I have little knowledge about cams and I need some help... I plan on putting a 6.0 in place of my 5.3 But before I do the swap It would be a good idea to put the cam in before I drop the engine in. I just wanna know what kinda Cam would be good for low end and fast pickup and I hope the high end stays the same. Would I need to upgrade anything else if I got a cam put in such as valve springs. The most mods I plan on doing is exhaust and getting a UPD. Also can you explain a bit what these numbers mean, cause I have no clue. (this is just a example).
218/216 .533/.536

Thanks I would really arrpeciate it. <img border="0" alt="[cheers]" title="" src="graemlins/gr_cheers.gif" />

 

You are right, you do want to put a cam in before you install the motor. You will need valve springs. I cant explain all the numbers. You need to do a little research before you choose a cam. I am no expert, but I'd like to think I'm knowledgeable.

Basically, you are looking at duration numbers (218/216) or how long the valves are open in degrees. First number is intake and second is exhaust. The other numbers are lift (.533 .536) on the intake and exhaust lobes.

All things being equal, larger durations move the power band up in rpms. With larger durations, more overlap is involved. That means a weaker low end. Most car guys arent concerened with the initial torque of their motor, only peak HP. Car guys can go with bigger duration numbers and expect to make peak power in the mid 6000 rpm range. That makes choosing a truck cam slightly different. We need that torque to get a good start with our added weight, but still want to have some upper rpm power. With the added cubic inches of a 6 liter, you will gain more torque. That means you can choose a more aggressive cam and not be hurting in the torque department.

I have a comp 218/218 /563 /563 114 LSA cam for my 6 liter project.

Read some of these:
http://www.howstuffworks.com/camshaft.htm
http://www.compcams.com/information/tutorials/

 

Thnaks tex for the info.

 

There is another factor to consider in picking a truck cam, our intake manifolds are designed to improve lowend torque compared to a LS1 and will not flow as well at high rpm. whitt1

 

</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Originally posted by whitt1:
<strong> There is another factor to consider in picking a truck cam, our intake manifolds are designed to improve lowend torque compared to a LS1 and will not flow as well at high rpm. whitt1 </strong></font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Actually, the truck intake flows better at all rpms over the ls1 intake....just not as good on top end as the ls6 intake.