Thread: Cam Identification

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ok the cam i got has a .500 lift so my uncle told me to get the numbers off it and try this to see what it is.
On the bottom end it says 274
and from top to bottom between the lobes it says
D16 C16
C 3
CWC
1529

anyone know what it is?

The numbers in the middle are probably casting numbers and codes made by the foundry that cast the blank. The 274 on the end probably indicates that the duration is 274 degrees (advertised, as opposed to 0.050" lift duration). Is this a new cam? How do you know it's 0.500" lift, did you mic it?

yeah my uncle micd it for me. if its got a 274 duration is this a decent cam for a street/strip motor?

Originally posted by muteboy49
yeah my uncle micd it for me. if its got a 274 duration is this a decent cam for a street/strip motor?

You really need to know the duration at .050.Every cam maker uses a different number for advertised duration.

Originally posted by muteboy49
yeah my uncle micd it for me. if its got a 274 duration is this a decent cam for a street/strip motor?

Depends, if your static compression ratio is between about 8.75 and 10.0 it should work and make power between about 2,200 and 5,500. Use a 2,500 stall converter.

This is the second time to ask, is this a new cam? If not, where did it come from? Did you see the lifters that were used with it if it's not new? Do you know if it's a solid or hydraulic?

no, its not new it was in the motor when i got it. idk the difference between the cams and lifters how can i tell?

Originally posted by muteboy49
no, its not new it was in the motor when i got it. idk the difference between the cams and lifters how can i tell?

What are you trying to ask?

oh i worded it wrong. idk how to tell a hydraulic cam or a solid

Take one of the lifters apart. If there's a plunger that moves up and down and a spring in the bottom, it's hydraulic. If the plunger sits on a ledge and does not move up and down, it's a solid. Do not use solid lifters on a hydraulic cam and do not use hydraulic lifters on a solid cam. If there's any, I repeat ANY doubt in your mind about the condition of the cam, if all the lobes don't check out within a couple of thousandths of each other, junk it and start with a new cam. Cams are not that expensive and it'll break your heart to get it running and then wipe a lobe and have to tear it down to clean up the mess in the motor. When you can buy a new cam for less than a hundred bucks, it's just doesn't make any sense to start with a less-than-perfect grind.

ill have to check the lifters tommorow. My uncle said the cam was in real good shape.

P.S. If you do use the cam, use only brand new lifters with it.

oh yeah for sure gotta have new lifters. i just went and grabbed a lifter and its a solid cam. does this mean anything??

Yeah, it probably means you have a solid lifter, 274 degree cam.

ahhh thank you sir. Damn man you friggin know everything.