[Jack Gifford]

Hi Jim! Cams will be made from Pontiac billets, with only four lobes being utilized on each cam. The front four journals will be unaltered, using Pontiac cam bearings. The rear of the cams (#5 journal and gear) will be cut off and the rearmost lobes turned round to serve as small-diameter journals running directly in the #5 cam stand (with provisions to drive the dry sump pump and magneto, directly out the rear). #1 stand is 1" thick 7075-T6 (due to extra load of drive belt) and others are 3/4" thick 6061-T6. #2/#4 journals will have the old-style drillings (which Pontiac used for short-duration timed oiling of rocker studs)- I've built #2/4 stands to direct this time-metered oil to the pivot balls of the cam follower fingers (in which I'm using Isky EZ-Roll wheels/axles, to avoid needle bearings). For max valve lifts of not more than about .650" (based mostly on your flow data), lobe lifts won't need to exceed .325" (followers are just a whisker under 2:1). I'll use lobe profiles very similar to what's in my V8 hemi- 280-something degrees @ .050", "gentle" accelerations, max power up around 8,000 - 9,000 RPM.

I made this task much more challenging by requiring it to all fit under a normal M/T hemi rocker cover (other than cam snouts/seals protruding out the front of the cover, and ports/seals out the rear for pump/mag). I'm happy, though, with the way I've worked out the oiling distribution so there will just be a single NPT port in the edge of the 1" base plate to plumb from the oil pump. That will leave only crank oiling to occur in the block.