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253 cams

Started by _Neat LX_ , May 24 2006 10:11 PM

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23 replies to this topic

#1 _Neat LX_

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Posted 24 May 2006 - 10:11 PM

Newbie question here. :blink:

I have looked at all 21 topics but cant find any info on a suitable cam to suit my 253. I know, its only a 253 but its in the shed and might aswell use it :huh:

Its a standard red 253 block, standard inlet manifold, 350 holley, Lukey headers and thats it.
Reason for wanting cam... lumpier idle and any power/torque improvements.
As im not upto specs etc etc, can anyone give me a guide as to what would be the best for me to buy.

Car is just going to be a daily cruiser, no street racer or drag runner.

Cheers people

Matt

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#2 _Oldn64_

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Posted 25 May 2006 - 12:28 AM

Personally I would go a TQ30 grind. this was more common in the 308 but really does wake the old fluffy. Make sure that you give the heads a once over and toss the 350 holley. to really awaken the bear grab a 308 inlet manifold (4 barrel) and a good quaddy and you will be very very happy.

Cheers

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#3 _[BOTTLEDUP]_

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Posted 25 May 2006 - 10:39 AM

Crow 5666 or Crane H264 is as big as I'd go in a 253. Another one to consider is a Comp Cams 268H, not as easy to track down but it will give you a nice lumpy idle without sacrificing too much power down low.

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#4 _Neat LX_

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Posted 25 May 2006 - 09:05 PM

Cheers guys!

Will check with the bank maganer aka mrs, and see what i can afford. Thanks for the help guys

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#5 _1QUICK LJ_

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Posted 25 May 2006 - 11:02 PM

id go the crane h264 it makes very good power in a 253 with a couple of bolt ons.

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#6 _[BOTTLEDUP]_

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Posted 26 May 2006 - 07:51 PM

Hahahaha had a guy come in today and buy an H286 for his too fluffy...

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#7 makka

A m��se once bit my sister

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Posted 26 May 2006 - 08:01 PM

does he want it to idle at all? haha

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#8 _1QUICK LJ_

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Posted 26 May 2006 - 09:03 PM

far out a 286 in a 253 that would scream no torque but. it wouldnt pull the skin off a cold custard.

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#9 _greenmachine215_

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Posted 27 May 2006 - 03:06 AM

I have the crane CH304 in my 253 and i have no complaints, Just running the cam timing 2degrees advance with the rollmaster kit and manage to walk over 5L commodores and keep up to speed with a friends Worked 308 Hatch, and his diff gearing is 3.9's Mines 3.55

Take the piss i dont care really, Ive heard that many different stories from that many people and done what i wanted in the end and dont have a problem

Cheers

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#10 _Boostd_

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Posted 27 May 2006 - 08:29 PM

A 286 is a good cam in a properly set up 253 they scream from about 3000 to 7000rpm. Mine makes 171 rwhp turn 19"s with ease and is easy to drive being a manual. Why worry about low down torque in a motor that revs so hard.

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#11 _Neat LX_

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Posted 27 May 2006 - 09:20 PM

How much will a 253 rev normally?
I mean, i would need good pistons, flowed heads etc etc to be able to rev to 6000rpm+ ???

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#12 _1QUICK LJ_

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Posted 28 May 2006 - 04:27 AM

i ran a little crane H264 in my 253 years ago it pulled 193 at the wheels and ran 13s it cleaned up any other 253 i came across that had a bigger cams 286crane or otherwise, it made shitloads more torque than any other 253 ive been in,the bigger cams are ok but the 264 crane suits them far better they make good torque and hp. it beat quite a few 308s in its time also.nothin wrong with 253s dont get me wrong.

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#13 _Oldn64_

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Posted 28 May 2006 - 12:04 PM

How much will a 253 rev normally?
I mean, i would need good pistons, flowed heads etc etc to be able to rev to 6000rpm+ ???

Aint that the truth.

The most common failure in a 253 is piston destruction. It breaks around teh oil lan and then looses teh top of teh piston. Good pistons are teh first thing to be looking at.

It is more common for s 253 to blow up/destroy itself than wear out. All 308 I have been with have just got tired not blown up. So yes good components are manditory in teh 253. The 253 is a great little motor and hell better economy wise than the 202. If I had teh choice of 253 or 202 teh 253 would get my vote anyday. have proved to many people that you will actually save money when running a 253.

Cheers

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#14 _1QUICK LJ_

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Posted 28 May 2006 - 02:40 PM

agree^ with oldn, if you rev them past 6000 good pistons are a must or its a time bomb , ACL hypers will do fine and get the slight dome hx series this helps with the comp, good rod bolts are a wise choice also, when it comes to cams in 253s its easy to go overboard, if you take a look at the ROH series commadores they make around 380 hp with a 30/70 cam,and a performer type manifold, torquer single plane is a big no no, stay with a factory HQ 4barrel manifold, or at most a dual plane performer.

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#15 makka

A m��se once bit my sister

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Posted 29 May 2006 - 01:58 PM

yep, u gotta have good pistons if you want to rev it. I have got the ACL's in mine, i wish I knew what my cam was though, it revs past 7000 easy and pulls hard from around 2500 to 3000, then kicks again at about 4500 and keeps goin till the tacho stops.
a friend of my fathers races speed boats with 253's and he said 7000 rpm is nothing!

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#16 _1QUICK LJ_

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Posted 29 May 2006 - 08:47 PM

yep i think they are a great little motor for they're size. they are a very dismissed engine as people always compare them to a 308,but thats like comparing a 138 red to a 202, the motor with more cubes will always dominate,but it depends if you already have a good running 253 its alot cheaper to bolt on a few bits, than build up a new 308, i dont beleive its worth going to an almost std 308 with a little cam as the 253 can easily match it for performance, if a more serious 308 is on the cards then fair enough the 308 is a good choice,another thing to consider is fuel economy my 13 second 253 could still pull 26mpg open road and 23mpg around town if driven taking it easy,not to many 13second 308s can boast this sort of economy im not saying it cant be done but 308s arnt generally known for their great fuel economy.

another thing to watch is compression they are factory rated at 9 to 1 compression but are really around 8.8 and even less with the bigger 308 head gaskets fitted as the smaller 253 gaskets are no longer available, this is why they dont go to well alot of the time when people put good size cams in them, this probably is one of the main reasons they have got a bad name as a performnce engine. try building a 308 with 8.4 comp and cam and see what happens it aint going to make very good torque unless you wack a turbo on it. also bigger valves dont work to well as with the smaller 3.6 inch bore the valves overhang the bore so any flow that would be gained with a L34 valve is lost with the overhang and actually compounds the problem and the motor looses torque due to the bigger valve, ive seen a couple of 308s that pull 11 sec passes with std size valves so ithink they a quite big enough for a 253. so there you go a little info on how to build a good performing 253 you can make anything go good if you build it right. i dont think the poor old 253 gets a proper go off most people.

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#17 _Neat LX_

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Posted 29 May 2006 - 10:20 PM

Awsome info guys..much appreciated!!

I currently am running a 202 with a unknown cam(crazy lumpy idle, but good top end) and 350holly and man...that thing chews more fuel than any car i have had..including my old 12sec wrx!!!
I used to have a 253 auto VB commodore but it had 320xxx kms, and used to get 280km per tank :blink:

The reason i was looking at a cam was due to how cheap they are, but in comparison to what needs to be done to effectively use one, kinda outways the costs and reason for changing from 202 to 253.

Im used to doing up my rex's so it was much easier to get power, but in turn costs more in the long run...read:unreliable.

May look into just doing a full rebuild on the 253 sometime soon instead.... no point wasting a good block

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#18 _chevy_253_torana_

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Posted 29 May 2006 - 10:36 PM

hey mate im doing up a 253 myself being only 16 and all ... anyway mines copping a set of shaved heads on a shaved block to bump the compression ratio to a 10:1 i have also just got a federal mogul speed pro medium 308 lined up for it to give it a bit of go as usual bit of a freshen up with chevy lifters acl bearings etc however this engine is gonna be built to scream and to keep things from ending in tradergy (i hope!!!) are some arp rod bolts and beefened valve springs and 4 barrell holley. for the moment the torana is copping a stock 253 with 2 barrel for starters as i am going to be assembling the engine with my dad. also when i got my pennies saved up after all this work is done il be going straight to autobarn and ordering a sniper nitrous kit 100-150hp adjustable kit just for some experamental fun. however i also have a good running 308 and turbo 400 which i havent decided whether thats for the torana or monaro P.S. if anyone wants a stato shell hj email me or its going to be crushed also mint rear bumper overriders and tail lights

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#19 _[BOTTLEDUP]_

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Posted 30 May 2006 - 10:39 AM

A little tip, don't use Chev hydraulic lifters in a Holden, the oiling passage is in the wrong position.

Crane make a specific lifter for Holdens CR99284-16

Can I also ask what the going price for a Sniper kit from Autobahn?

Edited by [BOTTLEDUP], 30 May 2006 - 10:40 AM.

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#20 _chevy_253_torana_

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Posted 30 May 2006 - 08:04 PM

anyone got an idea how much acl pistons are worth these days also can you get them to suit std bore as mine doesnt need a rebore
thanks

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#21 _[BOTTLEDUP]_

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Posted 30 May 2006 - 08:57 PM

You should be able to get them in standard.... But I'm yet to see a 20+ year old engine that does NOT have taper/ovality of the bores...

Generally you'd be looking at about ~$750ish for a ACL Race series rebuild kit.

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#22 _chevy_253_torana_

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Posted 30 May 2006 - 09:22 PM

sniper nitours kits are about 700 dollars

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#23 _LHoon_

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Posted 30 May 2006 - 09:53 PM

sniper nitours kits are about 700 dollars

Don't pay $700 at Autobahn, you can get them through VPW for $536.
VPW NOS Sniper Kit

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#24 _[BOTTLEDUP]_

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Posted 30 May 2006 - 09:59 PM

Umm... shop around dude, $700 will get you a Cheater kit.

Sorry for the thread hijack but if you want a Sniper kit for ~$600 PM me or call at work 08 9317 1915.