Summit Racing’s Pro LS cams have quickly become a popular choice for LS upgrades and swaps. Now Summit has made it even easier to decide which Pro LS cam is right for you.
In addition to the matched springs in the Level 1 kits, the Level 2 kits include valve cover and timing cover gaskets, seal and oil pump O-rings plus a new damper bolt. These kits are for people who aren’t swapping lifters (so the heads, intake, headers etc. don’t need to come off).
You can learn more about the Pro LS cams in our earlier article, they are a complete lineup of automotive, truck swap, Turbo and single plane cams that are separated into four stages each. These made-in-the-USA cams start with aerospace grade billet steel. The lobes are easy on the valvetrain and rev reliably past 7,000 rpm with a good valve spring kit.
But which spring kit do you need?
The automotive and turbo cams are matched with .600-inch lift beehive or the nano-peened dual springs. The dual spring kits come in two flavors: your choice of 13 gram Chromoly Steel or 9 gram Titanium retainers.
What’s the benefit of nano-peening?
The high-silicon Pacaloy steel is further processed for a superior surface finish. This stress relieves the steel to a relaxed state. Once installed, it minimizes the load loss over time.
To learn more about the springs, check out this article.
The truck swap cams are offered with the LS6 springs. These tried-and-true springs have slightly increased spring pressure for 6,500+ rpm capability and accommodate the .550-inch lift cams. The exception is the newest SUM-8720 Stage 2 .600 “High-Lift” version, which gets the TFS-16918 Beehive spring.
Summit Racing makes finding the cams and spring kits easy too. Just type in the part number of the specific cam you want in the search bar. Not only will you find the cam, you’ll also find the matching cam/spring/gasket kits. Part numbers ending with -2-BHV will have the beehive springs, -2-DLSTL are dual springs with steel retainers, -2-DLTi are dual springs with titanium retainers.
You’ll also find the other things you’ll need to swap a cam. Summit Cam Swap Kits include everything else you’ll need to perform a swap. Remember you’ll want a good Cathedral or Rectangle Port on-head spring compressor and Spark Plug Air Adapter to get the job done with a minimum of fuss.
Although not absolutely required, the factory rockers usually are pretty worn out by the time a cam is swapped in. It’s a good idea to get a Trunnion kits (bearing style or bushing style) for increased durability. Timing Chain Dampers are a big plus to reduce chain whip and the chance of chain breakage.
If you want to learn more about the manufacturing process and quality of the Summit Pro LS cams, check out Manufacturing Summit Racing’s Pro LS Cams.
One thing that I always tell people to change when they swap out an LS cam is the cam retainer plate on any used engine. Part SUM-150106 is what you want. This will help with any oil pressure issues after the cam install. It’s cheap insurance!
I got the Summit Stage 3 Turbo cam, specs at .600/.575, 231/234 @ .050″, and 115(+5) LSA. Installed in an 05 model LQ4 6 liter, it revs so fast. It was easy to tune to idle, has a great exhaust rumble, only has 2 degrees of overlap. I used the PAC 1218 springs, but looking back, I should’ve got the PAC 1219 springs for a little more valve control higher in the RPMs.