He also doesn't ask what color boxer shorts you wear . But there IS a box at the bottom where it says comments. You can add all kinds of info in there.

Dep

 

Heck, I never said anyone SHOULDN'T buy Comp Cams. I was simply offering alternatives to following the herd. If total performance doesn't float your boat, don't climb on bard

Dep

 

my man Clint Eastwood said "every mans got to know his limitations" and i'll take blue cheese please....

 

ttt. We are again inundated with problems with Comp Cams in the cars.
Thought people might enjoy going over this thread and seeing if they might want to think about an alternative.

Dep

 

I read all the complaints with CC but still went with an XE274 hydraulic flat tappet. I had very good luck with their HE268 in my 350 so I thought I would try them again for the stroker.

Cam broke in easily, no problems. Engine seems strong, but I only have 400 miles on the engine and I have not pushed it to extreme limits yet. I may be singing a different tune in another 1-2,000 miles. I will let the forum know my results, good or bad.

If I have any problems, I will probably go with one of the esoteric cams, if only to get out of the sheeple mode.

BTW, a clean colon only counts when you are getting a colonoscopy .

 

There are numerous repeated threads on this subject every month or so. All the cam grinders have similar grinds to match anyones desire. Blaming the grinder for an installers error is not fair to any one of them. Either cheap or expensive, its unfortunate that inexperience on how to correctly install a cam can ruin any one of them in no time at all.

 

The folks I use for machine work win LOTS of races all over the country. I can tell you that they almost exclusively use Comp. But remember, this is all high end custom stuff. They call "their cam guy" directly at Comp...not the tech lines...and get whatever they need custom made. They do lots of Cam Doctor testing to verify them all. I can tell you that very few, regardless of MFG come out perfect. There are lots of variables from cylinder to cylinder!

They have commented on several occasions that under magnification the Comp race cams have the best finish on the lobes they have seen.

All that said, I think a lot comes down to having your own "cam guy" if possible. It's great to be able to call up and spend some time figuring it all out. I have a guy at Comp I call when I need general info or parts stuff, but he always refers me to another fellow there for cam discussions.

I've used Crane over the years with great results. They don't always look the best on paper..but they run great and make the power. Never had a problem.

I've been using Engle for the last few years mainly 'cause when I called, the tech guy spoke with me for a couple of minutes and said "you're asking waaaayyyy too many questions" and put me directly through to Mark Engle. We chatted a few minutes and then he said "Listen....sounds like you know what you're talking about...let's talk cams!" We literally spent the next hour or so going over what I wanted, looking at his available lobes etc until we spec'd the cam I wanted. He cut it and it turned out exactly how I needed it. Later on, when the combo changed...we talked again and we worked out a new cam. He even brought out some lobes that weren't even in the catalog anymore to look at...old Pro Stock cams that are just normal stuff these days. I was really impressed that he took the time to look up obscure stuff for my combo.

Once again, later...I wanted another grind to have engine do something else and he came through again. The sucker flat hauls butt and is easy on parts.

You want to know what else? He uses killer Crane blanks for rollers and my current roller is still the first one I ever got from him! He keeps testing hardness and keeps re-cutting it to new specs for LOTS less money than a new cam each time. He says as long as it still passes hardness test, he has no problem still recutting my old core.

That's 3 cams for the price of one! That's Customer Service.....gets me what I need and saves me $$$ too! Mark Engle is MY cam guy!!


JIM

 

Blaming the installer for a cam failure is not fair either. Based on your theory, more poor installers choose Comp Cams. It almost sounds like if someone was split between Crane, Lunati, etc versus Comp Cams, the people who are more prone to not installing it incorrectly choose Comp Cams. I'm now 46 years old. I'll believe that about the same time I start believing in the Easter Bunny again.

 

Have you priced a custom one off cam? With all the variations available (off the shelf) out there if you can't find a cam that will work for you then you need to rethink the rest of your set-up. I am a Mechanical Engineer and there is no way I would design my own cam when all the work has been done already for me. If you think you can out design the cam company then more power to ya!

 

Nope...I doubt very much that people can out-design the cam companies. But people put their engines together with so many variables, that it's not likely that a "one cam fits all" approach is going to be their ideal solution or even a good compromise. Even worse to ask someone on the forum "will this cam work good for me" when the forum has very little knowledge of what the condition of the engine and the quality of the parts installed really are. Just saying "I have this and this and this installed and it really works great" really doesn't go far enough. I think that MAY be the problem with all the complaints on the board. People are using Joe Shmoe's advice rather than consulting someone who REALLY knows what questions to ask and what grind to provide. Jim (427Hotrod) has an ideal situation. He's found a cam company that REALLY CARES about providing him with the right grind.
After reading his post I would be VERY much inclined to use Engle as my cam choice if I were shopping around for a cam. Clay Smith is another cam maker that custom grinds cams to the owner's cars.

Comp Cams have become popular and I really don't know the reason why. Guys have been sliding bumpsticks into their engines since the early 50s and I never heard or was aware of this many complaints from so many people on ONE cam maker. Count the number of Isky, Crane, Engle, and other non-Comp Cams complaints on the forum. Almost none. As far as pricing a custom grind cam...one has to weigh the possible alternatives of wiped lobes and other engine damage vs a one time price that's more than an off-the-shelf cam.
I also agree with mandm1200 (oh geez...there's a first!!) in that cam installation is not exactly brain surgery. There are plenty of books on the subject and I can't think of ANY cams that don't come with detailed instructions on how to install them. Granted, there may be an occasional goofup, but I just can't believe that ALL these complaints are from guys that don't know what they're doing.

Dep

 

That's what I'm saying, go to the cam company with all your info and what you want out of it and let them tell you what cam to use. I would go to a number of them then compare notes. As far as why Comp Cams is used so much, I think it's only because it's a well known name in cams. Doesn't mean it's better though. It's like everything else, each person has different likes & dislikes.
I don't have to worry about it, since I'm not changing my cam

 

Personally I'm disheartened about the integrity of mags like Popular Hot Rodding that seem to have articles on Comp at the rate of about 5:1 or worse. They need a dose of "Fair and Balanced" like the other media outlets. It is that slant that has Comp selling so many cams.

 

Well I CAN say this...after seeing so many complaints about Comp Cams, I would be more inclined to leave a stock cam in!!!

Dep