Cam question Lopo 440

Have a 77 440 that I’d like to cam. Been trying to read a lot here and other places and seem to find that the Hughes whiplash and comp xe262 are being used as a compression crutch. Maybe down the road I’ll pull the pistons and get something better but for now it’s a cam. The constants are a 3400 lbs car, auto, 3.23 gear. Right now it’s a stock bottom 440, ch4b intake, heads are 452’s but looking for some that flow better, and a 750 Holley. Stock 68 trans and converter. 3.23 Detroit locker with 27” tires.

Anyone used either one or have something better that they’re using? Also, this is just a cruiser so I’d rather not have it have to run in the upper rpms just more torque.

crane 272 hmv 2 deg advanced

right now the eddy E-street heads are on sale for 1200 pair and they have a $100 off promotion,(Jegs or Summit) the 75 cc angle plug the 84 cc straight plug, if you have headers that accept the angle plug you can bump compression by about a point plus have bigger valves and better flow

Will the stock HP manifolds clear the angled plugs?

http://www.hughesengines.com/TechArticles/10hpmanifoldshookersupercompheadersonbigblockangle.php

Here is are some pics on Hughes Engines website.

I have hooker super comp headers so I'll have to check and see angle for plugs. I've been trying to find a happy medium on heads and cam. Either get the smallest cc head to raise compression a bit or stay at really low compression then find a cam that someone has had some experience with. I know quench is what to shoot for but it's not in the cards for a while.

So, is no one using either of these cams?

Calrobb, are you running that 272?

Specs on the Crane 272 cam are as follows... 218/228 duration at .050, .454/.480 lift, 112 center. I have not used this cam myself, but it looks like it would be a great cam for what you are wanting.

hi

i run that cam in a 9.5 -1 440

good idle 16 in vac 12.5 et at 110 mph 3750 lbs !

headers an 3 in ex.

been in motor for 32 years !

lower comp add some advance 2 to 4 deg

calrobb2000, what gears are you running in the rear end with that combo?

anyone remember the crane "fireball" cam series ?
what kind of specs did those have, or was that just a name crane put on their cams at that time ?
i remember them when they first came out, but the brain cobwebs ate everything but the name.

I have a vague recollection that the Fireball cams were Crane's "HMV" series (Hydraulic Maximum Velocity)? Or am I mixing up memories?

My recollection was that the "fireball" was bigger than the "blazer", but smaller than the "commander". Of which there were two. Smaller and bigger. That's all I got.

I put a Comp Cams 260H grind( I think anyways (maybe it was the XE262 cam. It was back in the early 2000s when I put that motor together to sell it) in a 383 motor or my 1969 Dart GTS 4 sped car. That cam has a very small lope and pulls hard form a dead idle all the way up to where I shift by sound, at WOT probably around 6000 RPM It works good

More info?



Same, more info?

hi

i now have 4.30 but i think car would be quicker with 4.10 , not enough cam for 4.30

3.55 got me to 12.7 - 109 mph

i used to drive it 58 miles to track and 58 miles back and make 8 passes on 1 full 16 gal tank of fuel with 3.55 . on E when i got home .

trailer it now .


torque is what you want , dont chase the hp number it mostly leads to disapointment .

hi

most fireball had longer duration and not to much lift , not hmv cam


hmv came later . now called power max


crane has a 260 but if you do the compression upgrade later you will want the 272.

Torque is what I want. It’s not going to the track.
That’s why I originally asked about those cams. They “seem” make torque on a low compression engine.
I know it’s easy to go down a rabbit hole so I’m limiting myself to heads and a cam.

Bowl blend the 452’s, mill .030, correct intake side, use steel shim gaskets.
While they’re off, have them set up for posi valve seals and increase retainer to seal clearance....... upgrade springs.
However, if after pulling them apart, don’t be surprised if you see ex seat recession.

If your headers are angle plug friendly, and it’s in the budget..... the 75cc E Streets make a lot of sense.

Crower 271HDP cam

11” converter

Looks like I might get the e-streets and the thinnest gasket. I haven’t pulled the heads and measured deck height but I used .140 and hoping it’s better than that. 8.8:1 is what I got in a calculator based off 75cc head, .027 gasket, and .140 in the hole piston.
I forgot to mention I have power brakes so I think that rules out the whiplash from what I’ve read. Also, 91 is the highest octane anywhere close. I still would rather not change out the converter and gears.

The problem I ran into when I was using stock pistons and also the l266f's with a decent size cam, is the lack of valve reliefs. When I was working to get the compression up with milled down the heads and used a steel shim gasket, I had no piston to valve clearance with a moderate sized cam. Its been years since I built those motors but as I remember I had to walk back the cam and use a felpro gasket to get suggested PTVC, which lowered my compression again.

It’s hard for me to imagine there being any kind of PV clearance issues running a 221@.050/112lsa cam in a 440 with pistons down the hole .140.

I did it with a stock 68 short block(pistons down the hole .055), 346 heads that had been milled a bit and steel shim gaskets

The 74 thru 78 440 pistons are .160 below deck. I have 2 late 440's and they both measure the same.

I ran a 221° cam in a 440 with the piston 0.050" below the deck and a shim gasket. Intake valve clearance was like 0.23" and couldn't even find the exhaust valve. Some would run the 509 cam with the 0.050" in the hole piston.

Right. I suspect that the OP will find either 0.160" or 0.085" below the deck.

If it's an touched original 77, likely 0.16" below

An electric vacuum pump solves your power brake issue.

Kevin

True.
There’s a guy pretty local to me that knows his stuff. I’ll see what he thinks on some of the cams mentioned here. If it’s a cam that needs degreed then he would be the one to install it anyways. I don’t have the tools for it.

ALL cams need to be degreed. Too many valve timing critical manufacturing steps that can be messed up that can't be seen without accurate measurements.

Kevin