So Im sure a few ppl over here are wondering about the Kelford 272s since not too many people run them yet, and some people only know them by the success they had against their competition in the Ams cam shoot out over at EvoM forum.
To begin, I ended up running BC springs and retainers since I decided I only wanted to rev out to 8k with the car. Personally, if I were to plan on revving her out higher than that Id go with dual springs setup.
Now though these Kelfords are advertised as just a 272 cam, a key note to take about these cams is the 226 duration at .05 lift which is more aggressive than any other 272 seen, thus these cams somewhat act as if they are bigger than a 272 in terms of powerband. Coming from BC272's, the 1k idle vacuum had decreased from 14-15ish to 12-13ish. Dropping straight in, these cams also seemed to have affected my cranking compression ratio on a Compression test. With 1g pistons on a fresh rebuild properly broken in it barely made 140 across the board , though thats nothing that adjustable cam gears cant take care of..
Driving experience:
On my e316g setup, the idle was similar to the bc272s, and it drove smooth but I immediately noticed anything below 4500rpms had a softened low end torque blow that comes w/ the typical 16g feel. The bc272s seemed to feel a little stronger in the initial stab of the throttle, but given that I have placed a lot of emphasis on my build for more top end, and maximizing this turbo, these cams did noticeably further enhance the pull a bit in the upper rpms. So I ended up removing my cyclone intake and going with a Hawver intake manifold shortly after getting everything running and the two parts complimented each other even on such a small turbo; and when being conscious minded on starting all my pulls at or above 4500rpm, as well as shifting quickly to keep the rpms in its power band, the car pulled stronger than ever with a powerband from 5k to 7500rpm shift point. After pushing the 16g for all the boost it could make with ethanol and aggressive timing the turbo unfortunetly blew on me before I got to track or dyno it so a Holset HX40 install is replacement.
To conclude, in my opinion, although really great cams, I believe these cams will not truly benefit most dsms until it has a bigger turbo than the e316g since the small turbo can only do so much for airflow. Though my particular setup made usable gains in its racing powerband, for most people If your just going to run a 16g turbo or smaller with not much other mods that improve flow, then there isnt much point in the expense of these kelford272s over other 272 cams on the market. But If you are looking to wring out more track mph with a maximized 16g setup and/or better yet, upgrade your turbo beyond e316g size, then definitely go w/ the kelfords if funds permit!
Later on, I can further give my opinion on these cams with a better flowing turbo, and the bc springs are taking the 8k revs just fine. That is the current limitation of my review.
To begin, I ended up running BC springs and retainers since I decided I only wanted to rev out to 8k with the car. Personally, if I were to plan on revving her out higher than that Id go with dual springs setup.
Now though these Kelfords are advertised as just a 272 cam, a key note to take about these cams is the 226 duration at .05 lift which is more aggressive than any other 272 seen, thus these cams somewhat act as if they are bigger than a 272 in terms of powerband. Coming from BC272's, the 1k idle vacuum had decreased from 14-15ish to 12-13ish. Dropping straight in, these cams also seemed to have affected my cranking compression ratio on a Compression test. With 1g pistons on a fresh rebuild properly broken in it barely made 140 across the board , though thats nothing that adjustable cam gears cant take care of..
Driving experience:
On my e316g setup, the idle was similar to the bc272s, and it drove smooth but I immediately noticed anything below 4500rpms had a softened low end torque blow that comes w/ the typical 16g feel. The bc272s seemed to feel a little stronger in the initial stab of the throttle, but given that I have placed a lot of emphasis on my build for more top end, and maximizing this turbo, these cams did noticeably further enhance the pull a bit in the upper rpms. So I ended up removing my cyclone intake and going with a Hawver intake manifold shortly after getting everything running and the two parts complimented each other even on such a small turbo; and when being conscious minded on starting all my pulls at or above 4500rpm, as well as shifting quickly to keep the rpms in its power band, the car pulled stronger than ever with a powerband from 5k to 7500rpm shift point. After pushing the 16g for all the boost it could make with ethanol and aggressive timing the turbo unfortunetly blew on me before I got to track or dyno it so a Holset HX40 install is replacement.
To conclude, in my opinion, although really great cams, I believe these cams will not truly benefit most dsms until it has a bigger turbo than the e316g since the small turbo can only do so much for airflow. Though my particular setup made usable gains in its racing powerband, for most people If your just going to run a 16g turbo or smaller with not much other mods that improve flow, then there isnt much point in the expense of these kelford272s over other 272 cams on the market. But If you are looking to wring out more track mph with a maximized 16g setup and/or better yet, upgrade your turbo beyond e316g size, then definitely go w/ the kelfords if funds permit!
Later on, I can further give my opinion on these cams with a better flowing turbo, and the bc springs are taking the 8k revs just fine. That is the current limitation of my review.
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