Stocker camshafts
 

In the past year I have finished the body and chassis on my 1970 Nova with the intention of making it a legal NHRA stocker. I joined this site to get an idea of what goes on in the class and I have to say that it truly is a wealth of knowledge. I am at the point of decision about the powerplant and the class options it offers. Could anybody offer any insight into camshafts as they seem to be the unknown factor. I have never heard anybody talk specs since the only real spec is the lift limit as per the factory cam. One more thing, the car will definitely be a stick. Anything that you would have to offer would be appreciated. Thanks, John

Re: Stocker camshafts
 

Let the guys know what combo you are going to use,car falls into a few,and you will get a wealth of knowledge on this site.

Re: Stocker camshafts
 

John,
Your car can fit into several classes, with several engines and 3-4 years (69,70,71,72, and 68 if no one looks too close :eek:). From a 6 cylinder, to a 2 barrel 307 V8, to an aluminum head 396/375. You really need to pick an engine, transmission, and year for your combination, then pick a guy to either build the engine, or at least supply you with parts and technical assistance, as well as machine work. I could tell you about cams, or send you to the guy who does mine, but if that isn't what the guy you pick to do your work does, it won't help you much.

There are some combinations that you can go with that will be pretty quick, for example a 69/70 350/300 stick, or 69 396/375 iron head stick. There are some quick 69 350/255 automatic cars, and that makes a good stick car as well. The 70 402/375 stick isn't bad, either. It depends a lot on how fast you want to go, and how much you have to spend.

Re: Stocker camshafts
 

If you plan on running a small block combo i have tried them all and tried over 15 sticks in all different combo's and can get you going in the right direction. p.m. me and let me know what you plan on running and ill give you my .02

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350 /250/230 2bbl, M/Stock @3390 lbs.

70 is better than a 69 with a 2bbl. You'll have to dig a little to find out why...

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Mark,
Why didn't you just tell him it would have about 10 cc more POP?
Or say it would run better in bad air?

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Adger, We don't do Stockers on a silver platter here. LOL . Ya have to learn to find this stuff on your own.

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OOPS! I guess I violated another sacred Stock/Superstock rule....LOL!

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And you make sure you stop that, too. :D

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Thanks guys--you pitch hard and fast and I truly appreciate the help and valuable information you have to offer. Mark wants me to get down on the books and I can understand that and Adger baled me out. It's all good . Ron offers info on sb combos and Alan gave me more choices that I did have to go back to the books. I am leaning towards a 402/375 stick combo but not written in stone because some of the SB combos are interesting. I am not here to nor will I reinvent the wheel but would like to do as much as possible myself rather than write a check for a motor that would be like a black box. I want to know what makes it perform the way it does. Thanks again --talk soon----------John

Re: Stocker camshafts
 

That 402 is a good combo. You need to be sure to read the blueprint specs on it real close. It has some numbers that are a little different, too. ;~) OK Mark and Alan... I didn't spill the beans on this one... HA!

Re: Stocker camshafts
 

compcam has a spec stocker 396 375 horse cam in there catalog,it may give you some idea.You can also goggle it.

Re: Stocker camshafts
 

John,
Even if you want to build it yourself, you need to establish a relationship with a good builder, so that you get good parts, and don't waste your time and money doing it wrong. The learning curve in Stock is STEEP and real mistakes get extremely expensive and frustrating. Stock Eliminator stuff absolutely cannot be taken just anywhere. It has to be done by machinists that know exactly what they're doing, the attention to every minute detail is what makes the difference between a good piece and a slug that will not stay together.

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Ditto, Alan.. good advice... there are plenty of good ones all over the country, he just needs to find one in his area willing to spill their guts and humor him thru his learning curve

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If you do not know the actual cylinder head air flow numbers of whatever engine it is you want to build, then as far as the cam specifications it's GARBAGE IN / GARBAGE OUT.
What that also means is you might want to choose the engine first, cylinder head casting number second, then have all the work done to the heads, then make sure your intake is up to snuff, then determine what your piston to valve clearance is so you can maximize those numbers with the cam.
It should seem obvious that asking for cam specs or anything related to a part number is something you are way far away from. Right? For now, all you really should care about is what the lift is per NHRA and how that should relate to the rest of the engine selection.
There's more but as Mark said, this is no silver platter club!

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And Bub is just one of the guys I was talking about. Bub would be the guy to talk to if you're in his area, John. In the Carolinas, you have Arnold Greene and Mike Heintz. In the mid west, you've got Darrell Wikle. In Texas, there's Adger Smith. Up around the Dakotas, you have Steve Koppien. And out there on the left coast, you've got Gary McGlasson. Here in my area, you've got Jimmy Bridges and Kenny Schindler. Down south, you've got Woodro Josey, if you can con him out of retirement. Those are just a few, and several of them have helped me a ton.

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I think that if I were starting over in a whole new area, or building a car from scratch again, I would buy a car I liked, learn it, refine it, learn to drive it, and figure what it likes. This person is interested in a high maintenance combination, and I probably would start out by locating and buying a good used stocker motor, learning how to tune it, drive it,etc. and that would save me a lot of time and money on that end of the learning curve.Building a whole new car from scratch is so much work, and a lack of experience at that point usually means that a lot of it gets done again with different new parts over and over again.It might behoove a new racer to think of that rather than look for castings, a machinist, a trustable source of information, and a whole lot of things. At any rate, welcome to the Stock Eliminator family, and don't get discouraged too soon.

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Greg, I don't disagree with that at all. Were it not for the fact that he said he's built the body and chassis already, I'd tell him to go look for a car he likes and buy it. And he'd probably still be better off to buy a good used engine, but he wants to build his own. And he may be needing to spend a little, save up, and spend a little, several times, to afford it. In that case, he's better off doing what he can afford as he can afford it.

One thing a lot of us forget is that one reason people build a car instead of buying one is that it allows them to spend money over time, rather than trying to save that money and spend it all at once. Something always seems to come up when you're trying to save up. There's always a need for that money you have put back.

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:confused:Good evening gentleman, Spent an interesting day at a BBQ with the man who in the past built engines for me or steered me right when I was at a loss. He builds race engines for a living-- big big blocks and a few super stock motors. In fact he has a super comp dragster and a super stocker. We spoke about the Nova and he asked me if I was going to make it a bracket car since I already have 1969 Z/28 street car. I told him I was very interested in making it a big block stocker. He got up went to the table and poured me a scotch on the rocks and said ' so you want to jump into the fire' and smiled. Told me to come by the shop Wednesday evening and bring 2 large coffees. ------Guys , Is this what I have to look foward to ? LOL

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Black magic & shell games is all it is.......how else would an 86 Camaro go 10.83 with a "stock" 305????? ( that was a long time ago though)

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As for all your advice, I do appreciate every ounce it and take all of it very seriously. I do believe that the stocker racer is the elite and backbone of the NHRA even though they ( NHRA ) don't seem to think so. The lack of respect shown will come back to bite them as in the end they only work for you-----the members. Also , what they are doing with the DP and CJ packages is bull-----t. Not one of those cars belongs in stock---Just my 2 cents. Well, gotta hit the sack------NOT RETIRED and keeping all my options open. -------JOHN