Cam life question

[zjtins]

After reading many a horror story about how the cam dies after a stroker build has any consensus been reached as to the cause? Meaning if I were to build a stroker what needs to be followed to ensure the cam will last the life of the stroker (at least 200k miles).

I have read the storys from some very knowledgeable people and quite frankly it appears to occur to almost anyone leading me to believe do not use an after market cam. Dinos story really through me for loop. If it can happen to him then it can happen to anyone.

[6TIME]

If you're expecting anything more than a stock camshaft 4.0/4.6 to go 200k?.... you're wishful thinking. By 200k most factory cams are worn down considerably anyways, so why expect one to go that far? You're just losing in the power department. Anything more aggressive than a stock cam profile will almost always require more spring pressure to control the valvetrain. This is where the increased friction comes from...Resulting in more wear on the cam/lifters over time. The key to longevity is proper assembly, quality lifters (yes, there are plenty of junk lifters out there), oil, break-in, and just enough valvespring to control the valvetrain without going overboard on pressure. I had a daily driven 4.0 that went 76k with a Comp 232-4 before losing a lobe. I currently have a 4.6 with Lunati 63500 that Has 37k so far and is running nice and quiet. There's lots of variables involved but, You can probably expect 50-100k out of a mild cam that is properly setup.

[IH 392]

I'm wondering if some of the issue is proper break in??, and on top of that the oils of today aren't made for flat tappet cams anymore!, and as said stiffer springs are hard on the cams too!

[shawnxj]

i had my valve train specced by lunati and they garanteed me a minimum of 100k miles. they also specced the spring pressures alot higher then what most others are running. so far i have about 1000 miles on it and no issues and i'm running the stock pin/spring combo

[Cheromaniac]

Dinos story really through me for loop. If it can happen to him then it can happen to anyone.

In my case I think it was poor quality lifters. The Crane cam itself was OK and I think it was a bad lifter that took out a lobe. The cam otherwise still looked perfect after 34k miles.

[SilverXJ]

Start with a good cam and good lifters. Use springs with loads recommended by the cam manufacture. If the cam manufacturer can't provide open and closed loads use another company. Make sure the bearing journals have a good polish to them.

Put the grey cam lube on the bottom of the lifter and the cam lobe. Really rub it in. Regular assembly lube on the journals and sides of the lifters. Try not to rotate the engine much after the cam and lifters are in.

Use an oil with a good amount of ZDDP. A breakin specific oil is a good idea for the engine breakin period.

Perform the recommend cam breakin. Start the engine as soon as possible. Have the coolant filled, fuel rail bled, etc prior to turning the key. You want the engine to fire on the first crank. Once the engine fires bring it up to the breakin RPMs. Don't let it idle as you want that oil splash going.

Continue to use a high ZDDP oil after the breakin, but not breakin oil as it has more ZDDP than needed for daily use.

[6TIME]

If you use beehive style springs you can get away with considerably less spring loads due to their lightweight, low mass design. This will definitely help in the longevity department. Also, Stay away from Sealed Power, Melling, Engle, Enginetech, and other similar branded lifters with these motors. They used to be decent quality but now are made in Mexico or overseas. These lifters have very poor metallurgy and the external and,critical internal tolerances are all over the charts. I've had many lifter failures from these brands. Keep in mind this is mainly isolated for some reason with the HL2011, HT2011, JB2011 style lifter. I've had great luck with those same brands in Chevy/Ford applications though.... Mopar makes great quality lifters but they are pricey. Johnson is about the only other aftermarket maker of good lifters for Mopar engines anymore. I've also confirmed with Crower that their lifters are sourced from Johnson as well.

[Cheromaniac]

I used new Crown Automotive lifters with my old stock cam last time around. So far so good after 40k miles since my mini-rebuild.

[SilverXJ]

Johnson Hylift lifters are high quality and confirmed long ago they were the same ones that Crower uses for their camsaver lifters. They also come highly recommended by a few cam companies.

[6TIME]

Crowers standard hydraulic lifters are sourced from Johnson as well from what I've gathered from their tech reps..

[the grey ghost]

I used the cam savers, they're in my engine now, it has around 12000 miles on it now without hickup