360 Cam Recommendation

[74j20]

Who has an opinion on what Camshaft I should install in my 74 J-20, 360CI, Edlebrock performer manifold and Edlebrock 4BBL..T18A with Dana 60 rear and 44 front..I use this both on and off road so I want to keep my low end performance..something that will really help in the 1500-3500 RPM range..I have used the Edlebrock Cam and Lifters in the past but wanted to get some other opinions before I go that route again..thanks Charley

[JeepFreak]

If you are already running the Performer intake than it would be best to run the Performer cam as well. I have ran many different grinds of cams and the Performer is a well rounded cam. Plus it is cheaper than most others offered.

[porkchop]

I run the summit cam. It has a 282* duration. It was only $84 for the cam and lifters. I have the edelbrock intake and carb and this cam works great with them.

[JeepFreak]

Hey Bryant, what's the lift on that cam? That's a great price and will be needing one for the wifes rig.

[porkchop]

I have the grind sheet at home. I will post all the specs when I get home.

[nightflyers]

Right now I run the Edelbrock performer intake, cam and a Q-jet. I have been very happy with this setup except for the Q-jet being a PITA to adjust.

[David Simon]

I bought the same one as Porkchop. It's got 1500 miles on it now and no problems and good idle. I can't find the specs, but they have them on their website at www.summitracing.com. (http://www.summitracing.com.)

Good luck.
David

[porkchop]

Ok here is the info. This is from the card and from the web site.

Advertised duration: 272 intake/282 exhaust
Duration at .050 in. cam lift: 214 intake/224 exhaust
Gross valve lift: .472 in. intake/.496 in. exhaust
Lobe separation: 112 degrees
RPM range: 1,500 to 4,500
Good idle quality

Hope this helps your decision.

[Stuka]

The edelbrock gives better off idle torque...having the cam give power starting at 1500rpm's would kinda kill it for me. I run alot of low rpm's when wheeling, because I have ALOT of torque down there.

[jeepbob]

Here we go again! The summit cam has just a little more lift than the Edelbrock so you would lose a LITTLE low end but not much. You did not mention your axle ratios which is very important. I have run a cam with the same specs as the Edelbrock in my wag with a 360 and an edelbrock RB4 intake with a 600 cfm Holley with 4.10 gears and was disappointed with it both on and off road. I pick up a little across the board but not as much as I had hoped. I put the same set up in my 304 CJ with 33's and 3.54 gears and it was great. My guess is that I should have gone with my gut and went with a cam in the 296* /.496 lift intake and 305* /.521exh. range. With the 4.10 gears low end power is not a problem and when I go offroad most of the time I am in low range anyhow so there is never a time when I use low end power. I am either idling along or need mid and upper power. I am also running an automatic tranny which is more forgiving than a manual on cam selection. My intake is good from 1500 to 6500 rpm. It is a higher rise than a performer with longer runners which increase low end torque. I feel that the cam I am looking for will give me what I am looking for the grind is similar to the stock 401 cam in duration with higher lift.
Well, this is my opinion and you asked.
BTW Summit has the cam and I will be trying it.

[WillyPete]

hey, ah, while we're on cams, what're the specs for a 360 and a 401 cam? i have the specs somewhere, but i think they're kinda wrong. my specs for the 401 look more like a drag cam, and the 360 looks mostly right cept for the lobe seperation and the intake centerline.

thanks

[TimB]

Let me stir the pot a bit. I put the Edelbrock Performer intake, cam and Edelbrock Performer Q-Jet carb on my '66 Jeepster Commando w/Buick 252 ci V-6, (by the way, the cam for this engine is the same cam as the old TRW EP-2, two steps over stock. Their other cams for other engines might also be the same grind). What a crappy cam! Not good vacuum, idle, mileage or low-end. On reccomendation from my tune-up guru, I had him pull the Performer cam and install a Sealed Power stock replacement cam. Not an inexpensive endeavor, but it paid off in spades. Great idle, vacuum, mileage and best of all it's got way more low-end grunt! Previous to doing this, I had a Buick Performance shop's RV cam in my '70 Waggie along with a dual-plane intake, similiar to the Edelbrock Performer and the same Q-Jet, (#1904), as on the Jeepster. Same sub-standard idle, vacuum, mileage and low-end. I had my tune-up man install a Sealed Power stock replacement cam and it was like night and day. This is what made me decide to ditch the Edelrock cam in the Jeepster. If you want good idle, vacuum, mileage and bottom-end grunt, I highly reccomend a Sealed Power stock replacement cam. Edelbrock's Performer intake, Q-Jet carbs and timing chain sets are great, but I would stay away from their and other's performance cams unless you plan to race.

[fas2c]

I posted these last week on Irc for MillerluckEngine Specs (http://www.froadin.com/eng_specs.html)
hope it helps smile.gif

[Stuka]

Well TimB,

Buick engines are alot different then AMC engines.

So that isnt a fare comparison at all.

And the cam you mentioneed isnt available for AMC engines afaik anyways.

[TimB]

Unfortunately I'm on the road and don't have a Sealed Power catalog in front of me, but I'd be surprised if they didn't have a stock replacement cam for the AMC engines. My 401 Waggie had a Comp Cams HE-260. If I had the money then, I would have replaced it with a HE-255. If I still had the vehicle now, I'd have a Sealed Power stock replacement cam in it if there is one. Yes, Buicks and AMC's are different as are Chevy's and Ford's, but if you look at aftermarket cam specs from Comp Cams, Crane, etc., you'll see they use the same grind for the same cam for all motors pretty much. Stock cams from mfgr's usually vary greatly, as do stock replacement cams. The mfgr's do a lot of R&D on each engine. The aftermarket mfgr's tend to do their R&D on a SBC and use the same grinds on all the engines. It's pretty hard to increase power without increasing the power range that it comes in. With higher power in the higher range, low-end power is usually sacrificed. Under 3000 rpm is where it's at. Look for peak torque figures in the 2500-2800 range and you'll have great low end. High HP ratings that come in above 3500 rpm usually mean less torque in the under 2500 rpm range that we all use the majority of the time.

[Ralph]

The Sealed Power stock-grind cam is Part No. CS646. I got this one because an old FSJ'er named Mike Baxter advised me that it was the best all-around grind.

http://fs3.dotphoto.com/MemberImages/180113/iA9C3CE3D-0A02-444B-856F-7BC748E8A686.jpg

[Dome]

74j20, All your Email Notification emails are bouncing (back to me). I have closed this thread and opened another one by the same name. Please post all reply's to this thread there (http://www.ifsja.org/cgi-bin/ubbcgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=2&t=005145). Thanks guys. 74j20, please fix your email before adding Email Notification to any more topics.