Ht383 cam?

[dirtautoguy]

I’m hoping someone can tutor me a little in the world of cams.

I have a 96 k1500 that has a jasper motors l31 in it and 4l60e. It has duel 2 1/4 pipes with an h pipe, stock manifolds 3.73 gears, 14 bolt sf rear end, and dual electric fans

It is currently my DD and is used for most mountain excursions (hunting,fishing,camping etc). I have found that when pulling our camper it can do it but it’s not overly happy about it its about 4500lbs loaded gvw of about 10000lbs. It’s fairly happy about 45-55mph any kind of incline though and it doesn’t do so hot.

I’m not bragging and I’m not saying it’s the worst setup in the world for towing but how much better could I do?

I do plan on getting a bigger truck hopefully maybe soon (Iv been looking for a while) but in the mean time I plan on doing to 411 swap from lextech with a tow mode.

I was looking at a ht383 cam from gm. I don’t fully understand cam numbers but would like to learn. From what I understand my l31 motor should have hydraulic roller lifters, hardened distributor gear, and be plug and play with this cam. With valve springs and a tune even better?

any ideas what kind of gains I would be looking at? Would the cam be worth the extra money? Are there better choices out there?

like I said I do plan on getting a bigger truck to pull our camper but this truck would still be used to pull sidebysides and other things I may not want to use a bigger nicer truck for.

 

[Dravec]

I’m hoping someone can tutor me a little in the world of cams.

I have a 96 k1500 that has a jasper motors l31 in it and 4l60e. It has duel 2 1/4 pipes with an h pipe, stock manifolds 3.73 gears, 14 bolt sf rear end, and dual electric fans

It is currently my DD and is used for most mountain excursions (hunting,fishing,camping etc). I have found that when pulling our camper it can do it but it’s not overly happy about it its about 4500lbs loaded gvw of about 10000lbs. It’s fairly happy about 45-55mph any kind of incline though and it doesn’t do so hot.

I’m not bragging and I’m not saying it’s the worst setup in the world for towing but how much better could I do?

I do plan on getting a bigger truck hopefully maybe soon (Iv been looking for a while) but in the mean time I plan on doing to 411 swap from lextech with a tow mode.

I was looking at a ht383 cam from gm. I don’t fully understand cam numbers but would like to learn. From what I understand my l31 motor should have hydraulic roller lifters, hardened distributor gear, and be plug and play with this cam. With valve springs and a tune even better?

any ideas what kind of gains I would be looking at? Would the cam be worth the extra money? Are there better choices out there?

like I said I do plan on getting a bigger truck to pull our camper but this truck would still be used to pull sidebysides and other things I may not want to use a bigger nicer truck for.

So, found these specs on https://www.ppediesel.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=8043.

The Ramjet350/HT383/marine roller cam has specs of
.431"/.451" lift with 196°/206° on a 109° LSA

Stock L31 uses 1 cam for 1996 and a different cam for 97-2002, but they are VERY close to 1 another.
.412"/.428" 191°/196° on a 111° LSA

The HT383E cam is a relatively mild cam as far as upgrades. But it would increase your torque and ponies by a few numbers. Probably 8-15 numbers each. More with a tune, for sure. As far as better choices, there will always be something slightly better, no matter what you chose.

A narrower LSA will generally yield a slightly higher peak torque, but a wider LSA typically yields a slightly broader torque range but a bit less peak torque.

 

[dirtautoguy]

So it sounds like it would do exactly what I’m looking for.

I’m not looking for anything wild just better than stock. Any idea what kind of shop time it is to get it done? I’m sure I could do it myself but it wouldn’t be ideal

 

[Supercharged111]

I have that cam and 1.6:1 roller rockers in my 1500. They made a noticeable difference. Toss some shorty headers in with the cam, rockers, and Lextech tune and the truck will wake up. Sounds like the rest of the exhaust is up to the task.

 

[L31MaxExpress]

Personally I would go with more cam myself. Not enough difference. I ran it but did not impress me. Put a little more cam into it and it ran much better.

 

[DrunkenSailor]

I have that cam and 1.6:1 roller rockers in my 1500. They made a noticeable difference. Toss some shorty headers in with the cam, rockers, and Lextech tune and the truck will wake up. Sounds like the rest of the exhaust is up to the task.

Hey you just described my truck! same cam, rollers, did shorties and an 0411 swap. Need to figure out how I want to set up the rest of the exhaust since everything from the headers back is junk (except for maybe some piping that can be salvaged)

 

[89GMCJOHN]

I am with L31max ....I too ran the ramjet in one of my old cars in a 350 and for the expense and performance gains it wasnt worth it to me .....if your looking for more noticeable punch your going to need a better grind. I just found it to be a slight increase over the stock cam. What might be an interesting grind to try would be something like the Isky - but see if summit has a CHEAPER copy grind with similar specs ...I think you limited to .480 with vortecs unless your going to rework them.....

Isky Model: 211257265
RPM-Range 1400-5600
1.5:1 Rocker Ratio
Grind No./Type RR-257/265 Hydraulic Roller
Excellent Performance Cam With Good Vacuum
Good Idle
3.08-3.73 Axle Ratio
9.5:1 Compression
Computer Compatible
Stock Converter
Hyd. Roller
Valve Lift Int/Ext. 0.465/0.485
Valve Lash Hot Int/Ext. 0.000
ADV Duration Int/Ext. 257/265
0.050 Duration Int/Ext. 209/217
Lobe Center 112

 

[Talloneus]

How would the isky cam be better over the 383ht spec? I am also looking at a cam swap. My truck is a '98 5.7. 3.73 rear with stock tire size. I DD mine, and dont wanna lose any low end grunt for towing my hotrod on a open trailer