What exactly is a "three quarter" cam
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 2,042
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From: Lincolnton, NC
Car: 88 IROC
Engine: 97 5.7 Vortec LT4 hotcam
Transmission: 700 r4
Axle/Gears: 3.73
Joined: Feb 2017
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From: Meriden, CT 06451
Car: 84 TA orig. 305 LG4 "H" E4ME
Engine: 334 SBC - stroked 305 M4ME Q-Jet
Transmission: upgraded 700R4 3200 stall
Axle/Gears: 10bolt 4.10 Posi w Lakewood TA Bars
Re: What exactly is a "three quarter" cam
What about the rubber cam? The faster you spin it, the bigger the lobe gets.
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Joined: Nov 2016
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From: Connecticut
Car: 1991 Camaro RS
Engine: Hot 355ci
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Axle/Gears: 4:10
Re: What exactly is a "three quarter" cam
My buddy's brothers son has a 3/4 cam and pop up Pistons, and a dominator on his tpi 350 and it makes 450 whp, car is INSANE!
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From: Las Vegas
Car: Fourth Gen '94 camaro
Engine: 350 Gen II
Transmission: A4
Axle/Gears: 3.23
Re: What exactly is a "three quarter" cam
If you find an oldHot Rod magazine from the 60's or even 70's some of the crate motor advertisers used that fraction designation to sell their mail order motors that way. Not sure if the Hot Rod magazine used those terms also but their advertisers sure did. The hobbiest public was pretty naive back then and the market for junk crate motors was fairly profitable.
It wasn't until the 90's that I got to visit those so called engine build shops in the LA basin. I found one shop only had a box strapping machine for a machine shop but the guy at the counter guaranteed me he could get any motor work done I requested - sorry can't recall their name but have several I'd like to call them. A place called Larry's didn't even have a shop to visit. And when I finally located one shop it was to scary looking to get out of the car and go in.
I think the internet has helped identify bad information and bad businesses thought hasty owners still get ripped off.
But ya know I will call a very large duration cam a Full Race Cam as I wouldn't use it on a street motor. Take it or leave it.
It wasn't until the 90's that I got to visit those so called engine build shops in the LA basin. I found one shop only had a box strapping machine for a machine shop but the guy at the counter guaranteed me he could get any motor work done I requested - sorry can't recall their name but have several I'd like to call them. A place called Larry's didn't even have a shop to visit. And when I finally located one shop it was to scary looking to get out of the car and go in.

I think the internet has helped identify bad information and bad businesses thought hasty owners still get ripped off.
But ya know I will call a very large duration cam a Full Race Cam as I wouldn't use it on a street motor. Take it or leave it.
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Joined: Sep 1999
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From: Colorado USA
Car: '83 Firebird (T/A Clone)
Engine: 350 with L-69 components
Transmission: 700R-4, 2000 RPM stall converter
Axle/Gears: 10-bolt/3.73 ..
Re: What exactly is a "three quarter" cam
I'm no expert on the subject, but I think it just means a high performance
Cam that is still streetable and therefore stops short of being a full-race
Cam...
Cam that is still streetable and therefore stops short of being a full-race
Cam...
Joined: Feb 2017
Posts: 4,184
Likes: 574
From: Meriden, CT 06451
Car: 84 TA orig. 305 LG4 "H" E4ME
Engine: 334 SBC - stroked 305 M4ME Q-Jet
Transmission: upgraded 700R4 3200 stall
Axle/Gears: 10bolt 4.10 Posi w Lakewood TA Bars
Re: What exactly is a "three quarter" cam
Unfortunately cam companies are still using the term.
http://www.jegs.com/i/Crane-Cams/271/100082/10002/-1
https://www.iskycams.com/the-racing-cam-series.html
https://www.crower.com/camshafts/for...camshafts.html
At least Crower dumped this term on the not-so-smart Ford and Import crowd.
Chevy people are smarter.
Supreme Member




Joined: Sep 1999
Posts: 3,030
Likes: 822
From: Colorado USA
Car: '83 Firebird (T/A Clone)
Engine: 350 with L-69 components
Transmission: 700R-4, 2000 RPM stall converter
Axle/Gears: 10-bolt/3.73 ..
Re: What exactly is a "three quarter" cam
Interesting how the only thing that makes that Crane cam nasty is the 106 degree LSA.
Other than that, it's not real aggressive...
Other than that, it's not real aggressive...
Re: What exactly is a "three quarter" cam
Member
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 141
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From: CT unfortunately
Car: 86 TA, 00 Z28
Engine: L31 Build in Progress
Transmission: NWC T5 till it blows
Re: What exactly is a "three quarter" cam
this thread was a nice blast from the past to when I had first joined.
I do love the quirky terms they used in my dads old car mags. about the time disco stripes were gracing the covers.
I do love the quirky terms they used in my dads old car mags. about the time disco stripes were gracing the covers.
Re: What exactly is a "three quarter" cam
TECH QUICKIE: What is a ‘3/4 Race’ Camshaft?
By MIKE MAGDA AUGUST 31, 2015
Occasionally the term “¾ race cam” pops up in conversation, usually with veteran hot rodders or nostalgia groups. Sometimes you’ll see it in print ads and online product listings. From a purely technical viewpoint it means little in the way of explaining a camshaft’s performance potential. It’s just one of those glorious reminders of the early days when camshaft grinders had furious rivalries on the track and in the media. It’s also a significant milestone in a developing enterprise that snowballed into what we now recognize as the street-performance market.
The original 3/4 race cams are the forerunners of today’s street-performance grinds.The term likely originated in the ‘50s as the burgeoning hot-rod industry was modifying Ford Flatheads to drag race on airport runways and attempt top-speed runs on dry lake beds. The legendary Ed Winfield was one the early pioneers in grinding camshafts with more aggressive lobe profiles, and the cams were often labeled as full race for promotional purposes.
“And then some guys wanted a milder cam that could also be used on the street, so they called it a three-quarter race cam because it didn’t have as much duration and lift,” explains John MacKichan of the Speedway Motors Museum of American Speed in Lincoln, Nebraska.
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Joined: Oct 2015
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From: The Peach State
Car: '88 GTA
Engine: 355 SBC, AFR 195 heads, Stealth Ram
Transmission: 700r4
Joined: Mar 2000
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From: Orange, CA
Car: '90 Trans Am-12.45@110.71
Engine: 355 w/AFR 195's Elem. 400/430 HP/TQ
Transmission: Tremec T-56
Axle/Gears: 12 Bolt 3.73
Re: What exactly is a "three quarter" cam
Well, it's 1/4 short of a full race.
Joined: Mar 2001
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