92lt1

im doing a complete motor overhaul and i need some advice. im fairly new to the whole motor world so bare with me. My question is, i have a 89 350 roller motor and im changing everything over to a carb and i ordered a non-roller cam shaft and i was wondering what i need to convert my roller motor to a non roller motor? thanks in advance.

JesasaurusRex

iTrader: (3)

First of all send the cam back and order a roller one. People spend a crap load of time trying to find a 350 roller motor. Since you are new to the scene I wont put you down but Im telling you roller is better than flat tappet so do yourself a favor and sell the block to some one that wants it and get a non roller block from the junk yard or make something of that nice block. Hope that helps out.

Now to answer your question if you dont wanna take my advice, all you need is different length push rods, flat tappet lifters, and a different sproket for your new cam. Everything else should be the same. Hope that helps.

Stekman

The Advocate is right. By putting a flat tappet cam in a roller block you are doing nothing more than taking a step backwards in camshaft technology.

YenkoZL1

DEVILS RIGHT, Roller cam is the only way to go. They're a very reliable cam and hardly gain any wear over time. Stick with the ROLLER setup.

92lt1

the only reason i have this question is b/c i got the cam from a friend and im copying a engine from chevy hiperformance. with there setup, they made 430 ftlbs and 390 hp. my motor is a 355, flat top pistions making 10:1 comp, i have a mild comp cam in there(215 dur 500 lift) stock vortec heads, edelbrock performer rpm intake, 650 holley, 1 5/8 long tube headers, 3'' flowmaster and k/n of course. i have a built 700r4 with a b/m 2000 stall. if any of you could give me a suggestion on what roller cam you would use to get at least those numbers , let me know. thanks brad.

JesasaurusRex

iTrader: (3)

ZZ4 or LT4 you can get both off ebay for just as cheap as a flat tappet cam.

92lt1

will that cam give me the numbers i want?

Black 91 Z28

You might want to try a LT4 Hot Cam. His setup is similar to yours.

https://www.thirdgen.org/techbb2/sho...ht=vortec+carb

Stekman

Dont tell me you bought a USED flat tappet cam.

JesasaurusRex

iTrader: (3)

Yes they both should be right around the same.

92lt1

i got the cam from my cousin who only broke it in before he developed a rod problem. so your telling my my haudrolic cam is no good.

92lt1

devil...
your setup is similar to mine, so i was curious what your horse power and torque numbers are and if you have any track times. thanks brad

JesasaurusRex

iTrader: (3)

Id love to bro but I only got the thing up like 2 weeks ago and havent been able to get it dynoed yet. Right now I cant even keep it running after its warmed up. Its weird cuz its getting spark and fuel. I think I have a huge intake leak like I didnt hardly put any silicon around the front and the back of the block. So I took my intake manifold off and put hella black silicon on the front and back. Putting the intake manifold back on this morning Ill let you know. Gonna take it to the track or dyno or both here soon so keep ya posted. Whats ur set up just curious?

92lt1

its a 92 camaro heritage edition. its white with red heritage stripes. t-tops, cd player, p/w,p/l,p/s. motor you know from the post above. the tranny is a raptor trans with a 2000 b/m stall. the rear is a 373 posi. the suspension is next on the list of things to do. thanks again devil.

JesasaurusRex

iTrader: (3)

Well CHP did like almost the exact same set up should be lil over 400 horses and torque.

92lt1

well i took yalls advice and bought a lt4 hot cam. now i have a question about the pin in the cam can i use the one from the comp cam in my engine now? should i get different rollers. thanks brad

JesasaurusRex

iTrader: (3)

Um when you say little pin im guessing you are talking about the pin that goes horrizontal with the cam right by where the 3 cam bolts screw into. Yes use that one. Now I dont know what you mean by rollers if you are talking about the roller lifters yes you can reuse those also if you are talking about the sproket for the cam that the timeing chain goes onto yes you can also reuse that. Make sure the timeing marks on the cam sproket match up with the one on the crank sproket. Hope that helps.

92lt1

devil you got it all correct. thanks a bunch. brad

JesasaurusRex

iTrader: (3)

I do what I can

-Jesse

88IROC350TPI

To use a flat tappet cam in a roller block just rip off the spider plate and retainers in the lifter valley, throw in your flat tappet cam, throw in flat tappet lifters, get the right sized pushrods, and buy a pre-86 style timing chain.

Although these people may be right you are taking a step backwards sometimes you work with the parts you can find for cheap... nothing wrong with that. Flat tappet motors have been around since the beginning of time there is nothing wrong with them whatsoever. Not to mention they're a ton cheaper and theres more of a selection to pick from. 75% of hydraulic roller cams are designed around EFI motors

YenkoZL1

92LT1

Look...you already have a Roller setup. A factory Hydralic Roller cam. They do make a Flat Tappet Roller cam as well. And a Flat Tappet Roller cam is one of the most efficient cams around. The only down side to a hydralic Roller cam is that once is gets hot it looses some lift. No joke. But a Flat Tappet Roller never looses lift because...its not hydralic. The cam lobes always hit the lifters the exact same. Basically what Im saying is if you have a roller setup KEEP IT. If not, do what you have to do. But in terms of what type of cam to use. Hydralic for street or street&strip. Flat Tappet I see as more for the strip.

RB83L69

Yenko: Jumbo shrimp? Military Intelligence? Feminine logic? Masculine sensitivity? A V8 with 5 cylinders? A solid hydraulic?

"Flat tappet" is just that: a lifter whose bottom, where it meets the cam, is "flat". "Roller" is just that: a lifter whose bottom has a little roller, just like a roller bearing. So a lifter can either be flat, or it can have a roller; not both.

Lifters also can either include a little oil chamber for automatic adjustment (hydraulic), or not (solid). You can have a flat tappet that's either hyd or solid; or you can have a roller that's either hyd or solid. Hyd rollers haven't been around long, only a few years before the factory hopped on the bandwagon and botched it.

What are you talking about?

92: you did the right thing; maybe not the best possible cam, but definitely far from the worst. Keep the rollers and take advantage of the improved cam profiles they allow.

Stekman

RB is absolutly correct. "Flat tappet roller" is pretty much an oxymoron. Here's a visual of both:


Flat tappet is on the left, Roller are on the right. Both are the hydraulic versions.

JesasaurusRex

iTrader: (3)

Ya YenkoZL1 imma be the first to say it, keep your mouth shut if you're an idiot thank you.

Stekman

Before we go calling names, let him explain himself as to why flat tappet cams are primarily strip cams. This i want to hear.

JesasaurusRex

iTrader: (3)

Damn you Stekman I WANT TO CALL NAMES ALREADY :lala: