educate me on "roller cam capable" blocks

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1low4x4

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Here the 350 I pulled out of my newly aquired blue 85. Rod knock.

This block has three drilled and tapped holes in the valley. That means it can use a roller cam? What exactly does this mean? What are the benefits to a roller cam? Worth all the fuss?

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Jims86

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That may even be a newer goodwrench replacement. Yes, it is roller ready, all you need is th cam, lifters and retainer plate.
You can go with a little quicker(shorter duration) cam, which is good for low end grunt, longevity, and less friction.
Put an HT383 roller cam or an lt4 cam in that bitch, and look the **** out!
 

MrMarty51

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OK,on the subject of cams.
That is a TBI block,are they all bossed/drilled aand tapped for the plate ???
What would be the best cam for up to around five grand,mostly around town with some pulling heavy loads on a 7,000 pound tandem axle trailer,mostly cars and pickups with the ocassional farm tractor that`ll really load things down.
I like the fuel mileage I am getting,on a bad day is 18 per,if I could get real good grunt and incrfease the fuel mileage any whatever,that would be a bonus.
 

Jims86

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OK,on the subject of cams.
That is a TBI block,are they all bossed/drilled aand tapped for the plate ???
What would be the best cam for up to around five grand,mostly around town with some pulling heavy loads on a 7,000 pound tandem axle trailer,mostly cars and pickups with the ocassional farm tractor that`ll really load things down.
I like the fuel mileage I am getting,on a bad day is 18 per,if I could get real good grunt and incrfease the fuel mileage any whatever,that would be a bonus.

There will be a trade off. I would jump up to the next lowest gear ratio first. I had no problems buzzing my TBI up passed 5000. HT 383E cam would be the way to go though.
 

MrMarty51

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OK,that`ll be what it is then.
248,000 miles and still running strong,I will rebuild this block and these heads when the time comes,for now I am scrounging and gathering parts for that day.
Thank You very much.
 

Jims86

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OK,that`ll be what it is then.
248,000 miles and still running strong,I will rebuild this block and these heads when the time comes,for now I am scrounging and gathering parts for that day.
Thank You very much.

remember it has to be the E cam, which is designed for EFI.
 

Driver4r

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There is no "Roller cam block" They make a roller cam for almost any real popular engine(sbc,bbc,etc....).
 

Jims86

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There is no "Roller cam block" They make a roller cam for almost any real popular engine(sbc,bbc,etc....).

Valuable info there....
We are speaking of the pre drilled/ tapped blocks, and what is considered roller ready.
 

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Valuable info there....

Thanks, i teach the world.

But many people dont know that really any block can run a roller cam.
 

GreaseDog

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OK,that`ll be what it is then.
248,000 miles and still running strong,I will rebuild this block and these heads when the time comes,for now I am scrounging and gathering parts for that day.
Thank You very much.

What heads are they? Most smog ETA heads don't work well over 4k.
 

Jims86

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What heads are they? Most smog ETA heads don't work well over 4k.

Jeremy! Dafockyoubeen?!
LT 4 cam pulled pretty good to 5300 with TBI heads, with some exhaust side porting.
 

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Thanks, i teach the world.

But many people dont know that really any block can run a roller cam.

I don't think that's the issue. It's A LOT cheaper to run a roller cam in a "roller ready" block, and IMHO, the factory setup is more reliable too.
 

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