NW94Z

After months of on again, off again deliberations and research and phone calls I have narrowed the cam selection for my H/C upgrade down to two. The two I have chosen are on the smaller side. My goal here was not outright power but rather:

1. Reliability (as it relates to valve guide/ valve wear)
2. Drivability
3. Power

When selecting the cam I also tried to consider the supporting mods and match the cam to get the most of it and the heads and exhaust. Supporting mods are:

AHR Stage 4 heads w/
Port and polish
Mill .020
PSI 1511 springs w/ Titanium retainers
Moldstar 90 valve guides

Pfadt 1 7/8 headers w/ HF cats

CAI: KB II w/ beehive

The two cams up for selection are:

BTR LS7 Stage II 230/246 Lift .644/.630 115

EPS Cam by Cam Motion 226/236 Lift .640/.640 115

At the moment I'm leaning towards the BTR cam. I think the duration and lift on the intake side will take advantage of the better breathing heads to pack more air and fuel in the cylinder and the longer duration coupled with the lower lift on the exhaust side will help with exhaust velocity and aid the headers with scavenging compared to the EPS cam but I could be pulling all that out of my backside since I am not an expert in this field.

I'm not sure on power output since I have been unable to find very much data on these two cams installed. I know AHR does a lot of the BTR cams from talking to Khole but I don't recall any HP/ TQ numbers. If I had to guess I think a conservative number for both would be in the 525/ 480 range?

I think both cams with a good tune will also drive relatively similarly with the nod going to the EPS cam if I had to choose a winner.

Anyone want to give me some feedback? This has been holding up my build since I'm doing my best to pick the right cam for my needs the first time.

Thanks in advance!

08mojo

You will be over the 550 mark with those parts. I put down 550/485 with similar parts.

NW94Z

Could you list your mods or PM me if you prefer?

08mojo

Halltech CAI
WCCH Stage II ls7 heads
stock intake valves
Si solid stainless exhaust valves
dual valve springs
ti retainers
vengeance racing kaotik cam 235/243 .621/.624 113 LS
comp lifters (can't remember which ones 850?)
arh 1 7/8 long tubes
Arh catted mid pipe
ATI balancer, stock diameter
other small supporting parts ( c6r chain, arp hardware, etc...)

I cannot recommend this cam enough. It's pretty mild, which means great drivability, but still sounds great.

ZedNought6

I have the same EPS cam Specs. Also Running the 1 7/8 Pfadt Exhaust. Heads are WCCH stage IIs and I have a Vararam intake. I used to have a Torquer 116 in the car and made 535hp and 500 rwtq. I had a different shop switch the cams out and afterwards I made 510 HP and 495 rwtq. The differences are that the cars were dynoed on different dynos and on different types of days. ***** cold in the winter with the torquer. The EPS is hands down the better driving cam with very little surge, even under 1500 rpm. Also, the EPS cam is pretty VT friendly, and my engine is a lot quieter than it was. I did change to Johnson SLR link bar lifter and an appropriate length pushrod, so it is not exclusively the cam. I'd shop EPS again.

Chonger

Your build is very similar to mine. When I decided to do a H/C swap my goal was to get the best combination of power, reliability, and drivability. I went with a moderate cam, something not too obnoxious but at the same time you know the car is cam'd.

I let my tuner/builder pick it out and I ended up with:

234/246 .612/.598 on a 115 LSA

Car pulled 556/503 SAE on a very hot August Florida night. The TQ curve is very flat from 4K on.

Car has the typical H/C mods (milled/ported heads, long tubes no cats, KB intake, etc.)

Car idles fine at 800 RPM's with a slight shake with the AC on. Car is fine for a DD. I am totally happy with my setup it is exactly what I wanted. I could have gone bigger with the cam but at a price.

NW94Z

I actually picked up that cam from a post you made in a different thread. Smaller cams aren't very popular for various reasons so finding options can be difficult due to the limited amount data to analyze. I'm going to be in Austin for the F1 race in October. If for some reason I haven't bought the cam and built the car out, maybe I could catch up with you and see how your car runs with the cam.

meanjoe

This is the one I use. A little bit of lump. Great power and very streetable. 115 LSA
Makes 550 and 500TQ

Chiron

I may just head on down to Austin in October as well. That is .. If my car is still running. Would be good to meet up. Sounds like you have a good plan.

Pete

NW94Z

I like the lift numbers on that cam. Easier on the valvetrain. Also looks to make good power despite that. I suspect the lack of cats and the KB intake really help you get up and over the 550/ 500 mark.

Do you know what the overlap for that cam is?

ZedNought6

Sure, wouldn't be the first time I let somebody test drive the ole girl. Hell I might want to go to the race also. Definitely interested in the Longhorn Le Mans.

PM me and we can get a better mode of communication going.

Michael_D

Based on your order of preference, the EPS grind would be the best of the two. I would like to see more exhaust duration, but it'll be a screamer.

I'd rather see 224/244 625/625 115 for your priorities. On a cam motion or EPS lobe.

Nowanker

Similar build to OP... I had Geoff at EPS spec a cam for me with the first priority being smooth 1500 rpm/6th gear cruiseability, max performance second. 224/236, .640/.640, 117.
He thought it might pass the smog numbers too, but that's less important with the new OBDII rules. EPS was great to work with.
Can't tell you how it works, still waiting on the heads!

Les-10

After a year with my Torquer 110, I've been considering changing to the Torquer 116 for driveability's sake just because there doesn't seem to be much info on milder cams as has been stated. So you like the EPS grind better than the Torquer 116 and it has less surge? Man, that is promising. How does the EPS sound?

NW94Z

What other mods are you running?

NW94Z

You may have hit the nail on the head. Getting a custom ground cam specific to my wants and set up would be the best approach. I wish there was a piece of SW that we could plug all the data into then build a cam against and in some fashion get feedback on drivability and performance. I think someone could make a mint of something like that.

NW94Z

Just sent you an email Pete. Bit more info regarding parts to help manage the higher lift your seeing in your application.

meanjoe

Pfadt Headers with catted X pipe and B&B Fusion Extreme with 3 inch pipe all the way out the tips. Callaway honker, Heads done by Late Model Engines, no porting, (Manley springs, Ferrea hollow exh. valves, OEM intakes, tool steel retainers w/10 degree keepers, Che rockers, CHE guides.) Tune by Late Model Racecraft. Runs like a beast with your foot in it but driving around town in slow mode you can't really tell the difference from stock. But it still has that lope to it that I can't live without. Can't tell you how many times guys walk up and say "Man that sounds badass" It's a Crane cam, I don't think it says that on the card. The new part no. for it is 1449291 They have one other like it but slightly hotter it's part no. is 2039341

Unreal

Why not bump the specs on the EPS cam up a little to a 230/240ish cam. That would be ideal IMO.

Chonger

I believe it is 115 +3. Jeremy Formato with Fasterproms picked it out for me.