Best Cams for ,my KA?

[black95se]

What are the best cams for the Ka on a 95 se? Ive read that putting the exhaust cam fomr a 91 Ka will get better mid-range power...id this true? What other optionsare there. I really do nto understand the whoel science behind cams at all so ever lil bit of info will be a tremendous help.
Thanx a ton guys,
Bryan

[Chernobyl]

'91-'92 cams have more duration, i.e. they keep the valves open longer. People say they gain you a couple HP and move the powerband up a bit when installed on a newer KA. PDM also sells cams for the KA24DE, find their link on this site's vendors' links list and check them out. I don't know of anyone else making cams for the DE... Stillen maybe?

[black95se]

Thanx man....are u sure about the 92 cams also....i have only read about the 91 but ill try and research ti more...ill check out that site too.

[Chernobyl]

People say the part numbers are the same, but they switched cams sometime in the middle of the '92 year production run. I'd go with the '91 cams to be certain.

[Muzzy]

i heard that the exhaust cam is wut u want for the intake side(exhaust cam has higher duration iirc)...u can pull one off a 91 or pull it off an altima (exhaust side)

..if u do lemme know if u notice a differene....not sure that few degrees will make much diff for me since i have a 91.

[FRpilot]

i think the pdm cams are sent to somewhere to get regrinded. regrinds suck. also, you can use 2 91 exhaust cams but you have to get them reshimed. dont ask me how to do it b/c i dont know how. search! unless someone wants to explain.

[Muzzy]

yea break it down!!!
i know its not jus drop in right?

[orion::S14]

Cam Options for the KA24DE:

JWT - Advertised as 275 degrees, but really 256 duration. The 'ramp up' I've read is better than stock cams, so the valves are open more for a longer time, plus the extra duration. Seemingly GREAT, but $600...

Nissan Motorsports USA - 248/248 (Intake/Exhaust) duration. Really just one stock '91-92 exhaust cam in the exhaust spot, and another exhaust cam re-pinned (for the cam gear) to be used in the intake spot. Good, fun cams (I have driven a car with them a bunch of times) - Pulls hard to redline, but some low end loss is noticeable. About ~$350-400..

'91-92 Cams - 240/248 duration. Great upgrade for S14 guys, but I wouldn't spend more then $150 on 'em...makes the upper end smoother, and shifts the curve to the right by ~200rpm. Good for maybe ~3-4rwhp, but makes the car more lively. I run these...

Altima Cam - IMO, it's a MYTH perpetuated by the FAQ at 240SX.org. If it were a drop in 248 degree cam that works on the intake side, why would Nissan Motorsports take the time to re-pin a '91-92 exhaust cam to sell with their set??? They wouldn't. So I'd bet it's the same as the 240 degree intake cam from the '91-92 motors, but who knows. (And yes, you can see where the old pin was ground off and the new one inserted on the NM camset...I've installed a set).

Gude - I saw a writeup on Freshalloy about these - Lost LOTS of low end, and gained little up top.. Didn't look great IMO, butto get the full reveiw, search the Freshalloy 'Advanced 240SX' Forum.

Shimming - It was not necessary on the Nissan Motorsports cams I installed, and has not been necessary on the last 2 S14 KA's I've put my S13 cams in - Most the times an OEM cam won't need new shims. The JWT supposedly is the same....but you need to check anyway, it's simple. Any regrind will need new shims...

Hope that anwers some questions - Brian

[RBS14]

Orion..... great write up! thanks a ton!

[black95se]

Wow that was aweosme man.....really helped a ton. buti still have
a question or two. ON the 91-92 cams is ti just the exuast or both?
And what did u mean by "shifts the curve to the right by ~200rpm"?
I think i shouod be good after that, but anymore info form anybody will also be helpful. OH and i wont spend a penny on the cams either...i have what u would call a great hook-up.

[Warwick5s]

what about the PDM cams? anyone have any experience with those yet?

[Flybert]

And what did u mean by "shifts the curve to the right by ~200rpm"?

I suggest you go to How Stuff Works (http://www.howstuffworks.com) I think you need to learn more about engines and the HP that they make and how it relates to torque.

Or I can just answer your question. He is talking about moving the torque curve to the right, meaning that the torque is being produced at a higher RPM (200 rpms in this case)which means that you are going to get more horsepower because of it because HP= torque x (Engine Speed/5252). Go read about cam duration and all that jazz as well. That site is amazing.

[orion::S14]

Originally posted by Flybert
torque is being produced at a higher RPM...

Yep...dead on.

Say a KA makes 135rwtq at 3800rpm - That's ~98rwhp.

Move that over 200rpm, and you get 103rwhp. Seems like a little change (only 200rpm), but it makes a difference.

Originally posted by Warwick5s
what about the PDM cams? anyone have any experience with those yet?

Similar to Gude base don the specs. Expect low and mid-range loss, for top end gain. Good for road racing maybe, but bad for your street car...

Later - Brian

[black95se]

OK another question......will the cam setup from the 91 work good wiht turbo?

[FRpilot]

man. orion that is a really good review. we should faq it or something. and add to the list. actually, i think its better if our product review system is simple like how you typed it. b/c there are soo many categories and subcategories on zilvia' review link.

[andrave]

pdm has three stages, which one are you referring to?
or are you trying to tell me that all three stages of pdm racing cams are exactly the same?
maybe you should actually look at em before you lump em all together.
I've never used them, but in the interest of giving them a fair trial, it seems reasonable to assume that you aren't familiar with them if you weren't even aware that they came in different stages.

[1baddrifter]

Is there a point in this? I could get these camshaft for like $100 at a nissan junkyard pretty close. If it makes a difference on the 93 also then might just get it.
Thanx :aw:

[black95se]

From what i hear the 91 cams are different from the 93....but that is just what I have been told.

[RadicalEdward]

you just missed it a guy on ebay was selling a 91 cam for around 25$ and $15 shipping here is all of his auctions maybe he will sell another one
http://cgi6.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewSellersOtherItems&userid=the-zfreak&sort=2&rows=25&since=-1&rd=1

[weirdstyles.net]

custom grind cams? Good/bad? What.