Old or new cam?

[PeterC]

Thinking thru the cam setup for my 59A block - will go with a custom grind to suit my specs-question is whether to go with an original Henry steel cam to regrind or a new modern core to grind- I've heard the the original steel has a better metallurgy then the current metals - just rumor or true?

 

[Ol' Ron]

Not sure what you expect from a new Grind, but the quality of the Ford cam has proven more than adequate for even some of the most radical of grinds. and a mild street grind would be a piece of cake. We've been gringing the L-100 on stock cores for the past 20 years with no problems.

 

[JWL]

I think there might be some confusion here. None of the 59A cams were steel. As for modern material chemistry, it would be a sorry manufacturer who does not cast cores equal to, or even superior to, the original Ford cast cams. We have to realize "modern" cast cams, for OHV engines, are designed for much more rigorous and demanding service than our old Flathead cams. So, I doubt if they could "dumb-down" their chemistry to match Flathead requirements.