Camshaft/357 questions/help

[Godwick]

Thanks in advance to everyone for all their help.

Long story short, the 302's got to go. I've got my eye on a 357w shortblock. Advertized specs are:

357 0.30 Windsor shortblock, Bored And Honed With Deck Plate,
Mains Have Been Align Honed, Block Has Been Decked , all balanced, TRW Max Quench Forged pistons 9.8:1 with 58cc head, polished I beam rods, ARP bolts, Scat knife edge crankshaft, Studded bottom end, Scat flexplate, Pro flow water pump. Hi volume oil pump and hardened shaft, coated bearings,double roller chain,
Lunati flat tappet hydraulic cam ,Advertised Duration (Int/Exh): 284/292
Duration @ .050 (Int/Exh): 241/249
Gross Valve Lift (Int/Exh): .560/.582
LSA/ICL: 110/106....
Around 800 miles on it.

Now, I know pretty little about engines, and was thinking that I would go 393/408 down the line, but the budget is super tight and so I'm looking at this option.
My question here is about the cam spec. I'm pretty retarded when it comes to cam duration and lift ratings, but my general idea is that this cam seems a bit high for the low end torque our broncos need, yes? Should I just rock it and see how it pulls?
Other q's: I've got a 1" body lift from WH, would I be good to go with a stock hood and performer intake on this guy?
Also, are there any pertinent other questions I should ask this guy before pulling the trigger? Bronco specific q's like fitment for the high-flow water pump? Good deal for about a grand?
Heads/valve-train to run with it? Thinking AFR 185s.
I'm still using the stock 3spd, and 4.11 gears, just for info. I plan on swapping into a nv3550 down the line. Other q would be about an oil pan that would fit with a stock suspension and 1" body lift.

Thanks again for any advice. All I've learned about broncos has been thanks to you all.
-H

 

[Nightstick]

Those specs are a little outside what would be called an "RV Cam" which would give you a lot of low end torque. The higher lift and duration are good for higher RPM horsepower. Sounds like you're not gonna be rock crawling, so not that big of a deal. It would be a fun ride that's for sure.

I can't remember what the chamber volume of the AFR 185s is, but if it's the 58cc and that puts you at 9.8:1 CR that's great. You can always go with a bigger chamber to lower that ratio if you wanted to as well, up to you. I'd say $1k isn't a bad deal, as long as its a quality rebuild.

 

[Nightstick]

And the flex plate will be useless unless you wanna go to an auto tranny. Problem being that the engine is balanced with that flex plate, so you may want to confirm that balance job with whatever flywheel you have.

The fitment will depend on whether you need to run a carb spacer and how tall of an air cleaner you have. I have an edelbrock performer intake on a 302 with no spacer, an Impco propane mixer, and 3" air cleaner and it barely fits under a stock hood.

 

[Broncobowsher]

Sounds more like a mustang race engine/fun street engine then a Bronco engine.
the machine work is fairly universal to any rebuild.
Pistons are good. But you need to lok at the CR vs. chamber CC charts compared to the heads you will run. I don't remember the AFR CC off the top of my head.
Cam isn't my first pick, but for a light and highly reved vehicle it could be good. Watch the lift numbers compared to what the heads can handle. Some heads can't take that much lift without modifications. Also look at flow bench charts, some heads will get worse if the valves are opened too far.
Rods, are they aftermarket or reworked stock I-beams? Sounds like reworked stockers.
The knife edged crank is more of a high RPM thing (like the cam).

Is this a shop or a private sale of this engine?

for a grand I would pass. By no means is it a smoking deal. Fair deal maybe if it was exactly what you wanted. But only if it is exactly what you want. As I see it now the first thing it would be getting a new cam, so there is a few hundred more to put into it. It really wasn't built as a Bronco engine. If it was then the aftermarket crank would have been a 393 instead.

 

[barronj]

AFR 185's come in 58cc & 72cc, I think. I have the 58cc 185's on my 351.

 

[Godwick]

Thanks all. I appreciate the input. I guess Ill go another route. Love the idea of a stroker 351 on a budget, but can't really guess at cam specs. Rule of thumb being it's best to get something with low 200s on intake and exhaust valves at .050 lift good for low end? Sure there's a lot more that to it, and if I wind up buying a block without, I'll just call a cam rep.
What do you think in terms of powerful daily driver on a budget? Some say a properly done 408 can last, others not so much. Just curious for input.

 

[Hozr]

Why aput all that effort into an engine and tear it out afte 800 miles? Something wasn't working right.

 

[airbur]

Whatever you do, don't expect insight from a cam rep. I called all 3 well known cam manufacturers....gave them the exact specs of my engine build and told them exactly how the engine would be used....all 3 "reps" recommended a cam that would run perfect in a mustang with high RPMs.

Call a local cam grinder.....they will build exactly what you need.

On the topic of 408 reliability....if built right and taken care of, they will last just as long as a smaller engine. But why go 408?. For the same $....go 427!

 

[Ourobos]

The rod angle on a 427 is a bit much for any stock block, the biggest I would go is 418.

Talk to Ed Curtis :

www.flowtechinduction.com