Thread: Looking for a good cam for 429

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I'm getting ready to put my short block together but I'm balking on the cam choice. I've got ported D0VE heads, 11.5:1 compression, crane roller rockers, open zoomies, port matched performer RPM intake. I was thinking about the comp cams 292H, or lunati voodoo 284,292 cam. Looking for a nasty idle but still streetable. Any suggestions?

STREETABLE??????? With iron heads and 11.5 SCR?????? What are you planning to run for fuel???????

Stock compression on a 70 4v 429 is 11:1. What's so surprising about a half point higher? I've got a set of D3VE's that I could switch to if needed. I would take your guys advice over mine since this is my first build all by my lonesome. And by streetable I dont mean good street manners, just capable of driving in traffic every now and then.

Originally Posted by BFH429

Stock compression on a 70 4v 429 is 11:1. What's so surprising about a half point higher? I've got a set of D3VE's that I could switch to if needed. I would take your guys advice over mine since this is my first build all by my lonesome. And by streetable I dont mean good street manners, just capable of driving in traffic every now and then.

What's surprising is that you don't realize that when those heads were made in 1970, 100+ octane fuel was available at the corner gas station and some dude dressed in all-white came out to pump it for you and check all fluids and the air in your tires.

The best fuel you can buy nowadays (other than E85) is about 93 octane and you will be hard pressed to build and run much over 9.5:1 to 10.0:1 on this fuel with iron heads, even with a very tight squish.

In the first place, don't use the 429 crank. A 460 crank bolts right in and gives you another 37 cubic inches with a +0.030" bore. Using KB137 hypereutectic pistons having a single 2.5cc valve relief together with your 97cc D3VE heads will produce a 9.7:1 static compression ratio. Your parts "stack" with these parts will be 10.302", so cut the block decks to 10.302" (zero deck) and use a 0.040" compressed head gasket for a squish of 0.040".

Use large-diameter, long-tube, equal-length headers, Edelbrock RPM intake and an 850 vacuum secondaries carb. THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF THIS BUILD WILL BE THE HEADERS. I REPEAT, LARGE DIAMETER, LONG TUBE, EQUAL LENGTH.

I'll run you up a DynoSim in a minute and post it for you. That'll save you a lot of time and grief choosing a camshaft.....

OK, it has been a minute. We have a 466 Ford (4.390" x 3.850") with D3VE heads, RPM intake, 850 carb, large diameter long tube headers, "X" pipe right after the collectors, 2 1/2 to 2 3/4" pipes to the rear with mufflers of your choice. I like 36" glasspaks, but that's just me.

We're using KB137 pistons with 97cc heads for a 9.7:1 static compression ratio. With a 0.040" squish and optimized ignition timing, this motor should run well on 87 octane swill without detonating. The heads are, of course, going to be the limiting factor in this build. Not that the D3VE heads are any worse than any other of the popular iron Ford heads, it's just that they are iron Ford heads. If I were going to get serious about a 460 street motor, I'd spend some dough for a good set of aluminum heads and go up on the SCR a little. Anyway, here's what the pull looks like for this combination with this camshaft.....
http://www.compcams.com/Cam_Specs/Ca...?csid=990&sb=0
RPM HP TQ
1000 51 270
1500 110 383
2000 173 456
2500 219 460
3000 276 483
3500 340 510
4000 385 505
4500 415 485
5000 409 430
5500 341 326

Because of the heads, the motor is all done at 5000. I used more cam in a futile effort to get more power. It just ain't there. The heads are stalled at 5000 and that's it. You can see the 68 hp drop from 5000 to 5500 and like I said, it gets no better with more cam. Not that 415 hp and 510 ft/lbs is anything to sneeze at. It isn't.

Now, let's have some fun. Let's use Edelbrock #61649 aluminum heads on the motor. These heads have 75cc chambers, so we will use KB138 pistons that have 22cc chambers for a final SCR of 9.93:1. OK, now since we have an adjustable valvetrain, let's use a flat tappet cam. I've loved hearing the tick of solids since I was a kid.
http://www.compcams.com/Cam_Specs/Ca...csid=1021&sb=0
RPM HP TQ
1000 36 190
1500 92 323
2000 159 417
2500 207 435
3000 262 459
3500 339 509
4000 415 545
4500 490 571
5000 545 573
5500 574 549
6000 585 512
6500 573 463
Comp says 4000 stall converter, but my best guess is that this combo would work great with a 3000 stall.

I do have a 460 in the garage so I think I'm going to take your advice. I appreciate you taking the time to help me out. I guess I should mention that this is going into an 1800lb T-bucket so mufflers and an x-pipe are out of the question. Also would you recommend a main girdle support or would main studs old up just fine? Any words of wisdom about those half price aluminum heads on ebay?? I'm a poor college kid, Edelbrocks might be out of my league for a bit.

In a T-bucket, the first motor with iron heads will be all you need. Being rpm-limited, you won't need studs either, just stock main cap bolts torqued correctly will work fine. Been there, done that. It's rpm's that kills stuff.

i agree with tech the you wont need much with a 1800 lb car,my thought would be a 2500 to 3000 stall convertor and not too crazy on the gear cause youll never get any traction at all anyways. but thats the fun part

Thanks for the advice. One other question, If I use the D3VE heads, the stud bosses need to be milled down to install adjustable valvetrain correct?

Yes, but only if you want to. You don't have to if you are planning using a hydraulic cam. Read page 6 here....
http://www.compcams.com/Technical/In.../Files/145.pdf

Wow, great information, that's cool!

I used the comp cam instructions and it worked good but tought o make the mark accurate, i used blue dye and a knife blade to get a nice sharp edge.
i used super thin wheel alignement shims on my 500 caddy/buick rocker arm valvetrain and they worked great.

Originally Posted by canadianal

I used the comp cam instructions and it worked good but tought o make the mark accurate, i used blue dye and a knife blade to get a nice sharp edge.
i used super thin wheel alignement shims on my 500 caddy/buick rocker arm valvetrain and they worked great.

See there. Ingenuity at its best. It's what hot rodders do.

I have a 71 429 bored over .040, cyl head valve ports hogged out to 2.25 intake and 1.65 exhaust, not alot of room left, if you do the math. i decided on the Crane part # 354551. Accompanied with the Weiand Stealth intake, 750 cfm Holley MANUAL secondaries, ( I dont like the vacuum because of the delay ) MSD Dist. cause you can tailor the advance curve, and I found the most aggressive advance curve to be the most responsive combination with the intake system. Kept the 10.5:1 compression with forged pistons and I had to use comp lifters due to the fact Crane didn't offer any lifters for that cam at the time. B&M built C-6 , 9" Ford nodular, 3.50:1 rear end , 2500 stall TCI converter, All stuffed into a 69 Fairlane 2 door. Apprx 438 ft lbs. of torque and 443 h.p. @ 5200 rpm. This of course was ten years ago with the resources I had then. I still love the engine combination, and can run 93 octane all day long. I also have access to 110 octane where I live, but I don't need it.

Some good words going on, i have a 1973 bored .060 over with c9ve heads. Stock oversize pistons , and stock head gasket. Anyone know what compression i should have?

1973 429-4V 385 Series V8
198 hp @ 4400 rpm, 320 lbs/ft torque @ 2800 rpm
4-barrel
8.00:1 static compression ratio
4.36" x 3.59" bore and stroke

This motor would be a good candidate for the proverbial "first cam on the page" match-up....
Crane 350501
Brute low end torque, smooth idle, daily usage, EFI compatible, fuel economy, 1600-2200 cruise RPM,
7.75 to 8.75 static compression ratio advised
Operating range 800-4200 rpm's
Duration @ 0.050" tappet lift 192/204
Duration @ advertised 248/260
Lobe separation angle 110 degrees
Valve lift 0.456"/0.487"

I'm just using Crane to show you the specs of a cam that would work with a stock motor. There are many different cam grinders who could furnish this cam or close to it.

Here's a tutorial I wrote that may explain to you why you need to match up the static compression ratio with the cam timing.....
http://www.crankshaftcoalition.com/w..._compatibility

Trying to use more cam in an effort to create a "rump-rump" idle will turn the motor into a pig. If you want rump-rump, increase the static compression ratio so that it is compatible with the rump-rump cam.
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