Thread: What cam advance?

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Here's a question that probably isn't very important, but I just like to know that I'm doing things right
What cam advance should I use?
I'm building a small block with a smooth idling retro-roller cam from Comp, it's going into a truck, will be a mild rebuild. Flat-top hyper pistons, 64cc 492 GM-heads, regular daily driving. Does cam advance help me in any way here? I read somewhere that 2 degrees too much is better than 2 degrees to little, but my cam only has provisions for -4° and 0° and +4°. What should i set it at?
Thanks a lot,
Max

IMO set it straight up (0).

If you are that concerned, put a belt drive on it and you can tinker with it to your heart's content with relative ease.

Kitz

The only way to tell for sure is to install it straight up and get some baseline numbers, then tune it to max. Then, advance it and do the same thing again. If you're not able to do that, install it straight up.

Thanks Kitz and Henry,
I guess I've got it figured out now:
I checked out Comp Cams and they have an installation manual for their cams online (couldn't find it until now). There they say that they grind all their "Xtreme Energy" cams with 4 degrees advance in the grind. Checked that out with a degree-card on the damper and it's correct. So I guess that's where I'm going to leave it.
But sometimes it's the case that things work better if you try out something different, or I might have had an older type of grind from before they ground in the advance or something. But it seems my question was a bit too soon...
Sorry for bothering you ,
Mad