which cam and torque converter for a mostly stock 383.....

[bigblockpolara]

Hey guys, I have a question....I am rebuilding my 72 RR. It has a 1967 383 engine that has been bored 40 over with stock compression. The heads are 3906 stock rebuilt magnum heads. It has a 323 8 3/4 rear end. I want to keep the power disc brake set up in the car. I am running a 727 automatic. The car is apart and now is the perfect time to search for the "right" torque converter and cam for what I am looking for. I am looking for a cam that will give me an aggressive "lumpy" sound at idle while still being able to utilize my power brakes and with no further mods to the heads or pistons. I can use a vacuum canister if necessay. It will have headers with flow masters. The car will NEVER see the track, so I am really leaning toward street performance with reliability. It will have a dual plane intake and edlebrock carb.I have not purchased a torque converter yet either. Which stall should I use? As I don't have much money to change things...any experience with what I need would be greatly appreciated!!!

 

[Cranky]

You want a car that sounds mean but has the bite of a kitten? Just go with the stock type Road Runner cam and factory converter that came in them. It'll have decent go and will sound good too.

 

[Mebsuta]

I used an Isky 270 Mega Cam in 383 RR for a little while. That series of cams have 108 degree LSA vs 115 LSA for the factory cam, so it had more overlap and was more choppy than the factory cam. I think it was a little too much cam for what I want to do, but sometimes I am tempted to put it back in there just out of curiosity, or try a 264 or 262 Isky.

Comp says their 268H High Energy is good 383HP replacement cam. It has a 110 LSA and also a little more overlap than factory cam. I think those are kind of aggressive will make some valvetrain noise, though.

What I use now is the factory RR cam. It had a little skip to it until I advanced it 4 at the crank. Now it's pretty smooth when it's warmed up. I am also sometimes tempted to replace it with something even smaller to concentrate that car's power down low where I drive it. I would try a lot of stuff if it wasn't such a PITA to change cams.

 

[Cranky]

And I'm talking about the stock cams that came out in 68-69.......and those could run a high 14 with some tuning with the stock parts that came on them and could easily do it with an intake change and headers and a bit more gear. Of course, back then high 14's was respectable. Heck, my 71 all stock 340 automatic Cuda with only headers and a gear ran a 14.0 on street tires with the stock air cleaner on it and everyone knows how restrictive those damn things were and the engine didn't have any lope to speak of.....

 

[Roadbird]

you want a car that sounds mean but has the bite of a kitten? Just go with the stock type road runner cam and factory converter that came in them. It'll have decent go and will sound good too.

lmfao...lol..lol.

 

[majohnson]

I was comparing the 68-69 383 option since it received a slight hp increase for the 69 model year. Based on what I had read, Mopar had used the heads, cam, and intake from the 68 440 GTX motor to achieve the hp increase. Another options is they do make a 6 pack intake that fits the 383 motor, if you wanted to get creative that might be another ave to research.

 

[SwedCharger67]

I had this cam in my low compression 1969 383 engine...it was too much cam for the low compression engine IMHO...with orig converter and highway gear in the back. Engine probably had less hp than the factory setup.

http://www.compcams.com/Company/CC/cam-specs/Details.aspx?csid=708&sb=0

 

[Meep-Meep]

With the 3.23 gear I'd run a cam with a 112 lobe separation and the MoPar .455" / 272 is a good choice. It's just a little above the Road Runner cam and won't hurt the idle or power brakes. I'm running one in a 440 and love it. Or you can go with the RR cam like Cranky suggests. The 108 LSA cam will make a lot more power but you will suffer in other ways so don't do it.

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A converter with a stall that is about 1000 RPM over stock will be perfect. A 10" or 11" TCI street fighter or similar should work well.