I have been trying to map out the direction I want to take my truck. I pretty much have decided on bolt ons first (pretty obvious start) then cam and possibly some "UNnatural" aspiration somtime in the distant future. My plans for bolt ons are as follows:

UPD intake lid w/my custom intake tube
LS1 fans w/Nelson Harness
Trans-Go Shift Kit w/Corvette Servo, Alum. Accumulator, Billet OD Servo 100% torque management removed
Nelson Tune (87 or 93 octane...havent decided yet)
AS&M headers
Magnaflow CatBack

My truck came stock with 5.3 w/ 4L60 and 4.10 posi. My goal is to not lose ANY low end torque and I do not want to add a high stall converter. I am not looking for a drag truck so I want my power band to be as streetable as the stock powerband. Idle quality isnt all that important but again stock or close to stock as possible is acceptable. I have been reading some good things about the Comp Cam XR259HR (206/212 .515/.522) cam. Would this be something to consider with everything said above or should I skip the cam and just go right for the "UNnatural" aspiration (i.e. Supercharger)? Being emissions compliant is also of major concern!

 

I personally think that cam would be as close to perfect for you as you can get. I'm just not sure about emissions. I 'think' it'll be fine.

Mine's only slightly bigger, but even in my slightly bigger 6.0 I lost a "just noticeable" amount of power under 1,500 rpm. It's really only noticeable when I'm locked up and RPM's drop under 1,500. I went in an edited the lockup tables to only lock when I'm above 45mph or so. It 'completely' changed the driving experience with the cam.

I know there will be some votes that say you should keep your stock cam in there. That would definitely be the easiest, but the stocker isn't performance oriented at all. It's too bad nobody makes a true stock-powerband replacement cam that will help other power-adders. Something like 195-200/210-215 on a .550/.550 with maybe a 114... or even a 113 to 112 LSA.

 

I wasn't going to post until I had all the info in and more time, but I don't want someone to make a decision without all the information available...

Just installed a 205/212, 548/540, 114+4 this weekend in a 5.3L. Lost no low-end whatsoever. Gained everywhere on the powerband. Will post a full report later this week or early next (have to pack and move this week!). Going to the dyno on 11/13 so I will have numbers soon (no other changes since last dyno run).

With a -18.6 degrees of valve overlap, this cam should pass California emissions no problem.

 

I dont know, if i was to go back and do it again i'd go with the T-Rex.

 

I don't understand why people think a stall is unstreetable.

I drive my truck 150miles a day with a 3000stall and had a beefy cam in it. With proper tuning my part throttle and daily driving was MUCH better than my buddies stock truck. Between his and mine you could barely even notice the stall if at all until you jabbed the gas.

Only reason I wouldn't get a stall is if you tow super heavy loads. Other than that the streetability excuse is not all that valid IMO.

Just my opinion after having used over 6 different stalls in 3 of my various cars. a 3000 and under stall with a decent STR rating is barely noticable. Once you hit the 3800+ range though all bets are off. Hahaha

 

Cakes is looking at the same cam I have, only I have it ground on a 114 lsa. Super torque with the right tuning. Smooth idle, good idle vacuum, perfect for a daily driver IMO. The 112 lsa will sound choppier and probably provide even more bottom end, but may trip misfire codes and idle vacuum will suffer. Either way, great cam w/o needing a stall and without sacrificing daily driveability.

 

F8L Z71, I know for a fact a high stall is completely streetable. I had a 3200 Non-lockup in my '86 Grand National and it drove fine. I just dont want to get that involved in a cam swap if I am going to have to change everything just to get the cam to perform like I want. What I am looking for is a nice cam with good power gains that wont upset the stock power band.

budhayes3, sounds like something I am looking for. Thanks for your input!

 

Ok, I gotcha

Some of the guys that are new to modding freak out when they think of a 3000stall. Like you have to rev it to 3k before the car will move type of stuff.

If you do end up with a low end TQ cam and get dyno results please post them up. I think a lot of us are still trying to find the perfect cam for great power and no stall required.

 

I'd love to see some dyno #'s and comments on some of the smaller "torque" cams. I'm still debating this myself.

 

I'll have some relevant numbers for my cam fairly soon. I'll be dynoing my truck again on 11/13 and the only change I will have made between this and the last dyno is the cam itself (same dyno, same facility, although the weather might be a little cooler). I'll post the results once I know them.