C5 Tech Corvette Tech/Performance: LS1 Corvette Technical Info, Internal Engine, External Engine, Tech Topics, Basic Tech, Maintenance, How to Remove & Replace
Sponsored by:
Sponsored by:

Max Valve Lift Specification???

Thread Tools
 
Search this Thread
 
Old Mar 14, 2025 | 11:30 AM
  #1  
LannyL81's Avatar
LannyL81
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
20 Year Member
Conversation Starter
 
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 3,323
Likes: 142
From: Green Valley Arizona
Default Max Valve Lift Specification???

Help me understand what the "max valve lift" specification means.
I though "max valve lift" was calculated by taking the max cam lift and then multiply it by the rocker ratio; for example, a cam with a lobe lift of 0.600 x 1.7 = 1.02 of valve lift.
But looking at valve spring charts, I see "max valve lift" numbers range of 0.500 to 0.850.

What is it I am not understanding?

Sure appreciate some help.
Reply
Old Mar 14, 2025 | 11:41 AM
  #2  
lucky131969's Avatar
lucky131969
Tech Contributor
15 Year Member
Active Streak: 30 Days
Community Builder
Liked
 
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 19,465
Likes: 1,167
From: Dyer, IN
Default

Originally Posted by LannyL81
Help me understand what the "max valve lift" specification means.
I though "max valve lift" was calculated by taking the max cam lift and then multiply it by the rocker ratio; for example, a cam with a lobe lift of 0.600 x 1.7 = 1.02 of valve lift.
But looking at valve spring charts, I see "max valve lift" numbers range of 0.500 to 0.850.

What is it I am not understanding?

Sure appreciate some help.
Why start another thread? You already have this same topic going here:

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...-question.html




Reply
Old Mar 14, 2025 | 12:07 PM
  #3  
LannyL81's Avatar
LannyL81
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
20 Year Member
Conversation Starter
 
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 3,323
Likes: 142
From: Green Valley Arizona
Default

Well....sort of.
In my first post, my question was what is the suggested margin between lobe lift and valve lift numbers be.
In doing more research, I am now confused as to just what exactly the valve lift number means on spring specifications.....hence the second post.

Reply
Old Mar 14, 2025 | 03:52 PM
  #4  
JeffT1's Avatar
JeffT1
Advanced
15 Year Member
Liked
Loved
Community Favorite
 
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 51
Likes: 14
From: AR
Default

@LannyL81 I'm going to go out on a limb and say you have confused valve lift and lobe lift. In your example above you used .600 as lobe lift, in your other thread you stated the cam you have has a lift of .600, we have to assume this is valve lift. So, your cam with .600 valve lift is going to have a lobe lift somewhere around .353. .353 x 1.7 = .6001.
Reply
Old Mar 15, 2025 | 10:12 AM
  #5  
LannyL81's Avatar
LannyL81
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
20 Year Member
Conversation Starter
 
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 3,323
Likes: 142
From: Green Valley Arizona
Default

Originally Posted by JeffT1
@LannyL81 I'm going to go out on a limb and say you have confused valve lift and lobe lift. In your example above you used .600 as lobe lift, in your other thread you stated the cam you have has a lift of .600, we have to assume this is valve lift. So, your cam with .600 valve lift is going to have a lobe lift somewhere around .353. .353 x 1.7 = .6001.
Nope and that's the confusion I have. The cam specs state a lobe lift of 0.600". The valve spring specs state a max valve lift of 0.600"
I will go back and check my postings to ensure I did not confuse the two terms.....which is a possibility.
Reply
Old Mar 15, 2025 | 12:50 PM
  #6  
grinder11's Avatar
grinder11
Race Director
Liked
Loved
Community Favorite
Top Answer: 1
 
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 12,864
Likes: 4,667
Default

Originally Posted by LannyL81
Nope and that's the confusion I have. The cam specs state a lobe lift of 0.600". The valve spring specs state a max valve lift of 0.600"
I will go back and check my postings to ensure I did not confuse the two terms.....which is a possibility.
There's as much chance your cam has .600" lobe lift as there is me winning the lotto, and I dont play it!! I'd bet my Corvette on that. A .600" lobe lift cam probably wouldn't even be able to be inserted into the block. .600÷1.7 rocker ratio, as stated above, equals approximately. 353" lobe lift. .353"×1.7=.600" valve lift. It is all really that simple......
Reply
Old Mar 15, 2025 | 12:57 PM
  #7  
helga203's Avatar
helga203
Le Mans Master
15 Year Member
Liked
Loved
Community Favorite
 
Joined: Jul 2010
Posts: 6,013
Likes: 726
Default

Originally Posted by grinder11
There's as much chance your cam has .600" lobe lift as there is me winning the lotto, and I dont play it!! I'd bet my Corvette on that. A .600" lobe lift cam probably wouldn't even be able to be inserted into the block. .600÷1.7 rocker ratio, as stated above, equals approximately. 353" lobe lift. .353"×1.7=.600" valve lift. It is all really that simple......
Yeap. Even i knew this one.
Reply
Old Mar 15, 2025 | 07:55 PM
  #8  
LannyL81's Avatar
LannyL81
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
20 Year Member
Conversation Starter
 
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 3,323
Likes: 142
From: Green Valley Arizona
Default

BINGO!!!!
I had read some incorrect information in that a diagram was showing a cam lobe with the height of the cam lobe labeled with the valve lift number. That is what began my confusion.
When I read your second response the ole light bulb went off and showed me through my confusion. I had been all through cam and valve specs a good 20+ yrs ago and just this week was trying to remember what I have forgotten.
Thank you for the replies......

But how is a valve spring's max valve lift determined?
I thought it was installed height - coil bind height - (0.050 to 0.100), but this is not real close to the stated numbers of various valve spring charts.
What have I forgotten here?
Reply
Corvette Stories

The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts

story-0

10 Ugly Corvettes That We Still Kinda Love

 Joe Kucinski
story-1

Top 10 Most Expensive Corvettes Ever Sold on Bring A Trailer

 Brett Foote
story-2

10 Things Every Corvette Owner Needs (2026 Edition)

 Michael S. Palmer
story-3

8 Most "Only Corvette Owners Understand" Quirks and Problems

 Pouria Savadkouei
story-4

10 Reasons the C6 Z06 is Still A Performance Benchmark After 20 Years

 Joe Kucinski
story-5

How Much Horsepower Every Corvette Engine "LOST" in 1972

 Joe Kucinski
story-6

Top 10 DOs and DON'Ts for Protecting Your Convertible Top!

 Michael S. Palmer
story-7

Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!

 Joe Kucinski
story-8

150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter

 Joe Kucinski
story-9

8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time

 Verdad Gallardo
Old Mar 17, 2025 | 12:15 PM
  #9  
helga203's Avatar
helga203
Le Mans Master
15 Year Member
Liked
Loved
Community Favorite
 
Joined: Jul 2010
Posts: 6,013
Likes: 726
Default

Originally Posted by LannyL81
BINGO!!!!
I had read some incorrect information in that a diagram was showing a cam lobe with the height of the cam lobe labeled with the valve lift number. That is what began my confusion.
When I read your second response the ole light bulb went off and showed me through my confusion. I had been all through cam and valve specs a good 20+ yrs ago and just this week was trying to remember what I have forgotten.
Thank you for the replies......

But how is a valve spring's max valve lift determined?
I thought it was installed height - coil bind height - (0.050 to 0.100), but this is not real close to the stated numbers of various valve spring charts.
What have I forgotten here?
You have to know what springs you have. It will come with specs on the springs.
Reply
Old Mar 18, 2025 | 10:25 AM
  #10  
LannyL81's Avatar
LannyL81
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
20 Year Member
Conversation Starter
 
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 3,323
Likes: 142
From: Green Valley Arizona
Default

Trying to determine what valve springs I have is what I have been doing.
The information on the springs is rather limited: OD, max valve lift, dual, lock style.
I wanted to know what PAC springs they are, looked-up PAC springs to see which springs matched the specs I have and nothing matched 100%, so I was trying to calculate max valve lift to see if the specs I was given had an error.
Could not get the max valve lift numbers listed in the specs using installed height, coil bind height and then the (0.50 to 0.100) margin.
Got close but not exact.
I have assumed that the springs on the heads were made by PAC for AFR only: a modified PAC 1904 with reduced max valve lift, or a modified PAC 1914 wound tighter.

I think I would have been find using the cam I had received with 0.600 valve lift with these springs (max valve lift 0.600) due to my driving style, but went on the safe side and exchanged for a 0.550 lift cam.

Thanks once again for helping me get the confusion cleared-up.
Reply
Old Mar 18, 2025 | 01:05 PM
  #11  
helga203's Avatar
helga203
Le Mans Master
15 Year Member
Liked
Loved
Community Favorite
 
Joined: Jul 2010
Posts: 6,013
Likes: 726
Default

Originally Posted by LannyL81
Trying to determine what valve springs I have is what I have been doing.
The information on the springs is rather limited: OD, max valve lift, dual, lock style.
I wanted to know what PAC springs they are, looked-up PAC springs to see which springs matched the specs I have and nothing matched 100%, so I was trying to calculate max valve lift to see if the specs I was given had an error.
Could not get the max valve lift numbers listed in the specs using installed height, coil bind height and then the (0.50 to 0.100) margin.
Got close but not exact.
I have assumed that the springs on the heads were made by PAC for AFR only: a modified PAC 1904 with reduced max valve lift, or a modified PAC 1914 wound tighter.

I think I would have been find using the cam I had received with 0.600 valve lift with these springs (max valve lift 0.600) due to my driving style, but went on the safe side and exchanged for a 0.550 lift cam.

Thanks once again for helping me get the confusion cleared-up.
I always go under max valve lift cam 0.600) i would run a cam .575 say under that just incase you get float. This is just me for piece of mind. Probably don't need it but thats me.
Reply

Get notified of new replies

To Max Valve Lift Specification???





All times are GMT -4. The time now is 05:10 AM.

story-0
10 Ugly Corvettes That We Still Kinda Love

Slideshow: 10 ugly Corvettes that we still kinda love.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-06-03 10:34:17


VIEW MORE
story-1
Top 10 Most Expensive Corvettes Ever Sold on Bring A Trailer

A lot of money has changed hands at the online auction house over the years.

By Brett Foote | 2026-06-03 10:21:50


VIEW MORE
story-2
10 Things Every Corvette Owner Needs (2026 Edition)

Slideshow: 10 great gifts Corvette enthusiasts actually want for Father's Day!

By Michael S. Palmer | 2026-06-03 15:43:40


VIEW MORE
story-3
8 Most "Only Corvette Owners Understand" Quirks and Problems

Slideshow: These are the quirks, annoyances, and oddly lovable problems that every Corvette owner eventually learns to live with.

By Pouria Savadkouei | 2026-05-28 09:31:39


VIEW MORE
story-4
10 Reasons the C6 Z06 is Still A Performance Benchmark After 20 Years

Slideshow: 10 reasons why the C6 Z06 is still a performance benchmark after 20 years.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-05-27 17:20:09


VIEW MORE
story-5
How Much Horsepower Every Corvette Engine "LOST" in 1972

Slideshow: How much horsepower every Corvette engine lost in 1972.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-05-27 16:54:53


VIEW MORE
story-6
Top 10 DOs and DON'Ts for Protecting Your Convertible Top!

Slideshow: How to Protect A Convertible Top: 10 DOs & DON'Ts

By Michael S. Palmer | 2026-04-03 00:00:00


VIEW MORE
story-7
Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!

Slideshow: The 10 most explosive Corvettes ever built based on power-to-weight ratio.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-05-20 07:23:03


VIEW MORE
story-8
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter

Slideshow: From C1 to C8 we compare every Corvette generation by the numbers.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-05-12 16:54:12


VIEW MORE
story-9
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time

Slideshow: Some Corvette pace cars became collectible legends, while others perfectly captured the look and attitude of their era.

By Verdad Gallardo | 2026-05-11 09:50:51


VIEW MORE