Graham Hansen, author of the best-selling SA Design title How To Build Big-Inch Chevy Small Blocks, takes the mystery out of camshaft and valvetrain function, selection, and design. He covers camshaft basics, including a thorough explanation of how a cam operates in conjunction with the rest of the engine and valvetrain. He discusses technical terms like overlap, lobe centerline, duration, lift, and cam profiling. Comparisons between roller and flat-tappet cams are addressed and analyzed. This book covers rocker arms, lifters, valves, valvesprings, retainers, guideplates, pushrods, and cam drives, as well as detailed information on how to degree a cam and choose the proper cam for your application. Finally, matching cams to cylinder heads, analyzing port flow, and proving it all through dyno tests round out this informative volume.
Professional advice on camshafts, rocker arms, lifters, valve springs, retainers, and morecomplete with more than 300 step-by-step, how-to photos and test charts.
This book shows you how to choose the best cylinder head for your application. It covers both Gen I and Gen II small-block Chevy versions, occasionally touching on the Gen III and Gen IV production versions. This book taps into some of the best small-block Chevy cylinder head resources this country has to offer with a combination of insight and best guesstimates, because much of what we know about port design and airflow management falls under the category of art rather than science.
Renowned engine builder and technical writer David Vizard turns his attention to extracting serious horsepower from small-block Chevy engines while doing it on a budget. Included are details of the desirable factory part numbers, easy do-it-yourself cylinder head modifications, inexpensive but effective aftermarket parts, the best blocks, rotating assembly (cranks, rods, and pistons), camshaft selection, lubrication, induction, ignition, exhaust systems, and more.
The photos in this edition are black and white. Graham Hansen, author of the best-selling SA Design title How To Build Big-Inch Chevy Small Blocks, takes the mystery out of camshaft and valvetrain function, selection, and design. He covers camshaft basics, including a thorough explanation of how a cam operates in conjunction with the rest of the engine and valvetrain. He discusses technical terms like overlap, lobe centerline, duration, lift, and cam profiling. Comparisons between roller and flat-tappet cams are addressed and analyzed. This book covers rocker arms, lifters, valves, valvesprings, retainers, guideplates, pushrods, and cam drives, as well as detailed information on how to degree a cam and choose the proper cam for your application. Finally, matching cams to cylinder heads, analyzing port flow, and proving it all through dyno tests round out this informative volume.
Learn how to get the most horsepower out of the tried-and-true small-block Chevy platform in this all-new full-color guide. Whether you are a hot rodder, a custom car owner, or a muscle car guy, you are always going to be looking for the latest and greatest Chevy small-block performance information. This book is a valuable resource on all the latest for the Chevy small-block owner. How to Build Killer Chevy Small-Block Engines covers all the major components, such as blocks, crankshafts, rods and pistons, camshafts, valvetrain, oiling systems, heads, intake and carburetor, and ignition systems. In addition, this book contains a large section on stroker packages. Also featured are the latest street heads from AFR, Dart, RHS, World Products, and other prominent manufacturers. While the design is more than 60 years old, the aftermarket for this powerplant is still developing. An in-depth, highly detailed example of a popular build format is featured, offering a complete road map to duplicate this sample build. This build achieved over 700hp from 422 cubic inches! While the GM LS engine family has earned a strong following and is currently the hottest small-block in the enthusiast market, the Gen I Chevy small-block engine retains a strong following with the massive number of these engines still in use throughout the hobby. They are durable, affordable, and a very well-supported platform.
Turn your mouse engine into a hi-performance power factory with tips and secrets from David Vizard. In this volume you'll learn port mods, compression ratios, head preparation, offsetting and more head-work to get the most from your mouse.
Understand the "magic" of how optimized camshafts extract the most performance from every engine component, eliminating valvetrain guesswork. Camshafts are the coach and conductor of any four-stroke engine from early flatheads to modern Formula 1. Performance engines are amazingly sensitive to how and when the valves to the combustion chamber open and close. The valvetrain configuration and flow characteristics may change significantly between applications, but the fundamental principles are universal. This allows the language, setup, dynamics, energy, and pressure aspects of a valvetrain to be covered in a way that is just as useful for optimizing a sub-15-hp go-kart engine as it is on a 500-plus-hp street engine or modern 1,500-plus-hp NHRA Pro Stock engine. In High-Performance Cams & Valvetrains: Theory, Technology, and Selection, farm kid-turned-physicist Billy Godbold combines his quarter-century of experience with valvetrains at Comp Cams, Lunati, Crane Cams, and Edelbrock along with the techniques he uses with professional teams in NASCAR, NHRA, road racing, dirt track racing, offshore racing, and land speed racing, guiding you to think about any valvetrain system with his perspective. Often lighthearted and filled with analogies, this book endeavors to make complex concepts easy to understand without ever watering down important details. Specific configurations and applications are covered, providing techniques and examples for optimizing camshafts and the valvetrain around intakes, headers, superchargers, turbochargers, fuels, carburetors, and modern EFI applications. If you are planning or building a classic hot rod (Chevy, Ford, Chrysler, etc.), modern performance (LS, Hemi, Coyote, or Godzilla), or competition engine (road racing, circle track racing, or drag racing), these practical details show you how any valvetrain system should be modified to extract the most from every component and help you achieve your unique goals.
The small-block Chevy is widely known as the most popular engine of all time. Produced in staggering numbers and boasting huge aftermarket support, small blocks are the engine of choice for a large segment of the performance community. Originally published as two separate volumes, Small Block Chevy Performance 1955-1996 now covers the latest information on all Gen I and Gen II Chevy small blocks, this time in one volume. This book continues to be the best power source book for small-block Chevy. The detailed text and photos deliver the best solutions for making your engine perform. Extensive chapters explain proven techniques for preparing blocks, crankshafts, connecting rods, pistons, cylinder heads, and much more. Other chapters include popular ignition, carburetor, camshaft, and valvetrain tips and tricks.
The photos in this edition are black and white. Skylarks, GSXs, Grand Nationals, Rivieras, Gran Sports; the list of formidable performance Buicks is impressive. From the torque monsters of the 1960s to the high-flying Turbo models of the '80s, Buicks have a unique place in performance history. During the 1960s, when word of the mountains of torque supplied by the big-inch Buicks hit the street, nobody wanted to mess with them. Later, big-inch Buicks and the Hemi Chryslers went at it hammer and tongs in stock drag shootouts and in the pages of the popular musclecar magazines of the day. The wars between the Turbo Buicks and Mustang GTs in the 1980s were also legendary, as both cars responded so well to modifications. How to Build Max-Performance Buick Engines is the first performance engine book ever published on the Buick family of engines. This book covers everything from the Nailheads of the '50s and early '60s, to the later evolutions of the Buick V-8 through the '60s and '70s, through to the turbo V-6 models of the '70s and '80s. Veteran magazine writer and Buick owner Jefferson Bryant supplies the most up-to-date information on heads, blocks, cams, rotating assemblies, interchangeability, and oiling-system improvements and modifications, along with details on the best performance options available, avenues for aftermarket support, and so much more. Finally, the Buick camp gets the information they have been waiting for, and it's all right here in How to Build Max-Performance Buick Engines.
