High-Performance Chevy Small-Block Cams & Valvetrains

Camshafts and the engine valvetrain tend to be shrouded in and aura of mystery and misinformation when it comes to engine performance, which — unfortunately — gets passed down from generation to generation. Camshaft selection is crucial for extracting the most horsepower ut of your engine, and this book will help you make the right choice. Author Graham Hansen takes the mystery out of camshaft and valvetrain selection, their function and design, by first covering camshaft basics which explains how the cam operates in conjunction with the valvetrain and the rest of the engine. Terms like cam lobe centerline, duration lift and more are throughly discussed. As are rocker arms, valves, valve springs, pushrods and more. High-Performance Chevy Small-Block Cams & Valvetrains is a must-read book for the DIY mechanic trying to get all the available horsepower out of their small-block Chevy engine, whether for street or the racetrack.
Book Excerpt: High-Performance Chevy Small-Block Cams & Valvetrains HOW TO CHOOSE A CAM

Now that we have a decent handle on the secret language of camshafts and perhaps an appreciation of what the valve train has to endure in a typical street performance engine, it's time to put all this knowledge to work by choosing a camshaft for your next performance small-block. And it is here that many enthusiasts forget what they've learned and go straight to the biggest "lumpy" cam they can find. Perhaps it is all this complex engineering that sucks the romance out of performance engines. But if you let your enthusiasm, or worse yet - your buddy's Kentucky Windage choice of a big cam to color your decision, then you don't need to read this chapter. But chances are that if you've plowed your way through most of this book to get to this point, you're here because you want to learn. So let's get started. The first think we need to do when deciding on a camshaft for any small block is to honestly answer a few questions about how this cam is to be applied. Being honest here is critical. How is this engine to be used? Is it a mild street engine that is to be driven to school every day with an occasional jaunt down the quarter mile, or is this more of a hot street engine that only comes out on Saturday night and only to impress that snobby cruise crowd at the Boffo Burger? Car weight, auto or manual transmission, rear gear ratio, induction and exhaust system configuration, and a host of other factors all play a part in this concert that's directed by the camshaft. Once you have an idea of the basic cam specs, you're not done yet. Budget comes into play here since we can go with a flat tappet hydraulic, or mechanical if you're looking to do this on a budget. Or, you could spend a little more cash and step up to a roller. Hydraulic rollers are hot right now, but our money is on the mechanical roller if you're looking to make power since we can squeeze a good spring on top of this application and make it work. But now we're talking about an engine that probably spends most of its time in the garage and not on the street.

Subject: Chevy Small-Block camshaft and valvetrain high-performance how-to. ISBN-10: 1613250568 | ISBN-13: 9781613250563 | CarTech SA105P