Quote:
Originally Posted by flht99b
Absolutely fantastic. I have 2 easy questions. The 3 bolt cam gear, did you use a GM gear or aftermarket and did you remove the oil pump to install a different one or the oil pump removal is necessary for a cam swap.
Thanks again for your outstanding post.
Ed M.
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First of all thanks very much for the compliment.
As for your questions, the camshaft gear is a GM part, part# 12586481 (I have to update the parts list in my post with this). As for the oil pump, it had to come off in order to change the timing chain. It does not have to come off if you are only switching to a 3 bolt cam therefore switching out to the 3 bolt timing gear. My understanding is that if you are using a very mild cam that still makes use of the stock valve springs or even aftermarket springs on a cam without a lot of lift beyond stock then the stock timing chain is fine and would save you from having to take the oil pump off. In my case and most of the cam swaps you see here on the forum, the new cams have a lot more lift than stock (mine is in the 0.580" range and a lot of others are over 0.600"), possibly a more aggressive ramp rate on the cam lobes, and the valvetrain is upgraded with dual springs. These are all things that put a little more burden on the timing chain which I guess is why some folks upgrade the chain as some cheap insurance and why a lot of shops recommend to do so as well.