71 PW 383 Cam & gear switch advice...

[triggerfish]

I installed the original 383 Magnum that was in my 70 Challenger R/T , into my 71 Power Wagon & its cammed for a higher rpm range than the truck really needs for pulling. With 3.55's gears & the 33" BFG's, its pretty much highway geared. Runs like a beast on the freeway & comes on really strong at 3500 rpm, but I'm thinking of re camming it for pulling & towing. I don't know what the build is but know it ran like an animal in the Challenger before we installed the Hemi. It's got factory heads & a Weiand dual plane with now, a 600 Eddy that replaced the 780 Holley. I think I'l swap the 600 for my 650 Eddy AVS & its got Flowtech headers & Dynamax Super turbo's. Has anyone built a 383 for their truck & what cam are you running? Should I change the 3.33's to 3.91's or 4.10's along with a cam change? I'm afraid a lower gear may affect gas mileage, but I gotta keep my foot in it to get up to speed as it is now, so maybe I'll get better mileage w/ lower gears/ Any suggestions are most appreciated.

[jimmy]

Your right on the money, A good RV cam will work better, I did the same thing with my carb. I thought my 750cfm was to big so I tried a 625carter and it's to small. I have smaller jets I'm going to try in the 750.

I have a low compression 440 with a factory purple shaft road runner style cam & 3.55 and 33x12.5 BFG's. I wouldn't have thought it would be to big cause it seams mild but it's just not enough low end torque.

I hope the guys speak up about grinds cause I'd like to change mine also.

The cam would be fine if our gears were lower- 4.10, 3.91, 3.70s but I need mine to run down the free way at 70. Cams are alot cheaper than front and rear gears.

Awesome truck! I used the same Ford mirrors on my crewcab.

[Boons]

Man that truck is down right beautiful.

[RussRoth]

I have 450 cubes and am running a Comp Xtreme 4x4 cam. It does everything I want the way I want it to. Pulls excellent right from an idle all the way as far as I feel comfortable winding it. I can't say how high that is since I was never able to get the tach to work above 3,500 RPM. It isn't on the cam card but I remember the power range was 1,500-5,600 RPM. I believe it is all of that and pulls every bit of it very well. It actually pulls right from idle but I can feel a slight power increase @ 1,500 RPM.

Cam card specs are: 218*/226* @ .050-261*/270* @ .020". Intake lift is .463"and exhaust is .481". Part # is 21-000-5, grind # is CRB 5442/5444 HR111+4. Talk to your chosen cam grinder as they can help you a lot on what will work for you.

[triggerfish]

I have 450 cubes and am running a Comp Xtreme 4x4 cam. It does everything I want the way I want it to. Pulls excellent right from an idle all the way as far as I feel comfortable winding it. I can't say how high that is since I was never able to get the tach to work above 3,500 RPM. It isn't on the cam card but I remember the power range was 1,500-5,600 RPM. I believe it is all of that and pulls every bit of it very well. It actually pulls right from idle but I can feel a slight power increase @ 1,500 RPM.

Cam card specs are: 218*/226* @ .050-261*/270* @ .020". Intake lift is .463"and exhaust is .481". Part # is 21-000-5, grind # is CRB 5442/5444 HR111+4. Talk to your chosen cam grinder as they can help you a lot on what will work for you.

Thanks Russ. Is your 450 a low deck stroker or a bored 440? This looks like a good grind & I'll check out the grind # to find out the lobe separation, etc. What gears & tires & carb/intake are you running? Thanks, Buzz

[triggerfish]

Your right on the money, A good RV cam will work better, I did the same thing with my carb. I thought my 750cfm was to big so I tried a 625carter and it's to small. I have smaller jets I'm going to try in the 750.

I have a low compression 440 with a factory purple shaft road runner style cam & 3.55 and 33x12.5 BFG's. I wouldn't have thought it would be to big cause it seams mild but it's just not enough low end torque.

I hope the guys speak up about grinds cause I'd like to change mine also.

The cam would be fine if our gears were lower- 4.10, 3.91, 3.70s but I need mine to run down the free way at 70. Cams are alot cheaper than front and rear gears.

Awesome truck! I used the same Ford mirrors on my crewcab.

Thanks for the compliment Jimmy & I'll bet your truck run like a raped ape on the freeway. Once I'm at 3500 rpm, throttle response is good, especially from 55 mph up, but gas mileage sucks cause my foots always in it at low rpms to get up to speed. I'll post the cam specs as I talk to a few grinders. I wish Engle was still in business, but wil check w/ Cam Motion, Comp & Lunati. Any pics of your truck?

[712edf]

Triggerfish,
Would retarding the camshaft that you currently have in your engine help any? I've always read that doing this shifts the power/torque curve to a lower RPM range.

Bucky

[triggerfish]

Triggerfish,
Would retarding the camshaft that you currently have in your engine help any? I've always read that doing this shifts the power/torque curve to a lower RPM range.

Bucky

Thanks Bucky & I never thought of this. I don't have a clue what the build is on the 383, but suspect a purple shaft 484 cam. I gotta take the valve covers off & see what lifters it has. I'd rather replace the cam with one I know is spec'd for towing, but I'll ask my mechanic if retarding the current is an option that'll work.

[RussRoth]

Cam card specs are: 218*/226* @ .050-261*/270* @ .020". Intake lift is .463"and exhaust is .481". Part # is 21-000-5, grind # is CRB 5442/5444 HR111+4. Talk to your chosen cam grinder as they can help you a lot on what will work for you.

Thanks Russ. Is your 450 a low deck stroker or a bored 440? This looks like a good grind & I'll check out the grind # to find out the lobe separation, etc. What gears & tires & carb/intake are you running? Thanks, Buzz

It's a low deck. Lobe separation is 111 and the specs are for the cam installed @ 107. This cam was ground before it was actually put on the market and I think they changed it a bit after mine was ground. We kept getting slightly different specs when we talked with them prior to it being done.

[triggerfish]

Cam card specs are: 218*/226* @ .050-261*/270* @ .020". Intake lift is .463"and exhaust is .481". Part # is 21-000-5, grind # is CRB 5442/5444 HR111+4. Talk to your chosen cam grinder as they can help you a lot on what will work for you.

Thanks Russ. Is your 450 a low deck stroker or a bored 440? This looks like a good grind & I'll check out the grind # to find out the lobe separation, etc. What gears & tires & carb/intake are you running? Thanks, Buzz

It's a low deck. Lobe separation is 111 and the specs are for the cam installed @ 107. This cam was ground before it was actually put on the market and I think they changed it a bit after mine was ground. We kept getting slightly different specs when we talked with them prior to it being done.

On their site, they show a 383-440 cam that's good for 1200-5200 rpm, on a 110 centerline. The grind # is 268H.. The 260H makes power fro 1000-5000 rpm. I'm trying to get in touch with Engle & will post their grind.

[jimmy]

The 69' Crew cab w70 grill and 65' Satellite are mine.
viewtopic.php?f=3&t=23986

the truck runs Ok, I would like to build a 9:5.1 motor someday. Low compression 440's aren't very impressive, at least not in a heavy power wagon.
My original goal was a Cummins, but I'll probably never do it.

1200-5200 range looks perfect.

[pwadventurer]

Thats a nice looking truck and i like the orange engine with the orange paint. What headers are you running and did you have any problem installing them?

Rick

[triggerfish]

Thats a nice looking truck and i like the orange engine with the orange paint. What headers are you running and did you have any problem installing them?

Rick

Thanks for the compliment & its 2008 Challenger Hemi Orange. The headers are Ceramic coated Flowtech's & they gave us a lot of trouble. Their flange holes didn't line up w/ the head studs & we had to redrill. Other than that, the fit is pretty good. I hope the coating lasts, as I heard it didn't on another post, but so far its good. They seem to perform well & no leaks.

[pwadventurer]

Thanks triggerfish, i see that the 33504 are listed to fit our W series trucks. I like the style, I'll most likely go with them when i get to that point.