305 cam advice needed

okay so i'm stuck putting together a 305 for my daily ride a 76 el camino. the free shortblock already has 040 over flat top pistons and just needs a camshaft replacement I lean towards the edelbrock performer cam which is duplicated by summit as the k1102 grind obviously this heavy elcamino is usually used to pick up parts and just go to work stuff but im going to need it to tow my 68 chevelle on occasion. what do you guys reccommend
hopefully somebody here has built a grunty 305 before.
the elcamino does have all power options but fortunately has a 700r4 with 3.42 rear gears so there is torque multiplication.
any ideas?? Could I step up to the next grind which is 214/224 at 050? thanks

It all comes down to cranking pressure on available pump gas. Please read this explanation from Crane......

Why is it necessary to know the Compression Ratio of an engine in order to choose the correct cam?

The compression ratio of the engine is one of three key factors in determining the engine's cylinder pressure. The other two are the duration of the camshaft (at .050" lifter rise) and the position of the cam in the engine (advanced or retarded). The result of how these three factors interact with one another is the amount of cylinder pressure the engine will generate. (This is usually expressed as the "cranking pressure" that can be measured with a gauge installed in the spark plug hole.)

It is important to be sure that the engine's compression ratio matches the recommended ratio for the cam you are selecting. Too little compression ratio (or too much duration) will cause the cylinder pressure to drop. This will lower the power output of the engine.

With too much compression ratio (or too little duration) the cylinder pressure will be too high, causing pre-ignition and detonation. This condition could severely damage engine components.

How does Cylinder Pressure relate to the octane rating of today's unleaded fuel?

In very basic terms, the more cylinder pressure we make the more power the engine will produce. But look out for the fuel! Today's pump gas is too volatile and cannot tolerate high compression ratio (above 10.5:1) and high cylinder pressure (above approximately 165 PSI) without risking detonation. Fuel octane boosters or expensive racing gasoline will be necessary if too much cylinder pressure is generated.

I tend to lean on the manufacturers to supplement my own experience when I'm looking for information about a combination of parts on a project and also when advising others about component selection. And I tend to be very conservative when I'm spending YOUR money.

You don't want to put too much cam in a motor for a daily driver unless you want to also intall a numerically higher gear and a converter rated at a higher stall speed. Matter of fact is, the first cam in any grinders catalog is probably the best choice for a daily driver. I might go with something like this for a mostly stock 305 that will see some towing duties....
http://www.cranecams.com/?show=brows...tType=camshaft

It's ground on a 112 LSA, so idle will be smooth with good low-end torque and it'll produce good vacuum to drive accessories like power brakes.

Pardon me for the redundancy but I am wondering if totally stock compression readings should be as low as 125 psi? this would be on a stock 402 big block with 8.2 compression pistons and open chamber oval ports 119cc? I thought it was low but power seemed ok. at least till I dropped a valve and well you know lol

Yeah, it could easily be that low with 8.2 c.r.

I'd juggle head gasket thickness and deck height to arrive at a piston/head clearance of 0.040" to 0.045" and adjust static c.r. to around 9.0:1 by choosing the correct pistons and run a cam with similar specs to what I listed in my previous post. That should make a great tow motor on regular pump gas with iron heads.

I know nothing of your level of c.r. expertise, but will include a how-to on compression ratio that I wrote for your perusal.....
http://streetmachinesoftablerock.com...opic.php?t=124

wow tech that was once seriously enlightening article!
have always enjoyed engine assembly and experimentation but this article has convinced me to get some new christmas list items! thanks for an excellent article!

You're welcome :)