[Huggerorange73]

Originally Posted by Camarowguy

Huggerorange, I know your getting annoyed at my diagnosis. And I understand why. But the harsh reality is you don't know for sure you had clearance. You didn't check it yourself (no offense meant). You probably have alot of faith in your shop that did the cam install for you (I'm not bashing them either, I've made mistakes too.) and that's ok....but I feel confident what happened. It's not saying they don't know what they are doing either, they may have done this setup time and time again with no issue. But I'm here to tell you, even tho two engines are the same....they still are not exact. That's why some same cars are faster or slower.

Your cam may not have monster lift, but it does have a good amour of duration on the exhaust. A simple thing as not degreeing the cam could cause issues too. The cam manufactorer could have ground the cam a little off (I used to work for cam motion, and it's possible) bottom line is man, I'm sorry for your loss by all means, but after seeing your pics, I feel confident what happened because I have seen it a few times. I wouldn't be scared to put a cam in your new engine, I would however, degree it on the stand and check the piston to valve clearance. Also, make sure Your springs are correct. I myself, when setting up a set of heads, like to find a set of stiffer springs that what recommended. Let me elaborate slightly. Say your cam is recommended with 160lbs seat pressure and 350 open pressure. I like to add about 20lbs on the seat and around 30-50lbs open pressure. It makes me feel better. I do like to rev my engines to the moon. My 383sbc was shifted at 7800rpm on an everyday basis. I drove it everyday and smashed it more than I should have!

Anything is possible......I never say never!

Originally Posted by Camarowguy

So most of the failures are ls3's.....interesting. Any links to threads where I can see their damage. I'm interested to know if there is possibly a related trend.

Maybe we need to start an LS3 thread of destruction