I've always installed cams dot to dot and never had an issue.
Not unreasonable...IF (big IF)
there aren't any manufacturing screwups in the parts you're using.
Example:
Buick people had issues with a certain brand of timing set. The company made them with the keyway something like 14 degrees "off".
You only need to degree a cam if you're tailoring the RPM range.
Not entirely true. Yes, you can move the cam around to tailor the power to the RPM you want it. I degree cams to make sure the entire system has the cam timing where it's
supposed to be.
A machining error--or multiple errors--anywhere in the system will screw-up cam timing, and unless the cam is degreed, you won't know until the engine runs disappointingly bad.
The keyway on the crankshaft has to be properly indexed to the #1 crank throw.
The keyway on the crank gear has to be properly indexed.
A multiple-keyway crank gear has to be installed using the correct alignment indicator. (Some guys use the +4 degree keyway, but use the "straight up" or -4 degree "dot" to align it to the cam gear, for example.)
The dowel hole on the cam gear has to be properly indexed.
The dowel hole on the cam has to be properly indexed.
In addition to the above--which can be corrected with offset keyways, offset keys, or offset dowel bushings, there's also stuff that can't be corrected that way:
The camshaft tunnel in the block has to be properly aligned to the crankshaft
The lifter bores in the block have to be properly aligned
Each cam lobe has to be ground to the proper location
Multiple machining operations, some of them done by outside suppliers, and the sum total of error has the camshaft within a degree or two of "perfect", INCLUDING TIMING CHAIN SLACK which can become excessive if the block has been align-bored, for example.
I degree EVERY cam I install, and I check #1 cylinder and #6 cylinder--so I get both banks, one at the front, one near the rear of the engine.
If the engine doesn't live up to my expectations, I know it's NOT the cam timing that's at fault. (Well, since I don't check
every lobe, I leave myself open to mis-ground camshafts...but that's a pretty rare issue.)
I am a newbie with motor work! So I was hoping to find some information on a cam kit that I could install and not mess with anything as far as installation goes
No such thing. In the real world, machining errors happen. Ideally, they're caught before the engine is installed in the vehicle, and runs poorly as a result.
Then there's the "correction" of problems caused by GM machining and spec'ing the cylinder heads to accommodate only low-lift cams--lack of clearance between the valve retainer and the guide or seal, for example. Or using valve springs that are too soft for performance use.
