Cam recomendation?(Rough estimate)

[gregsdart]

We are going to build a 408 street smallblock, 3.73 gears fourspeed, 10/1 compression, probably an airgap dual plane, heads yet to be determined, although if I can find a decent set, 318b aftermarket iron , or better. The goal is a motor that will idle with a little lump, pull between 10 to 14 inch vacuum, have excellent torque for street driving and some gas mileage (10?,12?) and maybe a power peak of 5200 to 5600? My WAG is something in the mid 220 range at .050, intake, another 6 to 10 degrees on exhaust, with an lsa in the 110 range? What have you run, and did it meet the goals i am after?

 

[middleagecrisis]

230@.050 (flat tappet) or more, on intake should meet the goals you listed. A 408 will take more cam than a stock stroke 360.

 

[1MeanA]

I had a 408 with a Hughes hydraulic roller in the 230 duration range that was good...no idea on mileage.

 

[RustyRatRod]

I like a hydraulic roller version of the MP 528 cam for that.

 

[Hellrats]

The Best Damn "3/4 Race Camshaft"

 

[Illahe]

I like a hydraulic roller version of the MP 528 cam for that.

4” arm needs some “dwell” to take advantage of cylnder fill. 246/254 SFT with.550 lift on 110lsa worked well in my 10.7:1 360 with 318B cylnder heads.

 

[MOPAROFFICIAL]

We are going to build a 408 street smallblock, 3.73 gears fourspeed, 10/1 compression, probably an airgap dual plane, heads yet to be determined, although if I can find a decent set, 318b aftermarket iron , or better. The goal is a motor that will idle with a little lump, pull between 10 to 14 inch vacuum, have excellent torque for street driving and some gas mileage (10?,12?) and maybe a power peak of 5200 to 5600? My WAG is something in the mid 220 range at .050, intake, another 6 to 10 degrees on exhaust, with an lsa in the 110 range? What have you run, and did it meet the goals i am after?

You can get a Lot more power and a lot more RPM than that with an expectation like 10 to 14 inches of vacuum and 10-12 mpg

 

[Garrett Ellison]

This looks pretty good for your intended goals. Just bear in mind that the .530 lift is for 1.5 rockers and 1.6 would deliver a .565 lift rating.
DODGE Howards Cams 718045-09 Howards Cams Rattler Camshafts | Summit Racing

 

[MOPAROFFICIAL]

Min 246@.050, but preferably 248-252@.050 for this application imo.
.550-.580 lift.. 108-109lsa , int 104-106 cl

 

[gregsdart]

One of the reasons i am conservative on my own guestimate of duration was i built a 408 with a thumpr 235/249/107 hyd roller, 318b heads,and the motor was a beast making 518 tq at 4600 and 503 hp at 4700, BUT, it had a rather ugly idle and needed a 4,000 stall converter. That cam had 28 degrees overlap at .050, and too much for our needs on this next 408. Obviously less cam will mean less total hp, but that is ok to a point. I mentioned something on the order of 225/235/108 might get me close? With 3.73 rear gears and a stock 340 4 speed, the ideal situation would be for it to not need a lot of rpm and clutch slip to get moving in a full weight 73 duster with a couple of passengers

 

[Garrett Ellison]

This actually meets the criteria pretty well. The ICL is on a 103 so this should make quite a bit more bottom end than the Thumper cam.
CHRYSLER Howards Cams 718005-09 Howards Cams Rattler Camshafts | Summit Racing

 

[Garrett Ellison]

If you want something custom, you could talk to Ken at Oregon Cam Grinding. He's got some pretty decent profiles for what you're wanting to do. Possibly some that will work on a stock LA or Magnum cam core.

 

[NC Engine Builder]

The go to cam for customers wanting a stroker, but wanting it mild enough there wife can drive it, for me has been the comp 274 hydraulic roller. Have one in a 408 with trick flow heads, air gap ect, still running a stock converter.

 

[Garrett Ellison]

The go to cam for customers wanting a stroker, but wanting it mild enough there wife can drive it, for me has been the comp 274 hydraulic roller. Have one in a 408 with trick flow heads, air gap ect, still running a stock converter.

If the QC is still acceptable on them, I don’t see any downsides to using one those for that type of application at all. If it’s as good as the XE 274H in a stroker then it’s about as good as it gets for a street cruiser.

 

[PRH]

If you’re planning on buying new heads, make sure you read the recent threads about current EQ 318b heads and the potential port misalignment issues.

 

[AJ/FormS]

Just so you know;
In my 367/Commando 4-gear/with 3.55s, is an ancient Hughes cam; 276/286/110, 230/237@050 . Goes like a raped ape. Idles like a pussycat. Roars like a lion. The 050 overlap maths to 13.5 degrees; at .008 that is 61degrees. Don't know what vacuum it idles at but the power brakes work dandy-fine.
Went 93mph in the 660 @3457 pounds @930ft on a hot July afternoon.
The Wallace calculator makes that to be ~430 hp.
Will idle down to 550 in gear, @5* advance, pulling itself at 4 mph.
I don't know what it gets for fuel-economy, but in overdrive, 65=2240, and the Cruise-timing likes to be ~56 degrees, so it can't be too bad....... even with a 750DP..
I've never wished for more power, nor more torque, but I drive alone cuz nobody wants to ride with me more than once........

 

[Illahe]

The go to cam for customers wanting a stroker, but wanting it mild enough there wife can drive it, for me has been the comp 274 hydraulic roller. Have one in a 408 with trick flow heads, air gap ect, still running a stock converter.

What piston configuration do you recommend with the comp 274 Hydraulic roller camshaft.

 

[NC Engine Builder]

What piston configuration do you recommend with the comp 274 Hydraulic roller camshaft.

Doesn't require anything special, on most of the more budget oriented builds, I use ICON pistons a lot.

 

[Illahe]

Doesn't require anything special, on most of the more budget oriented builds, I use ICON pistons a lot.

Flat top, or dished?

 

[NC Engine Builder]

For a 4" stroke, pump gas deal, normally dished, theres enough swept volume with the 4" arm that the compression ratio ends up to high with a flat top. Depending on head of course

 

[gregsdart]

The 408 i built with the dyno numbers of 503 hp at 5700 and 518 tq at 4600 had flat tops, 10.5 compression, and iron 318b heads. I got away with that compression by using a slow ign curve , and a loose 4000 converter. The motor didn,t need more than 28 total lead, 16 initial and another 12 in by 4000 rpm. We started at 32 total on the dyno, but it just made more power at 28, running 93 bp gasoline. A part of the equation was the cam, 235/249/107 in at 105.