Camshafts, regardless of the engine platform, have three measurements that define them. Lift, or the amount the camshaft will open the valves, duration which is the amount of time the camshaft will keep the valves open, and cam timing which is when the camshaft will open and close the valves in relation to each other and the pistons going up and down in the cylinders. All simple to understand, but their relationships can get a bit trickier.

The easiest of these relationships to understand are those of lift and duration. If you have a camshaft who’s timing is identical, but that has more duration, it theoretically can support more power because the valves are open longer to get more fuel and air in and all that exhaust out. The same could be said for lift, but is it as good as duration?

Does lift on its own make horsepower? While the relationships might be simple to understand, the effects on each other can be pretty dramatic. Richard is going to test some cams out with different lift numbers and then show what a couple cams with different durations do.

Watch and learn.

Video Description:

HOW MUCH POWER IS .050 LIFT WORTH? DOES MORE CAM LIFT EQUAL MORE POWER? HOW MUCH POWER DOES THE BTR TRUCK NORRIS CAM MAKE? HOW MUCH MORE POWER DOES THE HIGH-LIFT TRUCK NORRIS CAM MAKE THAN THE LOW-LIFT (NSR) TRUCK NORRIS CAM? HOW WELL DOES THE NEW BTR RED HOT CAM-IS IT EXTRA SPICY? CHECK OUT THIS VIDEO WHERE I COMPARED THE TWO VERSIONS OF THE BTR TRUCK NORRIS CAM ON A JUNKYARD 5.3L. I COMPARED THE .552-LIFT STANDARD CAM AGAINST THE LOW-LIFT, NSR (.498 LIFT) CAM. I ALSO COMPARED THE NEW (221 DURATION) RED HOT CAM TO THE OLD (228 DURATION) SS2 CAM. CAN LESS DURATION MAKE MORE POWER?