[pete315]

just picked up the heads today. guy installed a new set of Comp 901-16 springs. Told me anything under 500 lift should be fine. I'm going to order the Summit 2802 cam. All I need to get now is a set of lifters and pushrods. I'm assuming I have to get the factory length pushrod. Am I correct? Is there a better brand of lifter? I'm using stock Pontiac studs. I'm not going to use the adjustable Chevy studs. I just want to torque down the rocker nuts and be done.

[b-man]

Sorry, you can't just torque the rocker nuts down and be done with a non-stock cam. You're looking at a very short engine/valvetrain life and a lot of problems.

There is ONLY one right way - straight 7/16" studs and polylock nuts, then learn to adjust the valves.

[uforacing]

Originally Posted by b-man

Sorry, you can't just torque the rocker nuts down and be done with a non-stock cam. You're looking at a very short engine/valvetrain life and a lot of problems.

There is ONLY one right way - straight 7/16" studs and polylock nuts, then learn to adjust the valves.

And it is so easy. I have never in 36 years of working on Pontiac's gone with the factory settings.

It is so easy (and normal to me) to just buy a set of polylocks and adjust the valvetrain. It only takes a second to learn. Even if you stay with the bottleneck studs and use 3/8 polylocks....... The lift of the 2802 does not mandate 7/16 studs but they are cheap insurance. Just a thought.

[screamingchief]

Single w/damper springs...

Shoulda got the Crower double #68404-16 springs.

Agree with Bart too,the 2802 cam needs an adjustable valvetrain.

And I never use the OE bottleneck studs either.

But again that's just me I guess?

Seen too many of those bottleneck studs break @ the worst possible times,even with stock cams and valvesprings when run hard enough.

Best of luck with it.

Bret P.

[pete315]

sounds like I should install the 7/16 studs. that's easy enough. How do I make sure I get the right length pushrod?

[screamingchief]

If your gonna be using the stock length valves for the #96 heads & the OE installed height w/a hydraulic cam & lifters like that 2802,you probably should'nt be too far off from the stock length pushrods,not unless you milled the snot outta those heads and/or the decks or such.

Factory pontiac pushrod length for the '67-'79 pontiac V-8's is typically between 9.130" to 9.170" depending on the source info and such.

Any pushrod around that ^^^^ length should do the trick.

Understand that custom pushrods lengths are typically sold in .050" steps,as there is no need for the lengths to be any closer than that.

So with pushrods,there is no "perfect" length,"close" is good enough.

HTH

Bret P.

[Cliff R]

+1 on the valve springs. The Crower 68404 springs are the best "drop-in" spring out there for the Pontiac heads with stock components. They don't put killer pressures on the cam/lifters, and have a LOT of room for running larger than stock cams without getting anywhere near coil bind.

We built a set of #46 heads yesterday in the shop and used them. They fit all the stock parts, and with a little seat grinding and valve work very little shimming is required as they are designed to run at 1.600" installed height.......Cliff

[PontGuy]

You are getting very good advice.

A cam like the 2801 would work if you are looking for a factory-style idle and don't plan on high RPM's. The 2802 is a better choice if you want a little edge to the idle and want to have strong power to 5000 RPM. And it would be more pump-gas friendly. Just don't turn the engine much beyond that if you have stock rods. With the 96 heads you should have plenty enough compression that you don't need the fast ramps built into the XE cams.

Changing the springs is a good idea when going to any aftermarket cam since they always have more lift than factory. If you are on a very tight budget then sometimes you can get away with stock springs (I have in the past) but its really not worth trying. Springs don't cost that much, and more often than not I ended up replacing them down the road due to valve float problems. The 68404 springs being recommended would be my first choice.

If the valvetrain is set up correctly and the springs are not too heavy then bottlenecks should be fine. But the big studs are good insurance. If you stick with the bottlenecks then you can measure and order pushrods the right length, but polylocks are the easiest way to go. I would feel comfortable with any of these options using the 2802 cam and the 68404 springs.

Walt

[pete315]

thanks to all your great advise. I'm going with the polylocks and the 2802 cam.

[PunchT37]

Thats good. That 2802 cam with it`s 282/292 SEAT timing is WAY better than that XE cam with 262 seat timing on a 455. I`m not a fan of those 901 springs but you should be able to get by with them.

Like the others said, 7/16 studs and poly locks and you`ll be good to go. If you`re not sure how to adjust valves, Ken has provided a procedure.

http://www.angelfire.com/fl4/pontiac.../valveadj.html

He also sells parts, installs parts, and can answer questions.

[Matt Meaney]

i had a set of single springs with damper on an engine once. never again. they were the recommended springs with a RA IV clone cam from warrior racing. they were all done in a little over a year/few thousand miles. the engine would nose over after 4k rpm. pretty much ran fine otherwise. changed them out and it was back in buisness. all though you might be just fine with what you have, it will be alot less hassel and money to get good springs now. just a thought.

[1971WARBIRD]

i had a build close to yours: 73 trans am .030 455,trw flat top pistons, small chamber 4X heads(around 9.2-9.5-1), ra III exhaust manifolds, performer intake, 73 Qjet, 400 turbo, stock style L88 converter, 3.08 gears, with the summit 2802 cam. idled with a little attitude and would biol the 275x60 15 radial TA's any time i wanted from a 20 mph roll. never got it to the track before someone bought it, but it was i nice street driver.

[pete315]

that's what I want to hear. Another quick question, I'm assuming the stock screw in studs for Pontiac were 3/8, not 7/16's. Can I use polylocks on the original 3/8 studs?

[1971WARBIRD]

yes they make 3/8's poly locks, but i have seen the stock 3/8 stubs break also. while .465-.480 lift isn't huge, the 7/16th studs are cheap insurance. it's been awhile, but studs and poly locks around 50.00?

[pete315]

true, that is cheap and very easy to install.