Cam Recommendation

Looking to put a new cam into my 69 Nova this winter, curious if you guys had any good recommendations for a street/strip car - non daily driver, mostly a weekend warrior - but must have good street manners -
working with a Chevy Small block 350 bored .30 over 9:5:1 Compression Pistons

Carb: Holley 4150 750 cfm - 1 inch open spacer
Intake: Edelbrock Performer Rpm Air Gap
Heads: Edelbrock Performer Rpm Aluminum
Rockers: Comp Cams Pro Magnum 1.6 Roller Rockers
Current Cam - Lunati Bracket Master Hydrualic Flat tappet lifter 480/480 Lift - 292 Ad. Duration - 109/107 Lobe Sep.
Headers (not sure the size)
Trans: automatic th 350 w/shift kit 2,500 Stall
Rear: 10 bolt 8.5 Inch ring - 3.42 ratio
Street Tires

On somewhat of a budget want to stay away from a full roller motor, looking to move to a solid lifter cam not sure of the pros and cons of the situtation but i would really appriciate the help, thanks fellas.

You can and will get a lot of advice on this. Unless you are up on engine building dynamics I would select a major cam mfg and ask their tech dept, based on the above info, what they recommend for a cam choice.

Given your current trans/gear/converter combination, I would suggest Comp XS274S. That's 236/242 @ .050" lift, .501/.510" lift on a 110 LSA. Solid/flat tappet. Excellent grind. Recently used it in place of "Z/28 2nd design race" factory grind in a 355. Man was worried we couldn't get it to run as well as the Chevy grind. WRONG! He is offically "afraid" of it now. We recommend the use of restrictors in the back of the block to keep the oil in the bottom end where it's most needed. These cams are particularly effective in the 9.5:1 compression engines.

Jim

I am running a hydraulic roller in my 350 with the etec heads same intake and an 800cfm carb, have the hydraulic roller edlebrock 2201 cam, 539/548 in lift 238/250 or something along those lines, wouldn't go much over 550 in lift if you want nice manners on street, with a solid lifter cam you will save alot on lifters but you will have to relash your valves every month or so which is kinda a pain, check out tonybarkerracingenignes.com, they can give you alot of advice and help you pick the right cam for your setup

70camino,

Solid cams have come a long way since the old 327s. THAT'S where the myth of re-adjusting lash "every month" comes from. Chevy used the same crimped nuts for adjustment, they used on the hydraulic cams. The "slapping" of the rocker would eventually loosen up the adjustment. The 289 "High Performance" (271 HP) Ford had the same issue.

Today, we use good rocker studs and "poly-locks". This system, when geometry is correct, and high quality parts used, does not "back off". We have MANY street engines of various families out there with solids. Most "check" the lash once a year, but seldom are any adjustments required.

Remember that for 65 years, solids were the only lifter out there. Nothing new...

Hydraulic rollers, while "the rage", are quickly becoming obsolete. Comp and Crower both offer solid roller lifters that have positive oiling (key feature) to the wheels. Comp has introduced a whole line of solid roller street cams with XE technology. They use a little less spring pressure than conventional solid rollers and have profiles that don't beat the valve train to death under low-speed operating conditions. For the small block, the "Beehive" springs are readily available, and the "hot lick".

We hear the argument that the factories use hydraulic rollers so they "must be the best". Not necessarily true. The factory has a TON of compromises that must be made. By using the hydraulics, they avoid the complaints of the noise and the warranty problems that inevitably come from owner abuse. Since we build engines as "custom entities", we can (and do) build to a specific requirement, and the individual customer will accept the responsibility for his or her own engine. That is, they will maintain it properly and drive it for the intended purpose. Since the factory can't predict who is going to buy it, OR how it's going to be used or abused, they go with the best compromise solution.

FWIW

Jim

Jim, nicely done!!

just trying to help and pass on what I've always been told. Had a solid lifter cam before the current one I have and it needed adjustment evrey 3 months or so, and I ran the car maybe once or twice a week, but you obviously are a lot more knowledgable than me.

70camino,

No sweat, dude. We hear this a lot. Time marches on! This is actually the main reason I post on sites like this one. Too many "myths and superstitions" propegate like wildfire, and the real story gets lost in the shuffle. As a current engine builder with leading-edge performance, I like the truth to go out, and folks can benefit from it. The more educated people are in the hobby, the better shops like ours look!

Jim

well played, I'll be sure to ask you for advice on my next build