Inliners International Forums General Discussion Hi Performance update, and recommedations on cam?

finally i added a 4bbl offy intake and 500 cfm edel. on my 230. wow!!!!!! runs great! much, much, stronger running machine. highly impressed on the upgrades, but,,,, still looking for some more power thats why we all here to do right.? now, need a cam to work with what im running. car weights in at 3100 pounds with me in it, powerglide tranny at 1.82 1st gear, and rear end is a 8.2 with 2.73 open with 205/75/14 wheels. using stock head, what camshaft do you guys think i should use? this will be a daily driver. other than cam and lifters, what else do i need to have? car has 138,000 miles and still has good compression, 130 to 135. on all cylinders. so far, i have a HEI UNIT, 12 SI 78 AMP. alternater, carb and intake now. ofcourse im gonna need some headers, plan to use stovebolt cast iron headers. any ideas would be great. TY

Being a daily driver you could at the very least step up to a 3:08. Cam Wise stay with a hyd cam this way you won't be have to play around with the valve lash. And something in the RV/towing style or a little bigger. But no more then a 500-550 lift. with a lobe seperation 114-110 anything less will give you a ruff idle and could give you vacum issues if you have power brakes. Now seeing that you motor is pushing over 100,000 now would also be a could time to change the cam & crank gear.(to a non fiber set)It would also be wise to install NEW valve springs.

The Comp Cams 260H would be a nice cam for that. Big low and mid range torque as well as decent gas mileage. It should work fine with your stock P'glide convertor. You can keep your stock rockers and pushrods if they are good and use their recommended springs.
Lift is .489 and duration is 212 degrees at .050 if I remember correctly.

Stovebolt's cast headers will be another good improvement.

no power brakes here,,,i can live without em. if i use comp cam 260H , would it be better to run a 3.55 or a 3.73? or do i need a different cam if i use them gears there? thanks for the help so far. ty

I would get rid of the powerglide, that's killing performance. W/a six cylinder, you need all the gearing you can get.
A turbo 350 short tail, drops right in.

Nova dude,
With you wanting to use the car as a daily driver, if I were in your place, I would either use the stock rear axle or go to a 3.08 or 3.36, but no taller than 3.36 or you gas mileage will drop off a LOT. I agree with Hank, I think that a TH350 would be a better trans for street use than a PG, but don't go crazy on the rear end ratios or your top end and gas mileage will both disappear. The Comp Cams 260H will give you plenty of torque right where you need it for the street.

Chevy also made a 3:31. not that you would find one. And there is nothing realy wrong with the glide.I ran it for years on the street with 3:08s @ 16-18pmg.(With a Highly Built 250 and it ran 15s with 3:08 gear & a glide) But a lower first gear would be better yes, be it a AT 350 or a stick 3-4 speed.

Nova Dude, if you do change to a 3:08, another idea/recommendation is using a 200-4R tranny. Its a direct bolt in, just move the crossmember back a few inches. This way you don't have to worry about driveshaft mods. I have started with a Powerslide (ha)but with today's type driving it was obsolete, so I changed to TH350, much better. Then I changed to 200-4R and WOW! Even Better. I run about 2000-2100 RPMs @ 75 MPH. I did these upgrades while I still had my 230 in my car. It runs the same with my 292. Just a few ideas! HAVE FUN!
-Ted

Novadude. A nice all around rear gear with that engine and the Comp 260H cam and those tires would be a 3.50 or a 3.36. The difference isn't that great or would make much difference in mileage. That cam is fuel friendly. I have one in my 250 with 3.36 gears that gives 17+ around town and just under 22 highway. No OD either!

The torque convertor in an automatic will help on getting it rolling from a light for an every day driver and definitely the TH350 over the P'glide for the extra gear and it is a basic bolt in unlike the 700R4 OD trans.

Yes, the 200r4 tranny,I would think it would be a perfect choice for you also,, but their is a big price difference between a turbo 350w/converter & a 200R4w/converter.
Not sure if you want to spend that much money.
But, the 200R4 would be the way to go. Better gear spacing, power glide,gear spacing, uh,,no comment.
PG great if you have big engine big torque. But in your case,,,, the glide(PG), take it out.
200R4:
2.75 first,( .68 OD? )You can run 373's w/a 200R4 & still get decent gas milage & really wake up your 0-60 times.

thanks for the help and advice everyone has givin,,, much appreciated. need a part number for that 260H comp cam? also, plan to use a TH350, any specific year i should use? and the rear end ill run a 3.36 as adviced. whhat do i need for that rear when doing them gears? i wish i could use a 700 or a 200 trans., but no where near my budget. i know i best shop around for a th350, o yeah,, short tail. thanks all so far in helping me out here. ty

I'll post that Comp number for you. Don't have it handy right at the moment.

For simplicity I'd recommend the earlier TH350 that doesn't have the lockup convertor. The very early TH350 also had a drain plug on the pan but only until around 1969. Not a big deal as you can add a plug to the plain pan or even use the earlier pan on a later tranny if you come across one. Just makes routine screen changes less messy.

Sorry for the couple of day wait. I had to dig the cam info out of my paperwork for the car.

Cam: Comp Cams # 61 -233 - 4 ( 260H )

Lifters: Comp Cams # 7812 - 12

New springs from Comp for this cam have the same specs as the stock Chevy springs so if your head has been correctly redone the stock ones will be fine. Don't let anyone try to talk you into using stronger springs, you'll just be spending money and end up hurting the cam.

With 138K miles on the engine you will be amazed what a fresh 3 angle valve job will do for torque. Adding a performance cam is good, but if the valves are leaking compression and the back side oof the valve covered in deposits you won't see the same perforamce increase as with a fresh valve job. Another item to consider is that the valve have an established wear pattern and adding a high lift cam will change that, if the valve stems have any gum build up the first time you fire it up they just might stick open. New valve springs are real good idea especially if you plan on cranking any rpm out. I have a TH350 short tail shaft here that is a good core.. just depends where you live if it makes sense to ship it. $75 takes it way.

Mike ???? how do you figure this one? Stock chevy springs are about 75 to 80# on the seat and about 200# open with a stock cam lift. A stock chevy z28 spring is about 110# on the seat and around 250 to 280# open. I have run the z28 springs for > 80K mile with no cam wear. Just change oil and filter every 3000 miles.

efi-diy.... That is the spring pressure recommended by Comp Cams for that particular cam / lifter combo. It is within a few pounds of the stock Chevy springs. Higher spring pressures are only needed for extreme lobe profiles at high rpm to keep the valves from bouncing off their seats and to return them quickly. The 260H cam is a low to mid range cam and doesn't require revving over 4600 - 4800 rpm. Why would you want more spring than what is needed? Exactly what would be the benefit for a street engine that hardly ever will go over 4000 rpm and more likely will spend most of its life below 3000 rpm? Comp has an equivilent to the Z 28 spring and if it was needed for that cam I have to think they would have it listed. Also this cam is hydraulic and the Z 28 is a solid lifter cam. A slight difference in lobe hardness between a hydraulic and a solid. If the cam in your engine is s solid grind then of course you shouldn't see any premature wear with those springs.

So the way I figure it is simply if his springs are within spec after having the head work done and they will work fine with this cam, then why spend money that is not needed and why spend it on parts that are beyond what is needed.

sorry i took long to respond back. i decided to just go with what comp cams. recommends for springs for that 260h cam. and also use their gear set's they have listed, or should i just get them from my local parts store? as far as any head-work goes, doing any port and polishing, 3 angle valve work, that will come later as my budget permits. i did put in a new valve cover gasket twice in 5 years, and the top of the head looks great, no build up or nothing, nice and clean. i keep up with regular oil changes and all. i purchased this car from a older man 6 years ago, original owner, and he never drove the car hard at all. infact, it had 90,000 miles on the car when i got it, and he had the second set off tires on there from back in the day. them tires were them poly/ something tires. hehe. im not sure what they are called. just thought i share some history on the car. thanks to all who gave great advice. and keep it coming, i sure need it. inliner driver forever. thanks.

You'll want to use a new gear on the cam. The factory cam is fiber and probably well due for replacing with the mileage you say the engine has on it. A replacement gear should be available at any auto parts store and they are usually made of aluminum. One commonly stocked brand of gear is made by Dyna Gear and will cost you about $25. I don't know how much Comp gets for their cam gear.
The new cam gear needs to be shrunk onto the new cam, best done by your machine shop for a few bucks. Bring your old cam with you as the thrust plate and spacer must be transferred onto the new cam or if it is badly worn they will need to install a new one for you.

The crank gear doesn't have to be replaced except in rare instances.

Just make sure the new cam gear when you get it is for a 230 engine and not the heavier duty one for the 292 which has different pitch angle on the teeth and won't work with your crank gear.

Sounds like you have a smart plan that coincides with your budget. Good luck with your progress on the car.

The Cam Gear MUST!!!!! be Heated before installing on the Cam. Other wise you can be asured In short time it will come off Unless It is mechanicly fastened. Because when the gear is not heated Before pressing it on,The Cam Will SHAVE the Gear Leaveing a LOSE fit. SECONDY
always change the Gears as a SET Because they are made as a Matched set esp. a set that has been Made as a degreed SET. This is why when You order a cam gear set IT COMEs as a SET. you don't Get JUST 1.

ill just do both of them at the same time. just to make sure its all good on the gears, and no worries about. ill ask my local machine shop how much they charge. if its too much, ill just do it myself. thanks for all the help guys. thanks you very much for the great advice.

Mike ageed if the stock springs are not used up.