So I bought an L96 out of a wrecked 2015 Silverado 2500 off of eBay...I was just gonna do a straight swap and get it tuned but now thats turned into a cam swap and then I also decided to do some LS9 head gaskets and some ARP head studs in case I want to go turbo later...

So I went with a TSP cam...212/218 .600 .600 114 and the BTR .660 lift springs

I got some LS7 manifolds im gonna try to use as well....I had long tubes on my last 2 trucks, some cheap chinese stainless and then upgraded to ARH and both sets just let in too much valve train noise...Im hoping these offer a nice increase in power but retain the sound characteristics of the cast iron manifolds...

So I have a couple questions...I've done some cam swaps on LS1's but those obv didnt require deleting VVT...Do I need to replace the crank gear or just the cam sprocket gear?

Also....Will I need to degree this cam or can I just use the dot to dot method?

Progress pics to come...

 

 

Once I got the heads off I used some carb cleaner and a soft bristle brush along with my shop vac to clean up the pistons...all the cylinder walls look smooth as glass and all the pistons look good (what I was expecting with 35k miles)....should I take the time to get the rest of the carbon off the pistons??

What should I do to prep the block for the new LS9 gaskets? IE how do I clean the deck surface and how clean does it really need to be?

 

Pistons look fine as is, as far as cleaning the block, non chlorinated brake clean and a soft stainless wire brush will take the old gasket material right off!

From prior mistakes/experience, if youre sticking with the rectangukar port heads you may want to rethink your cam choice, i had a comp xr275hr (222/224 .566/.568 112) that left a lot on the table... swapped to a btr ls3 stage 2 cam and am much happier! As far as vvt if youndelete it yes dot to dot to set timing, and it is a good idea to degree the cam anytime you put one in. Your 13 shoudl already have vvt, have you given any thought to keeping it to help with low end?

 

Thanks for the tip on the brake clean...As far the VVT cams, they are fairly new compared to the 3 bolts cams and the 6.0 should offer decent low end without VVT....I could swap over the heads from my 5.3 that im pulling but Id prefer to just sell as a complete long block....I have thought about having the heads milled while they are off but I dont know a good machine shop or pricing?

 

Fair enough, just a thought.

 

So just to update guys...

I just finished deleting the VVT, swapping the cam and installing the LS9 Head Gaskets and ARP Head Studs...just waiting on my injectors and I need to measure for my pushrods

The cam I went with is a 3 Bolt Non VVT Texas Speed 212/218 .600 Intake .600 Exhaust 114 LSA 111 ICL using the BTR .660 polished Valve Springs. LME milled MY heads 0.030 and I am using an L92 truck intake with the 6.2 truck Flex Fuel injectors which I think are 42lb or 54lb? Part # 12609749, I believe the 5.3 in my Avalanche now is tuned for the 36lb Injectors, Part # 12613411.

Unfortunately the LS7 Manifolds wont clear the truck motor mounts so Im having to ditch that idea...

For the time being I will be running the factory exhaust manifolds and 93 octane only. But later down the road I will be adding a set of Kooks and switching to E85.