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I'm considering going to 1.7 RR's with my hotcam, and I'm wondering which springs to use. I think I'd be at about .560 lift...I don't want to remove the heads to machine the spring pockets. Has anyone done this?? Where does one find these beehive springs????
From: Good health is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die
St. Jude Donor '04-'05-'06-'07
Originally Posted by 95PoloVert
CompCams #26918-16 or #26915-16 would fit the bill.
Summit, Jeg's, etc. all carry them.
Those might be a bit much for that kind of lift, with unmodified seats. You're going to end up at about 1.7 installed height with their retainers. Check CC's spring chart for open and closed numbers on that. You might want to look at the 26915s or find some ('02-'04) LS6 take-offs in the C5 section. They're there all the time, usually pretty cheap.
Depending on the isntall height you may be OK. I just used the 918 springs on a friend's LS1 car that had some .600 lift. The HC and 1.7's is only in the .550 range so you should be good if you don't have to shim it for the install.
I never really like the beehive spring just because it is a royal PITA to deal with, especially when it's coupled with an LS1 head. Now I was reading about the beehive springs from Comp Cams' website and if everything they say is true they're really some pretty cool technology.
From: Good health is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die
St. Jude Donor '04-'05-'06-'07
Originally Posted by Nathan Plemons
Depending on the isntall height you may be OK. I just used the 918 springs on a friend's LS1 car that had some .600 lift. The HC and 1.7's is only in the .550 range so you should be good if you don't have to shim it for the install.
I never really like the beehive spring just because it is a royal PITA to deal with, especially when it's coupled with an LS1 head. Now I was reading about the beehive springs from Comp Cams' website and if everything they say is true they're really some pretty cool technology.
It's not the lift that's the problem w/ LSx springs on a gen. I or II small block. They'll take the lift, it's where the installed height ends up w/o modified seats. This is why you want to do your home work. You don't want to end up with excessive closed or open spring pressures. Not only does it rob HP and cause unneccessary wear, I'd be especially concerned with the possibility of valve breakage w/ stock valves. The neat thing about the beehives is that the retainers are so small. Not only does this give you plenty of rocker clearance, etc. but even w/ stock steel or chromemoly retainers, they're very light.
I'm running the 918 bee hives and love them. Mine are installed at a 1.825 installed height. My seats are unmodified, but I'm running .050 longer valves.
From: Good health is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die
St. Jude Donor '04-'05-'06-'07
Originally Posted by 95PoloVert
Comp also sells +.050 locks if you need a little more installed height.
But, it depends on the relationship of the lock to the spring surface compared to the retainer you're replacing. This is one measurement that you can't get from CC's website and even their tech line was no help. I got a set and in reality, they only gained me about .005". I sent them back and used their standard beehive ones because these were so much heavier.
That's the one thing I miss about working at TEA. If you wanted to know how a spring worked you simply took it out of the box and started measuring things. A few measurements and a little simple math told you everything you wanted to know rather than having to speculate
From: Good health is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die
St. Jude Donor '04-'05-'06-'07
Originally Posted by Nathan Plemons
That's the one thing I miss about working at TEA. If you wanted to know how a spring worked you simply took it out of the box and started measuring things. A few measurements and a little simple math told you everything you wanted to know rather than having to speculate
Yeah, this is math that even I can do! I recently scored a spring height micrometer. That'll make all of this so much easier and quicker next time.