304 help chosing cam

[hdt166]

Need some help deciding on a cam for my 355 stroker, i know its the most annoying question, but its for my baby, my vchdt and i know bugger all about cams.

I have a 304 vt roller block , scat stroker crank, 5.7 inch h beam rods, 30 thou forged flat tops, torque power hi rise dual plane
the car is a manual , with 3.36 rear diff

I'm not chasing straight line speed, its mostly a cruiser I want to be able to jump in and start it and drive it , so street manners . But of coarse I want it to be worth while all the effort for stroking, and have the power to drop skids when I ask it too.

teach me

 

[EYY]

Depends on your budget and whether you want to go roller cam or flat tappet, hydraulic or roller. Compression ratio is a massive consideration. How much lift can your heads handle? How hard is the bottom end able to rev reliably?

An off the shelf 286 or similar will do what you’re asking and still drive nicely. Camtech have a nice range of cams at a good price too. Check them out.

To get the best volumetric efficiency and reliability with low (no) maintenance, a hydraulic roller is the go but that gets expensive quickly.

 

[hdt166]

Depends on your budget and whether you want to go roller cam or flat tappet, hydraulic or roller. Compression ratio is a massive consideration. How much lift can your heads handle? How hard is the bottom end able to rev reliably?

An off the shelf 286 or similar will do what you’re asking and still drive nicely. Camtech have a nice range of cams at a good price too. Check them out.

To get the best volumetric efficiency and reliability with low (no) maintenance, a hydraulic roller is the go but that gets expensive quickly.

Thanks for the reply.
Budget is not a huge issue and I'm wanting to stay roller. Head work and lift will be done if needed. Everything in the bottom end is forged so I'm hoping will be strong enough

 

[Deuce]

Look at camtech ct2248
230/233 @50 .579 lift. Maybe ask for it on a 108 lsa

 

[EYY]

Okay so you’ll need the heads machined to accommodate for the higher lift of most off the shelf roller cams around .600 and above. Tie bar lifters are a must - most aftermarket manifolds won’t work with the factory spider plate setup due to clearance issues.

As for specs, best to enquire with a few camshaft manufacturers to see what they can offer and recommend given your combo.

 

[Deuce]

I've often heard of stock lifters spider cradle breaking and causing issues. So maybe convert to tie bar at the same time

 

[Immortality]

Tie bar lifters are a must the factory spider plate have a bad habit of failing and taking out the camshaft when the lifter rotates. If you are going with a hydro roller with some decent lift I would suggest a good set of roller rockers to handle the lift and required valve spring pressures.

 

[hdt166]

Valve train will be matched to the cam , and head work matched to the lift . Just trying to find some ideas on the combo is a bit tricky

 

[Deuce]

Crow 41330 is another option:
220/227 .541/.551 lift
I reckon power will hold on longer than advertising says (with good setup anyway)

 

[Deuce]

Or from crane:
My pick would be 888231
222/230 .542/.563 lift.
Not sure if 112lsa is too wide though.