Cam lift

[Al2006]

I am going through my 65 "A" 289, and I am going to reinstall my old late 70's Isky camshaft, 300 duration, .476 lift, 108 degrees. I love the old cam, however I would like more lift. Isky will not commit themselves on any questions I ask, they say to clay it. I want to use 1.7 roller tip rockers to get the lift to .50. Will I bang the pistons with my stock heads with the 300 duration? I don't want to buy the rockers to do a clay test if it wont work. I am hogging out the c5ae-b heads as much as I dare to also boost power. I want to stay old school with the motor, NHRA guys run high 10's with ported c5ae-b's and 450cfm carbs. They say that ported to around 140cc intake (49cc exhaust) these heads will flow 240 at 28in of H2O, that's about all an aftermarket will do. NHRA rules limit porting of these heads to 155 and 49cc, with stock size valves, 1.78 and 1.49. Correct me if I'm wrong.

[Al2006]

Kip Martin holds the record running a stock block and crankshaft. He runs the ported heads with 1.78 valves. His heads flow 210cfm, and he runs a roller cam. He makes 480 hp, runs a 6.20 rear gear, and leaves the line at 9,500 thousand rpm. He is on You Tube talking about the car. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRSuTojvuWA
I guess this guy is a friend of his:
http://www.stevesnovasite.com/forums/sh ... 965&page=3 (post #37)

Example: Kip Martins SS/L 289 mustang holds the NHRA SS/L record @ 10.29 the car weighs 2900 pounds has head flow of about 210 cfm, remember this is a 289 head with a 1.780 valve, his engine made 480 hp on my Superflow dyno corrected, them went out and ran 10.29 and set the record"[/color]

[CALIFORNIA CALIENTE]

Al;there is more to porting than just"hogging out" the ports.You want to make the air path as clean and straight as the material will allow.Port volume is just a part of the equation.SS only allows certain areas to be worked on and the whole port size idea is being changed,they are leaning towards smaller,high velosity ports.There is more to a cam than just lift and duration,I have five pages of info on just one cam design for my small block Ford that Survivor Motorsports came up with.The small block Ford guys in SS are lifting those little valves over.950 off the seat and keeping them open for along time in order to get air around those tiny valves.I'm no expert and I am not trying to tell you not to play with your C5 heads,just to let you know there is alot of work involved to get a 289 to run 10s!!! ROY.

[Al2006]

Maybe I should not have used hogging, but I did grind out a lot of metal. I am following the advise of an article in 'Modified Mustangs and Fords' magazine,
Ford Mustang Cylinder Head Porting - Head Trip
Cylinder-Head Porting: A Key To Power Production
May, 2006
http://www.mustangandfords.com/techarti ... index.html

It is a detailed article, and I am closely following it. I am now port matching my old Torker 289 intake to what I've done to the heads.
Isky camshafts told me that I had to watch hitting the pistons with the high duration if I want more lift, but won't say what lift will work. Want to sell me a new cam, they have higher lifts but have backed off the duration on the hydraulic cams.
I don't want to run 10's, just scoot my 64 as fast as I can on a budget.
I did read that the SS guys count on velocity to make power.

[CALIFORNIA CALIENTE]

I would think you should be OK on valve clearance.Are you running replacement type pistons? I ran a 550 lift solid flat tappet with TRW 10.5 pistons with over .100 clearance.It is unreal how quick Kip Martin's Mustang is,or the Comets of Dick Lux and Gary Williams! ROY.

[Al2006]

I am bored .30 over and using flat tops with valve reliefs. My 289 was 10 to 1 stock, so am a little more with the over bore. Most of the head porting is on the exhaust side, the article does not push a lot of work on the intakes, says its not needed as much as the exhaust. I would like to get a higher lift cam, but I already know what the old isky will do. How much duration is on your .550 cam? Do you know anyone that has put a 351W cam in a 289 to change the firing order? I have read that the engine cools better and can make more power with this setup. That is why the Ford, and also Chevy, changed. I would like to put a 351W solid in my 289 if it really made a difference.

[Boss/Cyclone]

I only use the Windsor firing order cams in all small blocks I build. I am not sure of a performance advantage but, I don't like the 289 firing order having 1 and 5 firing back to back. Puts a lot of unnecessary load on the front of the crank.

[Al2006]

I guess the heat problem comes from 7 and 8 hitting side by side, especially if you use a manifold with no rear crossover. The uneven heating causes the power loss. (supposedly) It does make sense.
So I should be able to put a .550 solid Windsor cam in the 289 and do fine. That should bring the old girl to life with the heads ported.

[CALIFORNIA CALIENTE]

It was strictly an emissions thing.I have NEVER had a crank or bearing issue with the original 289 firing order,or a heating issue.Most aftermarket cams are built on the early firing order,my Comp Cams hydrolic roller for my 87, 5 liter is ground with the early pattern.In over 43 years of racing small block Fords I have never heard of this as an issue! ROY.

[Al2006]

This is supposed to be why the Chevy guys switch cams. I think its called a 4-7 switch. If I had the money I'd try several combination's, till then it's all guess and ask.

[RucaCustoms]

Most aftermarket cams are the 351W firing order. As far as your PTV clearance you should be alright.. I am running .520 lift on mine and I am good. Just make sure your valve springs can handle the lift you are using, if you haven't I would recommend upgrading the valve springs. I have had to do to many motor builds because customers throw cams into and engine but don't upgrade the springs and they float the valves and a piston smacks the valve.

[GrumpyBobby]

Does Isky know the blueprint on your engine ? If not they are giving you all the advice they can. The block or heads having been milled is highly likely by this time. Guessing on a performance build is probably not the best option. You don't need to put the new cam or roller rockers in to clay test the thing. Just use .024 worth of feeler gauges at the rocker & stem union. If you dont want to tear into it to clay it, you could make a jig & use a dial indicator to determine the valve to piston clearance. But a blueprint is the safest option IMO