What is the highest lift cam you can use with the stock heads and stock intake? Probably like 204/214?

 

it'd help to know which stock heads and intake. about .45 to .47 is about all the cam you can run before you get into problems with the stock parts

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ICON Motorsports

1st & 3rd

 

Do you mean lift or duration?

 

Sorry I meant 204/214 duration at 0.50

 

The problem comes into how high the lift is going to be with the stock springs. I wouldn't go more than .420/.450 lift. As for duration, it all depends on your intake system. If stock I would think 204/214 would be pretty big. If you had some intake mods like larger TB unit and larger injectors w/custom chip I'd say something like 208/218. Ask local shops. I know Shane was running ~320hp with a 214/224 .471/.496 but that wasn't stock springs. Please don't reuse stock springs, you'll just be asking for trouble, when they break they = big problems like valve damage, chip pistons, bent pushrods, and just simply FUBAR. Shane was also running that on a 350 with vortec heads. Vortecs are the best cast iron heads GM has ever come out with, even makes more hp (in most cases) than the vette aluminum heads, go figure. Just weight 100lbs more
Post this in the general tech and motor swap and you should get a better responce. It seems like most of the guys here aren't even bothering with a cam swap, just looking for free mods to hold them out till they swap in a 5.7L (hehe..like me )

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, Jon (91 RS too many mods to list), getting new engine in summer

 

Yeah the stock springs are very weak and I've heard the stories about going past the redline and then all of a sudden hearing some bad noises. I'd like to go with some new springs but I'm only 16 so I don't have a lot of money to spend so I think I'm just going to port the factory intake and heads then maybe buy the cam.

 

Word of advice from somebody that was in the same shoes. Wait on it, save up for something you KNOW you'll be happy with. If you don't set that kind of goal you're going to end up spending a lot of money on imbetweens and then it'll take longer to get it to the place you like. Do the cheap mods (sure you have) then get headers. The reason I say headers is because they're generic bolt on. They'll work with all chevy small blocks. So 305 now, 383 later, headers are just a must. Read all the posts here, get a good feeling of what you want, dream about it then do it. I worked 3 jobs every summer for 3 summers in high school, then 2 jobs part time during school just to have my maro but I spent a lot of time and money imbetween. Now look at me, soph in college, working my *** off, restoring a camaro to tip top condition. Don't do the cam swap unless you're going to change springs or you're going to be so sorry you didn't wait.

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, Jon (91 RS too many mods to list), getting new engine in summer