From: hotrod@dixie.com (The Hotrod List)
Subject: Re: ... and cams
Date: Fri, 22 Jan 93 22:04:34 GMT
Organization: Dixie Communications Public Access.  The Mouth of the South.
To: hotrod@dixie.com
Reply-To: hotrod@dixie.com
Posted-Date: Friday, Jan 22 17:04:29
X-Sequence: 3591
X-Gifs-To: met@sunset.cse.nau.edu
X-Gifs-From: ftp.nau.edu

[ Lots'a stuff deleted... ]

>>> The cam is currently installed in a 1981 bone-stock 350, with a Holley 650c
>>> double-pumper with 50cc front accellerator pump and Edelbrock power-plate
>>> on the primary side, Edelbrock Performer intake, Heddmann hedders, 2 1/2"
>>> dual exhaust and Flowmaster mufflers. 

>>If that's bone stock what would you consider a built up engine?

>He doesn't say anything about the compression, rods, pistons...  combustion
>chambers, etc.  I guess I am just as guilty as saying an engine is "stock"
>that has had only external modifications [oh yeah, what about that paxton?
>:-]  or parts that could have been ordered on that car from the factory...

Well, with the exception of the minor mods I've listed above the rest of the
engine is bone-stock from the factory (i.e. same heads, compression, bearings,
rings, etc.)  To me, this is nothing major.  My 396 Big-block or my 460 Ford
(soon to be 512 ci :-) ) are a little more major... :-)

>>> The car goes well, but I haven't
>>> gotten a fair run out of it as I haven't finished the drivetrain yet, and
>>> it was a last minute "what the heck, let's throw it together and see what i
>>> will do with the new cam" day.  I need a fuel pump as it puked as I was
>>> driving it to the track and would only push 3 lbs. of fuel pressure; the ca
>>> also still has the stock trans/lockup converter in it too, so it wouldn't
>>> come off the well line at all. The car still ran a 14.406 @ 98 mph, wheel
>>> hopping and all. :-)

>It has lots of room for improvement...   the best thing you could do to 
>improve your ETs is hook up.

I agree.  Come spring time I'm going to be spending quite a few days at the
track to straighten out the traction and carb (after I put in a few more
parts. :-) )  I still have to install the valve springs.  I never bothered
as I didn't have time before final race day.  I'm also going to put in 1.6 
roller rockers (yeah, I've had problems with stock ones before, but it's not
a mega-lift cam, so I'm not worried about it.  It's seen 6+ grand so many times
and hasn't blown lunch yet, but better safe than sorry.)  They should bring
the valve lift up to .512", which should build just a tad more power...
(like Tim Allan says:  OOOh, OOOh, MORE POWER!!!!)

The car currently has 3.73 rear end gears, and the stock TH350 tranny.  I may
be putting in a TH700R4 trans, which means I can cruise nicely down the highway
again, and have an even better launch in first gear (3.00 in the 700R4 vs.
2.52 in the TH350.)  Plus, with the stall converter, I figure I should be
getting much better short times.

At the same time I took my car to the track, my friend brought his '81 Z up.
We had just installed a Chevy ZZ1 engine (I think it was the ZZ1, it's the one
rated at 350hp.)  He only got 2 runs out of the car, but with 4-spd, 3.42 rear
gears and a loose nut behind the wheel (tm) he was running 13.60's blazing the
tires and not power-shifting.  We figure mid-low 12's easy once we get the
thing hooked up.  So I figure with my slush-box and some tweaking, mid 13's are
eaisly attainable, especially if I put in the 700R4.

>>> Oh, and it does have one hell of a lump at idle - the lobe separation tends
>>> to do that.  I wasn't really looking for a cam with that large a separation
>>> but I got a deal - new pushrods, valve springs, lifters and cam for $125.00
>>> but I had to pick/choose from what he had on hand.  And this was the cam I
>>> was looking for with a slightly wider lobe sep., so I grabbed it figuring
>>> I could just use it to experiment with it at that price, and swap it out
>>>later.

>Oh, you're one of those guys running around with a golden horse shoe up your
>anus, huh?  One of my friends was _given_ a complete Chevy II big-block
>fron clip, complete with fenderwell headers, rack and pinion, oil pan, etc.
>just because the guy liked him.  SHIT!  A woman gave me the crabs once,
>but that doesn't quite count!  ;-)

Geez, I blow $125 in a good weekend out drinking with my buddies.  I figured
my beer money could be saved for a week or two, then I could buy a few cases 
and this cam kit and really have a blast installing it... :-)  Oh, and did
the crabs help work on the car?  If so, they count...

-- Steve

P.S.  In another article, someone asked the brand of the parts.  The cam and
lifters were Blue Racer parts made by Wolverine (they supposedly produce cams
for other companies such as Comp Cams and Crane once in a while or on a 
semi-regular basis, I didn't quite get all the sales garbage down yet, or know
if I believed the guy as he was out to make a buck...) Anyway, I had used them
before, and never had a problem.  The pushrods were Manleys I think, and I
can't remember who the valve springs were from.  
-- 
   Steven T McClure     '84 GPZ 750 Turbo pilot          stm0@gte.com
GTE Government Systems         DoD #0425              
  Needham, Ma. 02194            /*  Insert standard disclaimer here. */
Beta software: 'beta than nothing, and that's usually all it is...

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Posted by: emory!gte.com!stm0 (Steven McClure)
Newsgroups: alt.hotrod,wiz.hotrod