# Got the final version at hand-I hope



## doww301 (Oct 30, 2011)

I had a really good talk with lonnie at TSP. He steered me in the direction of the 231/236 cam. Specs are .641/.615 231/236 on a 111 LSA. I was going to use the torquer v4 but he seemed to feel this would be better as I'm using LS3 heads with the fast 102 and the Nick Williams 102 throttle body. I was really concerned about PTV issues, but he told me I would be ok so long as the heads weren't milled and I used a .051 thickness head gasket which I'm going to do (Cometic). BTW, I assume those get installed dry. I've had it with head bolts on this engine too-using ARP studs (spendy). Got JBA long tubes and mids on the way. Also, vigilante 3600 stall is due to arrive on Wed which will be handled by a nice hayden trans cooler. I also have a one piece drive shaft from Gforce Engineering that's waiting to be installed. Additionally, I'm also waiting on better half shafts from the driveshaft shop (really spendy). I returned the fast 46 pound injectors. and I'm going with the LS3 42 lb'rs as there is lots of available data on tuning for them. This stuff can really beat the crap out of your bank account! Now I just have to get this new stuff installed and get started on tuning-Yay!


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## svede1212 (Nov 1, 2005)

The big stuff will break you. The "little" stuff will sneak up on you and finish you off. BTW that's a big lift cam. I'd like a tighter quench with the head gaskets if it was between lift/duration and quench. I also hope you have a really good tuner lined up.


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## doww301 (Oct 30, 2011)

*What would you suggest*

Hi Jerry:

What would you suggest as an alternative cam? Of course I have to watch ptv, but what thickness head gaskets would you recommend? say, .040, or even something else? I'm interested in what you would do with this situation. The ls3 heads are ported but not milled. I will be using the fast 102 intake and since I got a great deal I'm using the nick williams 102 throttle body. 1 3/4" JBA long tubes and catless mids. Of course a 3600 stall vigilante converter and stronger half shafts on the back. My plan is once I get the car tuned, I could consider some suspension upgrades, although I don't know how much of that I would do as I have to think about budgeting- I know that suspension upgrades can get real expensive, real quick on these cars. And yes, I am looking for a good tuner in the central to northern cali area.


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## doww301 (Oct 30, 2011)

*PM Sent*

Pm Sent


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## svede1212 (Nov 1, 2005)

I'll reply here too. Those heads have big combustion chambers so unless you mill them .020"-.030" you're going to have very low compression. Stock they are a little over 68cc and really big runners of 260cc. You'd want to get down to 64 chambers or less. As a comparison my heads for a 6.3 L engine are 58cc chambers with 220cc runners. 

A .040" gasket gives a better quench (squish) for compression and detonation resistance. Stock pistons come "out of the hole" about .060" on average giving a .034" quench which is close to ideal. The tightness is in the flat area above the piston which forces the gases into the heart shaped combustion chamber.

I know LS3s list big numbers for flow and make good power milled but I don't think the square port outshines the smaller runner cathedral port head in a NA street car. I am no expert on those heads but I suspect the throttle response wouldn't be as responsive due to the slower air in the large runners. They shine at high flow wide open throttle. 

Lift doesn't matter as full lift happens when the piston is the farthest away. It's the duration of how long they are still open that determines how big you can go. If I remember right with them milled so you get good compression limits the duration you use without valve relief to something less than 230*. Get a hold of Ed at Flowtech and lay out your goals and what you plan to use the car for and he can recommend the combo that works for you.


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## doww301 (Oct 30, 2011)

*I appreciate your help*

Thanks Jerry: :thumbsup: 
Your response was pretty thorough and informative. I have to re-consider the idea of milling vs cam choice. True, I'm aware of the the compression loss with the use of the the LS3 heads. Research I've done indicates a drop of 10.9 to somewhere in the 10.2 to 10.5 range. But, I could mill and regain some or all of the lost compression. Problem comes up with what you mentioned about 230 max on the duration when the heads are milled. I agree with you that lift is not the most important issue at hand, but valve events themselves, i.e. duration and overlap. I will have to consult with a really good cam grinder and see what my options are. Thanks once again for your help!!

Have a Good One!


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