Heads-intake help

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RedGeneral

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Ok let's get right to it, I have a 1987 Chevy R10 Custom Deluxe 8' bed that I'm restoring, pulled the original 4.3l v6 (128,000) miles out and replacing with a 87 350 block,
used SUM-SBCKIT3-300 rebuild kit, Installed
COMP Cams Thumpr Hydraulic Flat Tappet Cam and Lifter Kits K12-600-4, this is where I stopped.
I was going to install aluminum heads, but since this is a tight budget Build I decided to go with vortec heads to keep the cost down. Started looking into these heads..
Summit Racing® Vortec Cylinder Heads SUM-151124
I intend on using the FI tech fuel system.
So I'm looking for suggestions for either an intake or heads/intake combo.

This is going to be fun day/Sunday drive truck.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!
 

QBuff02

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Well, first off I would have stopped BEFORE that cam choice. I've been a person against the thumpr cams by experience with them. they sure sound good, I get it, but it's literally all smoke and mirrors and if you are running an Edelbrock or Carter style carb or especially FI you will absolutely have tuning problems. And if you know anything about cams and start comparing the specs to a true performance camshaft you will see what i'm talking about. I would look into a comp cams extreme energy cam or a lunati voodoo would also be a good choice. The heads you're looking at will tolerate a cam up to .520 lift so i'd try to find a cam in the .485-.500 lift range with 220-230 degrees duration @.050. or even like a summit 1103 or 1104 cam would be a good choice. You're going to have to put a mild converter in of some kind regardless and if you do stick with that thumpr cam, don't believe the hype of "works with stock converter" as most of them advertise, you'll need at least a 2,000 stall with it and 2,200-2,400 would be better. For a weekend toy, i'd investigate the area of cams I've mentioned or call summit or comp or lunati and have them recommend one for you, you might be surprised at what they say once you give them your vehicle info.
 

idahovette

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I have a friend who built a .030 over 327 PG 65 Impala with A/C. He used a Thump'r and it sounded really GOOD. Kinda like an old 30-30 Duntov except no lifter rattle. BUT with a Powerglide it needed at least a 2500 converter and NO vacuum for brakes! Took it out and ended up with a 350 horse hydraulic 327 style cam, Much more streetable and mannered. Now he's building a 327, 4 speed Nova and gonna use the Thump'r in it. I don't think the Thump'r is the cam for your square, Eric. Listen to Quincy, he knows.
 

RedGeneral

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Well, first off I would have stopped BEFORE that cam choice. I've been a person against the thumpr cams by experience with them. they sure sound good, I get it, but it's literally all smoke and mirrors and if you are running an Edelbrock or Carter style carb or especially FI you will absolutely have tuning problems. And if you know anything about cams and start comparing the specs to a true performance camshaft you will see what i'm talking about. I would look into a comp cams extreme energy cam or a lunati voodoo would also be a good choice. The heads you're looking at will tolerate a cam up to .520 lift so i'd try to find a cam in the .485-.500 lift range with 220-230 degrees duration @.050. or even like a summit 1103 or 1104 cam would be a good choice. You're going to have to put a mild converter in of some kind regardless and if you do stick with that thumpr cam, don't believe the hype of "works with stock converter" as most of them advertise, you'll need at least a 2,000 stall with it and 2,200-2,400 would be better. For a weekend toy, i'd investigate the area of cams I've mentioned or call summit or comp or lunati and have them recommend one for you, you might be surprised at what they say once you give them your vehicle info.

QB, thank you I was under the impression the thrumpr would be a good fit. Dumb question can I just replace the cam or will I have to get matching lifters as will since it an came as a kit. I would trust if I replace it with a Comp cam I would be okay. And I guess replacing the cam I could just sell the Thumpr since it has no milage on it.
 

QBuff02

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QB, thank you I was under the impression the thrumpr would be a good fit. Dumb question can I just replace the cam or will I have to get matching lifters as will since it an came as a kit. I would trust if I replace it with a Comp cam I would be okay. And I guess replacing the cam I could just sell the Thumpr since it has no milage on it.

They have their place sure, but moreso where the sound is important but performance and driveability isn't. "all revved up and no place to go" they sound nice at stop lights. if you have never installed the cam and lifters then you can just more than likely get a different cam without lifters and do the install as I think there's only 2 or 3 different lifters available from comp for a flat tappet cam. If you are going the route of just changing camshaft grinds and using those lifters then i'd recommend staying with comp cams. look up something like either an XE268 or XE274 grind. both would work really well in your application and a weekend toy. I've actually used both a couple of different times and they are exactly as advertised. Plus, You would still be getting the idle sound that we all love but lots more drivability/user friendly. if you've got time, even youtube them. you'll see what they are and see good reviews. But I encourage you to do a little research, as I only speak from my experiences.
 

RedGeneral

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They have their place sure, but moreso where the sound is important but performance and driveability isn't. "all revved up and no place to go" they sound nice at stop lights. if you have never installed the cam and lifters then you can just more than likely get a different cam without lifters and do the install as I think there's only 2 or 3 different lifters available from comp for a flat tappet cam. If you are going the route of just changing camshaft grinds and using those lifters then i'd recommend staying with comp cams. look up something like either an XE268 or XE274 grind. both would work really well in your application and a weekend toy. I've actually used both a couple of different times and they are exactly as advertised. Plus, You would still be getting the idle sound that we all love but lots more drivability/user friendly. if you've got time, even youtube them. you'll see what they are and see good reviews. But I encourage you to do a little research, as I only speak from my experiences.

I only installed the cam, this has been a very slow build, money being the issue and my kids (ages 12 and 14) and I are doing this together so time is also an issue. I will look into these other cams as well as reaching out to Comp Cam for advice I would like to use the lifters I have instead of changing everything completely over since again like all builds money is tight.
 

QBuff02

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I have a friend who built a .030 over 327 PG 65 Impala with A/C. He used a Thump'r and it sounded really GOOD. Kinda like an old 30-30 Duntov except no lifter rattle. BUT with a Powerglide it needed at least a 2500 converter and NO vacuum for brakes! Took it out and ended up with a 350 horse hydraulic 327 style cam, Much more streetable and mannered. Now he's building a 327, 4 speed Nova and gonna use the Thump'r in it. I don't think the Thump'r is the cam for your square, Eric. Listen to Quincy, he knows.

They make a modern version (somewhat) of the 30/30 mechanical in hydraulic that we put into my old bosses '68 Camaro with a 327/4speed. And its just cool for what it is. Lol But he redid the car and wanted it to be somewhat "period correct" so that was his deciding factor on the camshaft selection. Quieter valvetrain but still the same "style".
 

RedGeneral

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I am in the process of reaching out to Competition Cam about wither or not I can use the same lifters that cam with the Thumpr kit
 

QBuff02

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I only installed the cam, this has been a very slow build, money being the issue and my kids (ages 12 and 14) and I are doing this together so time is also an issue. I will look into these other cams as well as reaching out to Comp Cam for advice I would like to use the lifters I have instead of changing everything completely over since again like all builds money is tight.

It's always good to get the kids involved! I've got two similar in age and I can only keep their attention for a short while here and there it seems like. I just have dealt with several thumpr cam dilemmas and only two of them remain in engines as of now. So I hate seeing people go down the struggle path that I have, and at the Engine shop they pretty much avoid them now. In a nutshell They are engineered for idle sound with performance second, where a true performance cam is engineered for power first and the idle sound is the byproduct. I will give real world scenario, my friend has 2 squarebodies- an '84 and a '78, the '84 has a flat top pistons .040 over 355 with World heads and aluminum intake on it and a Comp XE268, the truck has 4.10 gears and 37" boggers, the '78 has a fresh 454 flat top pistons .030 over, big oval heads, Aluminum intake and a Thumpr cam, also 4.10 gears with 33" mud kings. Needless to say his little 355 will absolutely eat his big 454 alive- all. day. long. So we are going to change it to a 268-274ish cam at some point, and something that will have more vacuum, better idle and probably a gob more power down low. That range of cam is generally really good for street manners and driveability, it's a little on the edgy side getting up to 274 and above, and if you go a little smaller than that (like a 262 cam) it'll idle and cruise better. if you go a little bigger than that range you give up a little idle quality (but more lope at idle and less vacuum) and it sacrifices a little cruise-ability. I think you're on the right track, and you will have a nice engine when put together, but i'd hate to see someone both leave some on the table and be unhappy with their choice when it's up and running.
 

RedGeneral

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I am may switch the cam to an comp cam xtreme with the the lower intake and exhaust, as long as the lifters match. I was at the point of moving to invest in the heads and intake but want to get the bottom end right before I start chasing my tail. There is so much information and options as well as opinions that it actually gets pretty overwhelming and frankly frustrating. So I have had a few people recommend the comp cam xtreme so Im going with the rules of three(anything repeated three of more times its probably right). I spent about two months researching this bottom end including reaching out to the editors to hotrod mag. But this was all before I decided to switch from aluminum heads to vortec for cost and completion date reasons

UPDATE: As per Comp Cam, I can use the existing lifters with the comp cam xtreme cam k12-238-2 for this build and replace the Thumpr cam....anyone in need of a new
COMP Cams 12-600-4 - COMP Cams Thumpr Hydraulic Flat Tappet Camshaft
 
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Catbox

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This was the recipe I was going to follow with a 350 build.
But then I bought a truck with a big block in it...

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RedGeneral

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Where and how much for the heads?
This was the recipe I was going to follow with a 350 build.
But then I bought a truck with a big block in it...

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82sbshortbed

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I've got a brand new sbc cam and lifters. I put a BBC in the truck and now dont have a use for it now. Let some of these other guys that know more about cams than me check it out.

Here are the specs on it

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I don't know if it's gonna fit your application but, if it does I'll make ya a deal on it.

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Hope we can help each other out
 

82sbshortbed

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I also have an intake, carb and headers for a sbc I can make ya a deal on too. Lol
 

RedGeneral

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What year block was this going on?
 

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