[Nitebird]

I have a new 455 shortblock with the Comp hydraulic flat tappet XE274 cam but I am planning on swapping it out and put in one of the SD Old Faithful hydraulic roller cams.

Will a distributor with a steel gear work with both of those cams?

[66bonne]

I've always used the composite distributor gear with a hyd roller cam.

Jim

[Schurkey]

Originally Posted by Nitebird

I have a new 455 shortblock with the Comp hydraulic flat tappet XE274 cam but I am planning on swapping it out and put in one of the SD Old Faithful hydraulic roller cams.

Will a distributor with a steel gear work with both of those cams?

Is the roller cam an iron, or a steel core? If it's a steel core, can you get it with a pressed-on iron gear? Steel drive gear on the cam won't be compatible with a steel driven gear on the distributor.

[Nitebird]

Originally Posted by Schurkey

Is the roller cam an iron, or a steel core? If it's a steel core, can you get it with a pressed-on iron gear? Steel drive gear on the cam won't be compatible with a steel driven gear on the distributor.

I have tried to call SD about that old faithful cam but never can reach them. The cam is actually made by Comp.

[Ollie]

You will have better luck contacting SD by E-mail.

[grivera]

Unless something has changed in the past few months, I believe all Comp Cams roller cams are steel drive gears

[GOAT WHORE]

Originally Posted by Ollie

You will have better luck contacting SD by E-mail.

X2. They are very good with email, most the time.

[cnc]

e-mail ..............Dave is Awesome

[Lee]

I do not know about the SD Perf cams, but I have had both CompCams and Bullet grind custom Pontiac HR's on cores that CAN use the stock distributor gear.

[Steve C.]

The part number for the Old Faithful cam is 52-000-09

The -09 is designated as a "Steel Billet Roller" within the core classifications. Thus the use of a 'bronze' type gear or a composite BOP gear should be used. For the most part you will find all Comp roller cams, hyd or solid, for a Pontiac application use a steel billet core.


.

[george kujanski]

Somewhat off topic....I don't understand the whole dist gear issue with roller cams.....why a bronze or composite gear needed? Steel on steel gears when lubricated seem to work a very long time........................like in transmissions, etc.

I don't get it, someone educate me.

George

[1969GTO]

I had the same question last year when I went to the SD-STUM PULLER rollor cam.
With cam card in hand,I called Comp with part and grind #, they were able to tell me that came needed the bronze or composit gear.
They suggested the composit gear is best.
I was told by someone that the rollor cams could come either way by needing the steel or other type of disrib gear.
Call Comp Cams,tell them it's an SDPERFORMANCE cam.

[Lee]

Originally Posted by george kujanski

Somewhat off topic....I don't understand the whole dist gear issue with roller cams.....why a bronze or composite gear needed? Steel on steel gears when lubricated seem to work a very long time........................like in transmissions, etc.

I don't get it, someone educate me.

George

George,

My supposition is that it relates to the crystalline structure, with distributor gears being iron and cams being steel.

From first-hand experience, I can tell you what happens. Many years ago, Steve Coombes gave me a mild solid roller cam, which I was going to use in my old Firebird. My plans got delayed, but a friend (Warren Ksiez) was building a similar motor, and could use the cam immediately - with Steve's permission, the cam was given to Warren.

For reasons I no longer remember, Warren tried using the cam with his stock distributor gear. Within just a few hundred miles, the distributor gear had knife-edged teeth! I still have that gear in my "show and tell" box in the garage.

I can't tell you "why" it doesn't work, but I'm confident that it doesn't.

[george kujanski]

Hi there Lee, good to see you back on the Poncho board.

Lee, so ok, the cast dist gear succumbed to the steel cam gear......I can understand that, so a bronze or composite gear is supposed to last, being of a material not as hard/dense?

I don't get it.

I would think the steel-on-steel with forced lube would be the way to go...it works in transmissions...........

Your empirical info is interesting tho. I would like to know what the deal is, I don't like mysteries.

george

[oldblueponcho]

When I went to an old faithful grind around two years ago, Dave @ S.D. told me to use a composite gear.

[Steve C.]

Distributor Gears: What’s The Deal?
http://www.carcraft.com/techarticles/distributor_gears/

Comments here might be useful.....

http://forums.maxperformanceinc.com/...stributor+gear



COMP Cams® Quick Tech: Selecting The Correct Distributor Gear

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pL_p-...ature=youtu.be

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[ponjohn]

Can you simplify the decision and use the composite gear with ANY flavor of cam?

[pggto]

Originally Posted by oldblueponcho

When I went to an old faithful grind around two years ago, Dave @ S.D. told me to use a composite gear.

Same thing he told me.

[Nitebird]

Is it possible to swap gears on a distributor....from steel to composite? The distributor I am planning on buying has a steel gear.

[GOAT WHORE]

Yes, need to know what distributor.