Bad Cam?? Low Vacuum?

[ttyson]

How can you tell a Cam is going bad on a 1992-S-10 4.3 v-6 Vortec? And also, what all causes low vaccum besides leaks?

[amac209]

low vacuum can also caused by incorrect timing worn rings, lean or rich fuel mixture, plugged catalytic convertor, check out this link for the full vacuum story.
http://users.bigpond.net.au/ergoff/vac1.htm
to check for a worn cam remove the valve covers and measure the height of each valve fully closes and fully open. i can't remember what the lift is supposed to be but generally it's camlift x rockerarm ratio.
good luck