I went into Clay Smith Engineering today with my cam, one of the cylinder heads, and pictures of the block and pistons. They gave me a cam card for my cam and recognized the springs and other components on the head as parts from their shop. They explained that the compression ratio is between 11 and 12, and also explained the problems would ensue. Specifically that the engine will ping on pump gas unless it is run very rich and timing is significantly retarded, and doing so will greatly reduce its power and general performance.
Their recommendation is to put in a set of dished pistons and thus reduce its compression, and continue with the rest of the configuration of the motor. They thought the cam was appropriate for my Pantera since I will not be racing it. The cam card is attached below.
They are comfortable working with this motor since it is their cam and related components. The plan is for me to disassemble the motor and take everything their shop next week. They will:
- measure combustion chamber volume in the heads
- measure cylinder bore
- check crank shaft stroke
- torque plate hone the block (unless already done)
- order the appropriate RaceTec custom dished pistons
- balance the updated rotating assembly
Attachments
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