hey guys, i was hoping to get some cam help.
i've got a 64 327-365 in a 64 Corvette, but the motor had an LT-1 solid cam in it as opposed to the original 30-30
Car had close ratio 4 speed and 3.70 gears.

I bought another set of heads that were ported and started running a roller cam (501B1Lun).. I also switched the geaing in the trans from the close ratio 2.20 to the wide ratio 2.56 for a little better off the line perf.

The heads I have must be messed up as that cam is rather small, yet it keeps loading up the plugs and still doesn't really pull very hard... by the way I'm running ramshorn 2.5s and chambered exhaust.. (the car sounds great though and revs very freely, just doesn't make a ton of power like it should) so I'm guessing that the heads are just not right. I know that the manifolds will kill the top end, but it shoudln't hurt the bottom end either and no matter what I do, everything just keeps getting loaded up. The guy who ported them did it himself and just got in and hogged everything out.

so my plan is to sell off all the roller stuff, put the original heads back on and run a solid cam again. I was thinking of using the 30-30 and just keep it original aside from the 2.56 trans. or perhaps using Lunati's 401A3 Lun.. cam... i've heard that that cam makes a ton more usable power over the 30-30 or the LT-1 through 6000 rpm. anyone have any experiance in this?

I dont mind setting lash periodically, so a more modern agressive ramp design isn't a problem, especially if it makes better power.

I don't run the car up past 6k much, but I want it to have a decent lope to it and really pull hard when you get on it. I'm keeping the exhaust manifolds on the car, and the 2.5 chambered system. My original heads have no port work done and the intake is the stock dual plane aluminum one. The only mod the car will have is a recurved distributor, the steeper 1st gear in the trans, and I have a Barry Grant 650 silver claw on the car... which is really responsive... i guess I could put the original holley back on, if I could find a good core to rebuild.

any help would be greatly appreciated.

thanks

aaron

by the way, the heads i have now, are 1957 fuelly castigns, but they were opened up to 2.02s/1.60s and the intake ports and exhaust ports are larger than the intake manifold and exhaust manifolds ports.. so i know that there is some issue there.

the car actually ran equally as good, with the original stock fuelly (camel hump) heads, 2.20 1st gear and old solid LT-1 camshaft (which was like 308-320 adv. 248-254 at .050 and .455=.485 on a 116. which I would think is a pretty lame camshaft.. although dyno results show that you get about 80% peak torque across the entire bandwidth, but even the best dyno results i've seen only show about 300 net horse with that cam using the same parts i have.


the 501b1 roller is much snappier and smoother, but doesn't have nearly the "whip and snap" you'd expect from a roller, and I know the cam isn't the problem... again, I don't want to kill my stock heads...

anyone know of set of fuelly heads that are set up for a roller cam that I could buy cheap/??? I've got headders for the car, I just havn't put them on yet because i'm convinves that the problem is deeper than just the exhaust manifolds... especially becasue it doesn't make a whole ton torque like you'd expect... and when it comes on the cam, it revs but doesn't have that "seat of the pants" pull you'd expect either.

thanks
aaron

I think I'd be calling bullet cams,cam motion,cam innovations for recommendations or go to their websites and fill out all the information they require to suggest a cam for your needs. If your car truly will be a strip/street ride you gotta have headers so it can breathe. Maybe the heads you put on have larger chambers and it destroyed your compression ratio? or...build a 350,406 disquised as a 327, you're asking alot from a 327. I'm one of those "there's no replacement for displacement" kinda guys.

Bob, it isn't the chamber size on the heads...i cc'ed them and I have about 11:25 to 1, so compression definately isn't an issue.

Headders might help some, but I don't agree that they are a must in a street car. i'll never run this thing on the strip and it is a show car so I want it to appear dead stock... plus the ramshorns 2.5 exhaust manifolds are as good as you can get from a manifold. not as good ofcourse as a full length tubular headder, but as far as flow is concerned, they are almost as good as some of the shortie headders... especially from idle to 5500-6000 which is where I'll wind this car up too. and more so in a smaller motor.

i know of guys who have turned 11s consistantly with 327s so again, i don't think my issue is with exhaust or cubic inches.... especially in this case.

no one uses the 401a3lun?

thanks
Aaron

harold, you around?

need some help with this one.

thanks
Aaron

If the heads were ported too large that can lead to a situatioin like this. How much initial timing are you running in the engine? When does your curve come in, and are you running vacuum advance?

the ignition curve is rather fast, I think like 23 degrees all in by 3000 rpm.
I am running 11 initial for a total of 34. I've had it everywhere from 30 to 40 full advance, I am running vaccuum advance, but I even locked it out to be sure it wasn't timing. and I get 15 inches of vaccum at idle with that cam, so I should be more than fine there.

i really believe the problem is that the heads are either too much, or they are ported incorrectly. I was going to drop a set of headders on the car, but that is a ton of work to test out the heads in my opinion especially in a street-show car.

I decided to order up a new cam, Lunati's 401A6Lun but ground on a 112. It is not that different from the old LT-1 cam which was on a 116 and certainly smaller and more efficient than the old Duntov 30-30 which would have been stock in my vette. I"m having the original heads redone now and having the bowls blended a tad and cleaned up. The intake and exhaust ports will all line up again and I should be in business.

that 401a6 I know is a favorite around these parts but in a smaller motor with exhaust manifolds, I think the 112LSA will help out bit.

any thoughts?

Thanks

Aaron