[Larry Navarro]

hey SIG....no need to worry now, good luck!!

1973 SD455 T/A
1979 S.E. T/A
http://community.webshots.com/album/16587603rOyvmFCiHs

[Bartman]

I've been running a 296H for 7 years now without any problems in a 455. It doesn't have a lot of vaccuum at idle (about 8) with Crane Hi Intensity lifters. It pulls pretty good from 2500 to about 6000. I usually shift about 5700 but it does run slightly quicker (2-3hundredths) going to 6000. I also run synthetic oil but broke it in on 10w40. I use Lunati springs which are pretty much the same as the CC955 springs.
Overall I've been pretty happy with this cam.
Bartman

Ponies run but Birds fly

[Fox]

Here is my story. I currently am using an XE cam. It took a little while to get the engine started due to ignition and fuel supply problems. After I get the thing started I ran it at 2500 RPM for 20 minutes. Jeezzz open headers are sure loud ) Even with all the cranking that was done (probably at least a solid minute total) the cam was perfectly fine. The secret is to prime the oil system, use good lube on the lobes, and run the engine at high enough RPM for the first 20 minutes or so. This is my second engine to use an XE cam in and neither had any problems. Not to say there isn't a problem. Perhaps when they case harden these things they just aren't going long enough.

[signal_23]

Thanks for all the replies. I can always count on good advice from this site. My intention was not to let is sit this long, but none the less it has and I have to get try and salavage it. I will definitly call the builder and ask which type of lube was used. If he cannot verify, I will pull the intake and valley pan and be sure to prime the engine. Thanks again and I will try to get it fired ASAP and let you all know the outcome.

Is the worst thing that can happen is flattening the cam or can it get worse?

[dammen8]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by signal_23:


Is the worst thing that can happen is flattening the cam or can it get worse?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

All that metal has to go somewhere hopefully the filter will catch it all. I hope your filter bypass is plugged.

My brother and I had 3 cams fail all in a row in his sbc, the first one was a lunati solid then 2 comp cams solids, finally just said screw it and went solid roller . No more problems except for the expense.

Chad Dammen

ND's fastest Pontiac (I think) and Minot's fastest street car (not like that means much)

[dammen8]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by PunchT37:
I was thinking of buying the comp cams P296AH-8
246/253@050 for a 455. Anyone had good or bad
results with this thing? Thanks!<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>


I ran this same cam in my 428 for probably 5 years or so never had any problems with it and was very happy with it. Made good power and great idle, I do not know what the engine made for power but it ran 7.40's in the 1/8 @91-92mph with the race weight at 3650lbs. Like I said I loved this cam and I would recommend it to anybody, but this was some time ago that I ran this cam and after reading this whole post I would start to wonder about the quality issues of what might be coming from CC. On the other hand I run their 999 spring and have not had a lick of trouble with that.....so who knows? Hope this helps talk to you later.

Chad Dammen

ND's fastest Pontiac (I think) and Minot's fastest street car (not like that means much)

[RPM]

Lately I have been hearing more and more about flat tappet cam failures. Hard to believe that all of a sudden, everyone can't break in a cam where we all could before (even the 17 yr old first timer). Why the increase in reported cam failures? Are some of the cores soft? Has regular motor oil lost some of its extreme pressure properties? Lifters not being made right? More people working on engines with chronic brain fart syndrome (CBFS).

[ponchopete]

Partially on the subject, I'd have to think that any engine that has a problem killing flat tappet cams, but is converted to a roller with no further problems would have to have a lifter bore alignment problem. When it comes to flat tappet cams, all in all, I say go Crower -- you'll never go back to another brand.

"My car would be fast if it had an engine, transmission, and rear axle in it."

[Steve C.]

I hear virtually no bad input from my machienist in regards to Crower products, camshafts & lifters, and Ultradyne camshafts.
Lately he has been real down on Comp camshafts based on some recient problems.

'Damn right it's a street car'

[PONTIAC DUDE]

a while back and had to quite that practice?


Build it fast, build it right, build a Pontiac.

http://PontiacDude.cc

[Steve C.]

PD- He is a Crower dealer and I'm sure he just orders the stuff from them and uses it. Don't think he would ask anything unless he had a reason to.
During the past lifter supply fiasco did Crower have problems as well? Enligten us

Gezzz, I hope there is not a problem I have a set of Crower solid roller lifters just now going into a new project ... they were bought many, many months ago.
Also have a Comp solid roller cam going in as well. It too was purchased quite awhile ago.

( we tore down my old 462 yesterday and the old Crower solid roller lifters that came out looked fine. I'm exchanging these for the newer ones as a precaution because they had been in use for many years. We did find that my crankshaft was cracked, no details yet but I can't use it!)

[Half-Inch Stud]

Steve Coombes, Poncho-Dude;

I gots a set of NEW 1992dated TRW Lifters(thick dust on the boxes), and a set of used Rhoads lifters matched to the Crower 248/253 cam...problem is the MEMBER on this site packed the lifters in a plastic Roller lifeter tray, and the Rhoads are jumbled out of order.

At best, I gots the Left bank and right bank, but 1/63 probable/chance of getting all 8 correct on each bank. The Odds are 2 in 3969 trys that I will get all 16 lifters matched to their original lobes. I could go on...erroneously.

I'm stuck "Doing the Scrapyard Thing" - Goodbye Cream....again. Seems I gots to swap plunger guts to get the Rhoads function into the TRW shell. Like making my own ammo..

Even with miniscule Dist gear wear, and a nice set of lobes, looks like the Used Cam was probably a waste. The Odds are unknown that the cam will run-in successfully. Yet, I liken the Odds od success to be similar to a NEW Cam.

Oddly enough.

Half-Inch Stud

"tbdET/1xxMPH/1.xx 60foot/28"/3.54:1/10"/469 #48/Flat HYD/DualQ-Jets/Offyl/3xx0Lbs
11.00/123MPH/1.50 60foot/29.5"/4.10:1/10"/469 #48/FlatHYD/DualQuad/Wenzler/3250Lbs
12.00/112MPH/1.61 60foot/26"/3.31:1/10"/469 #48/FlatHYD/Q-Jet/Torker/3650Lbs
12.70/103MPH/1.71 60foot/28"/4.10:1/12"/469 #48/FlatHYD/Q-Jet/Torker/3950Lbs"

[TTS]

Reply to the earlier posts about the CCams red lube being thin and running off parts quickly. I have a 462 assembled at JBP in storage. It has been there about 2 years. They used the very thin CCams lube. It is ALL still on the lobes. I know this because there is none in the plastic under the engine and the lobes are hidden in the stuff.

[PONTIAC DUDE]

and don't over prime and engine before firing.

All you want to do is get the oil to the front.
Once you achieve pressure rotate 180 degrees then a few moments more is plenty.
You lubed everything when your built it, so what is the point if the filter is full and oil is forced to the front other then displacing the break-in lubricants off the assemblies!!!

The reason for more noticed failures....... more people atempting to build their own stuff.

Big, big difference between Rebuilding a stock engine and attemping to Modify and build a non stock piece.
Otherwise everyone would be doing business with the shop down the street.


Don't get me wrong as there is nothing wrong with that, but the same reason that people say they don't want the chevy shop down the street doing their work, but they attempt to do their own stuff. And there are good and bad shops. Every Engine has it's (as I call it) Set of rules that one has to research.

I have built Olds, Buick, Ford, Mopar, Chevy and the Fast & Furious stuff. Ya just gotta do your homework. And steal their best designs and ideas. LOL.

Having been on the net for the last 5 years I have seen some interesting stuff and problems that people have attributed to things that weren't the cause, and visa versa.

And also things that have occured and passed along to watch out for. Good and bad.

Anyway, back to the cam deal. Having sold a few engines and working with customers, I have found the 75% of cam failures can be attributed to other reasons. At least with the people I have dealt with. But not saying that a bad cam core won't be found.

Build it fast, build it right, build a Pontiac.

http://PontiacDude.cc

[PunchT37]

Wow, didn`t know there were so much problems
with Comp Cams! I was running a Comp 280H in
this engine for about 10 yrs,about 5 of them
daily driving years. Pulled the cam,all lobes
were perfect. Only problem i found was the
dist.gear was almost razor sharp. I have the
oil gallery plug in rear drilled! Placed the
shaft in file 13. Just wanted to step up a
little. Thanks for all the replies. dammen8
&Bartman`s posts were kind of what i was gettin
at. Thanks again.

[firechicken]

I ran a CC XE274 In my 412 last summer. The cam seemed to break in fine with a 20 minute run at 2000-2500 rpm with no shutdowns and an instant fire up. Engine was primed and used CC break in fluid. I drove the car on the street for about 200 miles and made 15 passes at the local 1/8 mile track over three weekends. On the drive home from the track the third weekend, a tick developed that quickly turned into a loud clatter by the time I got home.(About 35 miles away) I immediatly tore the intake and valley pan off and found #3 intake lobe wiped clean off. I was surprised as the cam seemed great for quite awhile and the engine ran perfectly with good oil pressure etc. I talked to several mechanics including Dave Bisschop and no one could explain to me the sudden failure except perhaps it was a lifter failure and not in fact the cam. Any thoughts?