I've been reading some places that say 87 and up small blocks had roller cams rather than flat tappet, does anyone know whether or not the LG4 was included in the engines that received roller cams?

 

nevermind, assuming that what David M said is true. "Don't forget the '87 LG4. 170hp, roller cam, one piece rear main seal, last year for the Rochester Q-jet. A very nice little reliable motor!"

 

it is true, they did.

 

so what all would i need to change if i went with a lower end, high torque roller cam?

 

Just swap the cam for your chosen factory-style roller cam (not retrofit roller cam like a non-roller block would require), reuse everything else.

 

I'm thinking of getting the XR258HR (08-408-08)

[7] Stock springs cannot be used.

[15] 50-State legal on ‘93 & earlier S.B. Chevrolet V8, 262-400 c.i., C.A.R.B. E.O. #D-279-4.

[11] Lifters only, does not include lifter retainers or guides.

[2] Requires machining on cylinder heads.

[3] Valve spring oil shield available.

What does it mean by requires machining on cylinder heads? When I put the cam in I'll have 1.94/1.50 with combustion chambers milled down to 58cc on my LG4. Should I worry about changing anything besides the stock springs? My car's at 52k original miles.
I was under the assumption that I could just change the springs and put in the camshaft from the previous posts, but now I'm not sure.

edit: I'll also be going with CC167CS from EngineQuest, I'm not going with the vortec style because I don't really want to swap out the intake manifold, unless there's a fairly cheap one that'll fit my old Q-jet unless it's that much of an improvement/necessity.

Since I went "ram air", should I consider a performance fuel pump or is that a waste of time/money? I haven't done any adjustments to the Q-jet besides loosening up the AV.

Lastly, with 2055's, catco 3" in/out cat, 3" GMMG (or Hooker 16823HKR) cat-back, the 1.94/1.50 heads, and the XR258HR (08-408-08), what kind of HP/Torque should I be looking at? CamQuest seems off with 346 HP @ 5500 RPM and 372.7 ft-lb @ 4000..

 

Here's the link to the cam card I found:

http://www.compcams.com/Cam_Specs/Ca...?csid=185&sb=2

What the install notes are telling you, basically, is that the lift of the cam is too much for stock, unmodified heads. .480/.487 is beyond what most stock heads can take. The "machining" they refer to is almost certainly to open up valve guide-to-retainer clearance. And, of course, stock springs are almost never adequate for use with any performance cam.

You can keep using the stock lifters. Install notes relate to their replacement lifters not coming with springs or any other hardware.

 

Thanks, but how exactly would I go about opening up valve guide-to-retainer clearance? I figured the upgrade in heads would do it.

 

What head upgrade? You didn't mention anything about different heads in this thread.

Edit: I notice you mention 1.94/1.50 valves and having the chambers milled down to 58cc. Should we assume you are installing Vortec heads? If so, they still won't take more than about .470" without having the guides milled down for a higher lift cam. This is a common procedure for a machine shop and won't cost much money to have it done. While they have the springs out to to upgrade them they can perform the necessary procedure to cut them down for more lift clearance.