Cam recommendation?

[bighammer]

I'm thinking about ordering a cam for my 360 before I get it put into the Dart. But since I don't know anything about it, I was hoping to get a little feedback here.

The engine is a roller cam 360 with around 26k miles on it. It's going into my '70 Dart with a 904 tranny. The engine has a Weiand intake and Demon carb and HP manifolds with 2 1/2" dual exhaust.

I read here one time a post in someone else's thread with a similar setup where it was suggested a grind similar to the original Mopar 340.. But I later found out those early HP engines were high compression, and my 360 is much lower (8:1 vs 10:1 ?)

My question is, would a cam do me much good on a lower compression engine? Or should I be content with the factory roller cam? The car is just for the street, but I do like performance upgrades. :burnout: thanks guys

 

[rumblefish360]

The original 340 cam is still a very mello cam and would be fine for a low compression 360. The performance replacement cam is a bit bigger. It would still be OK for a 8-1 engine though I'd rather another point raise in ratio running such a cam. That's just me.

IMO, I'm missing a little info. What gears and tires are you running and just to be sure, the intended purpose is pure street driving, sometimes Spirted?

I'd also keep it a roller cam. Look for a cam with the intake duration of approx. 212 - 218 @ .050. This intake duration has work well for me in the past with low/stock compression ratio's and realitively (sp?) low gear ratios between 3.0 - 3.5.

 

[RustyRatRod]

Is this an LA roller engine or Magnum? If it's a Magnum engine, your compression is up around 9-9.2 because the Magnums have a shorter deck height.

 

[rumblefish360]

Good point RRR

 

[bighammer]

It's an LA engine. Thanks for the replies

 

[fishy68]

I'd keep it a roller cam too. A lot of cam grinders can regrind your stock roller cam to make it more aggressive. Oregon cam grinders is one off the top of my head and their just the next state up from you

 

[OldmanRick]

While a bone stock LA roller 360 will be quick in a regulation A body, those cams are soft at best. The fact that you like a little more performance leads me to think a upgrade is really what you need to satisfy you. As mentioned earlier, a increase on the intake at .050" in the teens would make a big difference from a stock grind. I'd talk to a cam grinder like Oregon, as "fishy" mentioned. They are reasonably priced, and can get you really close to what you need.


P.S. If you do consider upgrading, valve springs & pushrod length could come into play?