long - fun conversation with Keith (Owner) and fellow drag racer (Ford - I didn't hold it against him! LOL) we settled on a solid lifter (O/C # 175) D @.50-259/267, lift 546/566, lash .026/.028 Lob sep. 107 - 104/110.
That's mostly drag and a little street. he must have started the business over here in Oregon but it's a bit cheaper across the river in Vancouver where he is now in Washington to run a business and own a home. I'm using a used set of 273 rockers and I was concerned about the rod length myself. I'm using the stock pushrods and my machine shop told me that the difference in the cam would only be a threat or two on the rocker arm adjuster. for that amount of money they want to machine for double springs and put better retainers. that's my experience so far. I should be getting the motor back within the next few weeks will to see how it works. It's good to hear all the positive feedback about Oregon cam.
 
RustyRatRod said:
Why? Don't let any of that stuff scare you off. Machining valve guides for retainer clearance is very easy. Measuring for correct pushrod length is too. There's nothing about any of this that you cannot do, or pay a machine shop a very reasonable price to do if you are uncomfortable with it. There's nothing to it that should make you rethink your plans. It's not that big a deal, really. You've chosen a great grind. You should follow through with it. I think it will run fantastic.
Click to expand...

I agree that you chose a good cam for what you want. Proformance when you want it and vacuum/idle when you need it.
 
Okay.. Thank you all for the input. I'm re-thinking this whole cam thing, whether or not it is anything I want to do. I don't want to pull the heads and all the associated additional stuff, machining, etc., just to install that particular cam. The car is street driven only!

What I would consider is a 'bolt in' cam if there is such a thing, that would not require the extra things you guys informed me of. Is there such a thing? And if so, will it make enough difference in performance to even be worth it?

Thanks again for your suggestions.
 
PoisonDart74 said:
Read up on the subject so it does mean something to you. Teach a man to fish bro. Don't be a :tool:.
Click to expand...



teach a man to fish and he will eat fish
teach a woman to eat fish and you will be single.lol
sorry,just being a tool
 
If you want a drop in, you need to express these issues to Oregon Cam (located in Washington....) so they can better select a cam.

Honestly, if you are going to go through the effort and do it right and get the most, pull the heads, have them set up correctly for the cam (at this point any wear issues can be addressed too), degree the cam and measure for custom push rods.

Like you say, its a daily driver, do you want to mess with it?......:banghead:

1.6:1 rockers might be a better choice here?
 
bighammer said:
Okay.. Thank you all for the input. I'm re-thinking this whole cam thing, whether or not it is anything I want to do. I don't want to pull the heads and all the associated additional stuff, machining, etc., just to install that particular cam. The car is street driven only!
Click to expand...


I can understand not wanting to do it, but pulling the heads really isn't a huge job. That way you can look at the cylinders somewhat, and have new head gaskets too. It's one of the very first things I did with my car when I bought it. It had 80,000 original on the engine, so I wanted new head gaskets for my own piece of mind, because I knew I'd be rapping on it some.

With that said, if you were to go with just a little less lift (under .500), you can get away with that fairly easily. You will still need to change valve springs but that can be done with the heads on if that's the route you go.
 
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