I have a new flat tappet cam im going to install in my sbc 350. The current timing chain setup i have is the rollmaster cs1050. Its a double roller setup with a Torrington bearing on the back of the cam gear for thrust loads. I have been running that for about 10 years. I was reading up on the cam installation and someone said the thrust washer or torrington bearing is only for roller camshafts and that it can mess with the flat tappet cam from sitting in its bore and properly aligning with the lifters. I googled it and have found many posts stating that a cam button and thrust washer is not needed with a flat tappet cam and that they can cause issues. My thinking is if the thrust washer or bearing was added behind the cam gear it can cause the cam to sit to far forward but i think in the rollmaster gear its designed to have the torrington bearing on the back as it sits flush with the back of the gear. But im not sure if this will cause issues with my flat tappet cam and if i can or should remove the torrington bearing and not use it and let the cam settle where it wants to. Basically im unsure if the torrington bearing will cause the flat tappet cam to not sit in the block deep enough and i need the advice of people who have done this before or have experience with the sbc engine.
Question on sbc flat tappet cam and cam gear thrust washer.
- Thread starter joegreen
- Start date
I've built my fair share of SBC engines with flat tappet cams. The reason you don't need a thrush washer behind the timing cover is due to the cam lobes have a slight taper that (a) causes the lifters to spin/rotate and (b) pushes the camshaft rearward away from the timing cover when the engine is running.
Roller cam lobes don't have that taper so the camshaft will walk back and forth while running...which is why you need a cam button.
Roller cam lobes don't have that taper so the camshaft will walk back and forth while running...which is why you need a cam button.
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