I finally pulled the trigger. The "FIX" is on its way!

[Kern Dog]

Upon the advice of many great members here and on FABO, I have made a decision on a fix for my problems. The 440/493 has had problems with detonation. Also, it has always felt as if it should have made more power. It registered 369 HP on a chassis dyno several years ago after it was first built. That number never impressed me much.
I ordered a Lunati solid lifter cam, EDM lifters, new valvesprings and Comp Cams break in lube. Summit didn't have the cam in stock, they are having it drop shipped. By next weekend I hope to have the parts and be ready to get it all together. I have the Milodon 6 quart Hemi panand pickup and the super cool Jegs gasketless windage tray too. I hope my only local speed shop has the right legth pushrods. I'd hate to have to wait 2 or 3 days more!

 

[thomas93254]

Hope it makes the power your looking for. What is the grind on the new cam?

Thomas

 

[Cranky]

I have a drawer full of different length push rods lol

 

[Kern Dog]

The new cam has 261/271 degrees of duration @ .050 and the lift is 576/600 with my 1.6 rockers. After deducting for valve lash, it drops to .556/.578. 108 LSA. I have had trouble finding the degree of the intake closing on the cam. RustyRatRod has the same cam waiting to go in a project and said he'd look at the cam card. Mine is going to be drop shipped from Illinois here to Northern CA. I won't see it until late next week. I was hoping to get the specs to crunch the numbers on my dynamic compression ratio. The grind # is Lunati 30210912. I've never ran a solid lifter cam, but I understand that they rev faster than a hydraulic. I don't mind having the mechanical tapping noise.

 

[Supershafts]

Why didn't you get a roller.... You do know what you have to do to break that cam in with the springs

 

[Kern Dog]

I couldn't justify the cost of the roller cam and all the associated stuff. I understand thet SuperShafts is a huge proponent of roller stuff, but I just didn't want to spend the money there.
Regarding breaking in the solid cam, are you referring to the break in using lighter springs? I read about that elsewhere but I don't recall the specifics.

 

[Supershafts]

You need to break in using lighter springs, or remove the inner springs. Then after it's break in remove the lighter springs and put the correct springs in.
The roller expense will make more power, since the roller will have opening and closing rates the flat will not without any wear

 

[Meep-Meep]

Why did you go with a 108 lobe separation cam on a big inch stroker? With that much motor a 114 would have made for a great street commuter with plenty of power to burn the rear tires down.

Like super says, cam break in with no inner spring or you will likely kill it. This is why I don't look at radical cam grinds for street cars. Anything that requires 140 lbs or more of seat pressure won't last and you need to dick around with special break in procedures. Or I guess you can run the roller but those are not invincible either.

 

[Kern Dog]

The springs included on the Edelbrock heads were rated at 140/317 lbs. The Edelbrock springs are single. I've read about using valvesprings from an old engine since they will be much weaker than a new set.

 

[Meep-Meep]

I don't see why you couldn't do that for break in.

 

[bigmanjbmopar]

369?? wow that is low, mine makes 535, with stock heads you should be well into the 450's+ good luck hope the fix works :headbang:

 

[lewtot184]

108lsa? thats more of the same. no asymetrical lobe?

 

[Kern Dog]

Wow... lots of critics!
I was wrestling with a cam choice since I first posted about this! RustyRatRod recommended the cam.
Assymentrical lobes? doesn't that mean lobes with different rates on intake and exhaust? That is what this cam has. 261 degrees duration Intake, 271 degrees Exhaust, both @ .050. The lift is .578 INT, .600 EXH with my 1.6 rockers. lash is .020/.022 INT/EXH for a net lift of .558/.578. The LSA of 108 wasn't my frist choice but with a cam this radical, is it even possible to have a wider LSA?
I don't claim to know much about high performance cams. As I stated several times before, this engine is my first big inch, high performance engine. I've built stock stroke 440s, 360s, Chevy stuff....But NO other engine in my past had this many cubes, this high compression and all the other stuff. RustyRatRod took the time to help me after seeing over 300 responses in my various threads. While I appreciate the others that chimed in, nobody else ever stepped up with a specific cam choice. Of those that had cam advice, all I recall are suggestions like..."you need a cam with a later intake closing" or something like..."You need a cam arouns 250-260 degrees of duration..." I talked with guys at Comp cams. I talked with guys at Mancini racing, Hensley Performance, even Dwayne Porter. NONE of them stepped up. Maybe they didn't want to be held against the wall if it turned out that I wasn't happy with the cam they selected. Either way, RRR took the initiative to spell it out for me and I appreciate it.
The cam and EDM lifters are due in soon. I need to change the valve springs, so I'm going to make a tool for spring removal. Summit estimated a 2 week delivery for their Powermaster tool since it is on backorder. I spent $5 on metal. I expect to make 2 or 3 of them to sell or give to friends.

 

[Kern Dog]

The cam and lifters arrived yesterday. Now that all the stuff is here, I am tempted to delay the job until I can get some help with "Degreeing in the cam." In the past, I have taken too many shortcuts and thrown stuff together. I'm certain that THIS is why I am still trying to make the engine reach its potential. It runs strong, but when I bring myself to fine tune all the details, it should be even better.

 

[62 Dart Convertible]

The cam and lifters arrived yesterday. Now that all the stuff is here, I am tempted to delay the job until I can get some help with "Degreeing in the cam." In the past, I have taken too many shortcuts and thrown stuff together. I'm certain that THIS is why I am still trying to make the engine reach its potential. It runs strong, but when I bring myself to fine tune all the details, it should be even better.

Degreeing the cam is very straightforward as long as you have the degree wheel, a dial indicator and the means to adjust it if it ain't right (multi-keyed crank sprocket or offset bushes.) Years ago I was too tight for a degree wheel, I used my kids plastic school protractor, but still more accurate than just lining up the dots. I say straight forward with the engine out and on a stand with the heads off. If engine is still in car with heads on it would be a PITA!! Good luck Greg.