Hi there once again I have a question on opinion. I have a mainly stock 302 just got done doing intake carb and hedders and am looking at Cams now. My question is what kind of duration and lift should i be looking for if i am going to be mainly running it on the street. I would like to get some more torque down while i wait to save up for a stroker kit lol. Feel free to voice all your opinions. thank you.

1979 Ford F150 2wd
302 w/ Edelbrock Performer RPM Intake, Edelbrock 1406 600cfm Carb
Dual exhaust Headman Hedders with straight pipe

 

.500" of lift is about all you wanna be looking at for a relatively stock and street used rig.

 

so something like this?
Edelbrock 5022 - Edelbrock Torker-Plus Cam and Lifter Kits - Overview - SummitRacing.com

 

It's an ok cam for what you've got now. That's at the top end of what the stock heads will be able to do anything with lift/duration wise. You will definitely see a power increase across the board but don't expect any big gains, you just aren't going to get them.

Depending on what you are doing with the truck too. If you plan on towing alot or low rpm driving there are somewhat better choices than this. You mentioned you are going stroker so don't spend big on a cam for your stock 302 as it will be useless with the bigger displacement. You may also want to measure the installed height and pressure on your valve springs. You may be into valve float early (worn springs) or coil bind (springs to short for application). I'm assuming Edelbrock is specificing a spring upgrade and it should be followed if so.

Always think of the whole package, not just parts!

 

Thanks i will think on it.

 

Another option would be to leave it the way it is now and put the 2 - 300 bucks into your stroker fund!

 

LOL that is a good idea

 

I would find a torqey rv/towing cam and leave it be. Good smooth idle and burn tires down at the blip of the pedal.

I wouldn't put that Edelbrock in a stock 79 302, with stock heads I think that cam will kill it and you said you want low end power and torque not just high end. Pretty much aint gonna get nothin but high end gains with that cam and loose bottom end.

 

The fact that cam lists as being the match for the torker intakes which are a mid and up rpm range single plane intake should give you the idea that it's probably NOT a good match for a street truck. Not what it says at the bottom of the description

Look into the comp xtreme energy series of cams for a better option.

The biggest mistake people make is NOT matching the cam to the intake and heads. You can do all this work and end up with LESS hp then you have now.

with a dual plane intake like a performer here would be a lot better choice for you

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/CCA-31-234-3/

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/CCA-31-238-3/

those are to get you in the ballpark of a lot better choice for you.

 

Read his post....he's already got an RPM and a 600 on it so matching a cam for the bottom portion of the rev band will pretty much be a moot point.Anybody that thinks an RPM works best off idle is in for some dissapointment. These intakes do their best work in the mid-range.
I agree a performer would be a better choice intake but he's not asking about an intake, he's asking about a cam that will work with what he already has. Realistically, with the painfully awful stock heads on these trucks, he's not going to see (or feel) a significant difference anyway (especially single patterns).

Reverse that one line too, don't match the cam to the intake.....match EVERYTHING to the camshaft. Start with the heart and build out from there.

Like I said before, you are best to put the money towards your stroker kit, no sense buying two camshafts for essentially what will be the same engine!

 

An Edelbrock Performer (0-5000rpm) or Performer RPM (1500-6500 rpm) intake would be a good match. Your heads have short and kind of narrow intake runners. It makes a ton of tork but the basic 302 design, (oversquare) means it likes to rev to some degree. Match it with a Edelbrock 1406 (electric choke) and you are all but there.

The classic small block cam is a 300HP/327 cam from early 60s chevy. Basically falls into a 280 duration (@.006), .480 (@ valve) degree lift give or take a lil bit on either spec. Great power but still has enough idle and vacuum to not be a problem with the brakes, etc.

Duration means more pulling torque, higher lift means more horsepower but tougher to live with on the street. Suggest finding a non-Lunati cam in that range with flat tappet hydraulic lifters for your truck unless you want to spend the cash for the roller lifters and setup.

Am sure Edelbrock Cam set 2122 or 7122 would be fine for you. 7122 requires screw in studs and guideplates tho. Scroll over part number for specs and read the specs.

Stay away from the single plane manifolds. Dual plane is what you want for street applications.

 

And you will find that the second cam I recommended would work very well with a performer RPM intake.

 

One other note, the bigger the engine the more forgiveness in the cam size. Other way around, the smaller the engine the more radical the cam. A good 351W cam would e a great idea for a 302. A really good 327 cam, the 280/480, would be a great cam in a 302. You can use a 351W by simply changing the firing order on the 302, no big deal that.

 

Whoops! That's embarrasing. The first part of my retort was supposed to be in repsonse to 79FordBlake suggesting a bottom end cam...sorry!

Still getting used to this multiple quote thingy.

 

My point behind that was why build a 302 stroker in a street truck? I see no point in doing anything other than a good rv/towing cam.
Have you seen how a 302 acts with those types of cams? They are like a redheaded stepchild. Plus still gonna have decent gas milage and engine longevity and reliability.

I guess I could use this example. I have a 75 302 with towing/rv cam and edelbrock 600. I have a 79 302 with 278 crane and edelbrock 600. 75 will leave the 79 at the line with its pants down. Then about half down track the 79 will pass up the 75.