I thought that also.
I didn't put the cam in it.
It was already in it when I bought the boat.
I was a little surprised at the selection when i went to check it and ran the numbers from the front of the cam.
But it does explain why it likes lots of initial timing (20-24 degrees)and doesn't like to idle when bumping in and out of gear.Lol

Crane 168771

while i agree that it would be a little small it would work,i am no cam expert,that is why i mentioned bob madera,he forgot more about cam selection than most will ever know.

You can always have one custom ground for your application instead of trying to find one that is "close". The cost is minimal if not the same price as an off the shelf cam depending on who you go with. I am sure many on here have their favorite cam guys they can post but most cam companies have great tech lines to help you. I have had custom cams done by both big companies and small one man shops and all experiences have been good.

Gellner racing has a good running custom grind cam and did me well with 496's. You can call dean I'm sure he'd work with you. He's built numerous 540's. Just another option for you.

Gather as many specs as you can and verify CI, compression and such... then call 5-7 cam companies and give them all the info, go with the one that's is most averaged out is my opinion... I did that and I am happy with current results..

I am running the Holley HP module, sequential port injected, 2000 CFM throttle body, Lightning dry to the tip headers and the O2 sensor.
Idles in gear at 700 RPM and hardly stumbles at all going in and out of gear.
Well worth the $ over a carb.
Bob Madera designed my cam.
My cam is designed for the addition of an M4 Procharger eventually.

ya know? It doesn't matter what you pick for a cam. You aren't even in that engines power band yet. And you are out of usable power. That cam doesn't even start pulling till 4500. You go any faster and you will need ailerons and an elevator to keep that boat right-side-up.

First questions that should be asked, long before a certain cam can be recommended. What do the heads flow, what size intake valve, what rpm do you wish to turn? Without that information, you're throwing darts. Be careful on the advice you may encounter, you just may end up going slower like many have. Couple things that often get told as gospel regarding cams, and the big picture doesnt always get told, or understood. Long duration cams, are often known for poor idle quality. We know this. This is largely due to the late intake valve closing, and intake reversion. There are other factors that play into this.

Everyone wants a big intake valve. Bigger the better. They want the smallest intake port, the smaller the better. They want the most cam lift, higher the better. They want the smoothest idle, smoother the better. You know why GM didnt install 2.300 intake valves in their peanut port truck heads? Because big valves KILL velocity at low speed, and amplify reversion issues. You know why they didnt put a 650 lift cam in? Because high lift isnt needed at 2000rpm, and high lift also can kill velocity at low speeds, and of course, eats valvetrain parts. Even a simple screw up on a valve seat cut could make reversion issues. These are things that should be considered.

Where am I going with this? When you find a guy who thinks he knows and understands camshafts, only look at .050 durations as go or no go, run away. Comparing a 262/272 114 LSA 109ICL .680 lift cam, to a 262/272 110LSA 106 ICL .630 lift cam, with different lobe families, is like comparing an apple to a banana. Comparing a 540ci with hand ported Darts to a 540ci with stock GM rectangles, or stock iron merlins, is comparing a liberal to a conservative. They each want different things.

Lift is something that should grow with cubic inch, or, with RPM. Rough example of what each of these engines would like for .050 duration and valve lift at 6000rpm

454= 241/245 with .559/.594 lift
502= 245/252 with .626/.655 lift
540 = 255/263 with 665/.708 lift
572= 264/274 with .705/.750 lift

but wait. What if you switch heads, and go with say a CNC dart 335 with a stellar exhaust port? oh, now the cam completely changes.

454=241/241 with 559/562 lift
502=245/247 with 626/630 lift
540=255/258 with 665/669 lift
572=265/270 with 705/708 lift



Keep in mind if you switch to a hydraulic, hydraulic roller lifters are in the 700-900 dollar range per set. For the Morels or Johnsons that is. Friend just built a pair of 8:1 compression 572's with 10-71's, dart 345 non cnc heads, a little .630 lift hydraulic Lunati shelf cam I picked for him from their catalog. Engines made 1020HP at 6200rpm , and 950ftlbs at 4000rpm and idle like cream puffs. Morel 4603 (lunati labeled) lifters that have been working great. He wanted to stay away from the custom snake oil cam lobes that beat the chit out of the valve train for that extra 7 horsepower by getting aggressive with ramp profiles. He actually wants to use his boat and log some hours on it.

Lunati has some nice grinds, few builders have actually pulled out custom cams, and replaced with an off the shelf Lunati right on the dyno back to back, and gained power. Couple pro engine builders who used to post on oso. Pretty hard to argue with back to back testing of a camshaft. The proven cam lobes are out there. The bbc been around almost 6 decades now. Custom cams are available from COMP CAMS, Crane Cams, Howards Cams, and so on. A custom ground 8620 BBC billet cam with Iron gear, is a little over 400 bucks from Comp and or Crane, and you can have them at your door in a week. No need to be paying 600 plus dollars for a standard bbc steel camshaft, or waiting months for it.

Ok.
First I would like to thank everyone who responded and keep them coming.
I have so far talked with Bob and also a tech rep from crane cams.
I think my best course of action is to pull the engine out and disassemble it.
The plan would be to disassemble it.Freshen it and then I would know exactly what is in it.
Then pick a cam and springs.

I was hesitant to do it.
But it seems like the best course of action so I get the right results.

I'm starting a new thread about pulling the engine trans etc.
I've pulled Bravos and alphas but nothing with a transmission between.