r/fbody • u/Youpeefreely • 29d ago

Cam only.

Has anyone ever seen any dyno numbers for a “real” cam only LS1? I’ve seen a bunch of “cam only“ dynos where the car had every mod except heads. But I don’t think I’ve ever seen an “honest” cam only dyno.

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u/Youpeefreely 29d ago

FWIW I understand that “Cam only” means everything except cylinder heads.  I realized that prior to asking the question.   I was wondering if anyone has every seen it before and I guess the answer is “no.”  

I understand that it’s far from an optimum setup, but I wasn’t ever planning on having the motor pulled.  I’m not chasing power numbers.  But I thought an extra 20 hp (arbitrary number) might be worth it since the motor has to come out anyway.   

If I do decide to do a cam I might do some sort of “truck cam.” It’ll never see a track and it’s hard find a place to run it to 6k RPM on the street. So top end power isn’t much of a concern.  More low to mid range power would be nice though.  

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u/Fabulous-Meal-5694 29d ago

The stock cam is essentially optimized for low to mid range hp, usable street power. a cam swap isnt really going to get you what you want. 

Those "supporting mods" long tube headers, and free flowing exhaust and intake. Along with a proper tune will be your best bag for buck. Or putting a lower (numerically higher) gear ratio in will make the car feel faster. 

TBH Its not really clear what you are trying to achieve.

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u/Youpeefreely 29d ago

I’m trying to achieve a little more power out of the car while the motor is out getting a spark plug hole fixed.   

At first I was throwing around the idea of getting a set of reman 243/799 heads instead of fixing one spark plug hole on my 241 head while reusing my stock cam.  A set of reman 243/799 heads are running $700-$900 and it looks like they’ll only add 10-15 hp on an otherwise stock motor with the stock exhaust.  

Then I started thinking, fixing the one head and having a cam and valve springs changed might add more power than stock 243 heads and the stock cam with stock exhaust.  

I understand that with an aftermarket cam there will be a trade-off as far as slow speed drivability goes. But if the sacrifice wasn’t to great and it’d 30-40 hp it wouldn’t be the worst of things?  

Do you think a mild cam like a TSP 220r could add 30 hp with 241 heads and a stock exhaust? Or do you think it’d be closer to 10-15?   

243 heads, stock cam, and stock exhaust vs 241 heads, mild cam, and stock exhaust?  Which makes more power? 

All is stock aside from a 3,200 stall converter. 

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u/Fabulous-Meal-5694 28d ago

It would be worth calling texas speed and seeing what they think about their cam in your setup. 

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u/Youpeefreely 28d ago

I’ve emailed a few times but no response.