Woods 5-6 or 6-6 in 09 FLHX

[HD/Wrench]

so put the andrews 37 in it and call it a day. sooner close point no +4 needed,less cost runs great, easy going, no need for more spring pressure.  The slight difference in these cams is just that SLIGHT, nothing more.   

[reg26]

I had asked about the 37 (it was in my previous build) and my shop said it was to small in his opinion for a 103ci..LOL.
What compression is best for the W5-6 and also do you guys think there is a difference in engine longevity between the 5-6 and the 6-6 ?

[Don D]

I ride two up 80% of the time and also put about 15kmi a year on my bike. I do like to run with the boys when the wife isn't on board also and do run it very hard from time to time also

In a sense you answered your own question. Provided the right compatible parts are used with any of these cams and the setup is done properly the motor life related to camshafts will be close to equal.

Now lets talk about running with the boys...
That can go the gamut
Two up with mama on the back with ?? payload and rolling on hard at 2k in a higher gear...
Not saying you do that but if you did?
All sorts of other influences will have more of an influence on the life of the motor and the magnifying glass on the camshaft isn't necessary.
What about the bottom end? That will ruin your motor quicker
Have a customer that has an 03 with gear drive cams, loading on the ferry he stalled the bike and it dropped. Started right back up and the gears were clanking, just that little incident was enough to slip the wheels.
Advice
Realize all of these cams are close. Zero in on your prioritys a little more and build a good strong motor from the bottom up. You run a lot of miles and have a heavy bike that will produce respectable torque, reliability will come from a good build to begin with and all the components matter not just the cams. There are items that are not required and stock components can save money. Wallet whipping this may not mean longer engine life or added performance either.
Consider a gear swap, 30t front PULLEY.

[HD/Wrench]

Well there are many many 103 with a 37 cam guess all those guys missed the boat, not to mention the 203 cam as well etc .   Compression for the 6 is very friendly at 10.1 . Now if we go along the same lines the 5 with its early closing point I would say  in the high 9-10.1   Before anyone gets fired up and say well you have to have it at 10.25-10.5 ..... HMMMMM   could that be one reason for higher tq...  

I have seen this tw5 cam at 10.5 and + keys installed.  We are talking about a much higher cylinder pressure here. There is no way anyone should be comparing a 5 cam set @ 205+ CCP to a another with a 6 cam set at 10.1 making approx 189 of CCP.  Tq in a nutshell is nothing more than push on the piston.

[GoFast.....]

Once again let me say it again from years of personnel experience on both ends. You can over cam and undercam. When you start pulling out around a truck at 70 mph and lay your ears down.(OLD COWBOY TERM) The 5 will be in the rear view mirror of the 6. You can have it down low and up top and octane in the fuel has nothing to do with it. And if the 5 pulls out first to pass. This is what will happen. 
                                                                                                                                                                                                 5   VS  6
I can put a two barrel carb on a 454 and it will have good tq from idle to 2500 rpm and then waste the rest of the potential of that motor. same thing will all these undercamed 103                                                                                                                          

[ederdelyi]

Well, I think the key here is:

(I)n (M)y (E)xperience

Obviously, there are some here who have different views and (E)xpereince(s) than yours ... that's O.K.

Perhaps the best thing is to agree to disagree?

But, if you just gotta be "right", then, O.K. You are "right" Happy? :>)

[GoFast.....]

What we need is two dyno sheets to really see how much the 6 gives up down low to that little cam

[Don D]

Let's not forget these are HEAVY bikes and getting heavier every year. They have larger tires, taller primary and final gearing, Sux Speed transmission, and allegedly more sump oil.
Can you say tractor pull sled
I will put my money on the bike that has the more torque under the riding curve, all else being equal. The cams are not the focus, either could work well they are close, it's more about the combination of parts and getting the motor to be happy where and how we ride based on the use and payload.
BTW Barry nobody is discrediting the 6 or the 5, look at the specs...
They both are not high overlap long duration grinds. How can you illustrate such an extreme perception of difference?

[HD/Wrench]

HA HA make sure you are more clear on that ,   you are going to get some sheet in uncorrected tune in 10 temps below sea level with 220 CCP    Just sayin.

[ederdelyi]

Who are you guys talking to? 

[Don D]

LOL
Me ?
Responding to Barrys comments on the alleged cam competition.

[HD/Wrench]

I was talking to you ,   tongue in cheek type of reply

[GoFast.....]

LOL
Me ?
Responding to Barrys comments on the alleged cam competition.

Don, How much more down low does a guy need and still have some up top than this build you did. This build is so fine we should just take all the other cams of the market for 103s
and just offer this one. Baggers you want it down low you got it. Dynas and softails you want it up top you got it.CLICK BELOW FOR POWER

http://harleytechtalk.net/htt/index.php?topic=575.0
They should send the 6 wrapped up in a superman cape

[Don D]

Oh come on man
This is a "6H" .590 lift with a larger TB, 3:15 gearing (maybe 3:37 not sure), 5 sp, and more compression than a typical bagger 103" 07up build, at least the ones I have been doing lately. Certainly not ideal for or would I expect the same results if the same build was applied to this 09 FLHX barge

[ederdelyi]

Don,
WHO are you arguing with? 

[dave629]

I like my 103 with the -6 cam.  Kind of like a 203 but on steroids and a big tat and, and, smokin a fat cuban ciger . 

[waskier01]

I can see the 6h@ .590 lift is bigger than the 5@ .575 lift, but the biggest is the 6 @.510?

[ederdelyi]

>>I can see the 6h@ .590 lift is bigger than the 5@ .575 lift, but the biggest is the 6 @.510?<<

There is more than lift involved to make a cam "big" compared to another.

Look at duration, overlap, LSA ...

Many folks overrate the lift component of a camshaft and what it does. A high lift cam used with heads that can't utilize the lift will not generally buy you much. There are,of course, exceptions to the rule, but it generally holds true.

[GoFast.....]

<<I also am going to finially say it. I think the 5 is to small of a cam for a 103.>>

i guess everything is relative...for all the guys putting tw6 cams in their 117 "torque monsters" the tw5 is too BIG for a 103.  maybe a tw2 or tw3 

Yes, the 6 is to small for a 117. I had a 114 and with a wood 8 and you can have monster Tq down low and Hp up top. Hows 130 tq and 135hp sound

[ederdelyi]

The Lighter Side of Cam Selection:

Step into the Way Back Machine and take a trip down Memory Lane to the early days of hotrodding. Cams were identified as being of two basic types, full race or 3/4 race. I don't recall there ever being a half race cam, possibly because it would have been perceived as only half-fast and therefore not marketable ... dunno! Now, given a choice, Joe Average is gonna opt for the full race cam. After all, who in their right mind would only want to do 3/4 of the race? Joe Average thought of camshafts as magic wands with bumps on them and that it was required to use incantations from the local Voodoo priestess as well as liberal waving of a dead chicken in order to make proper use of them.

Fast forward to the present. We now use terms such as advertised duration, duration @ "x" lift, LC, IVC, LSA and others to describe what Joe Average perceives as (drum roll) ...
a magic wand with bumps on them! Incantations must now be PC and approved by the Pope and the animal rights activists have forced the use of a rubber chicken.

So, how much has *really* changed?


I hope you all take this in the spirit in which it was intended. Lighten up, they are just camshafts!

[wfolarry]

Wait 'till they get started on dynamic vs. static compression & how they can make a big cam run like a small cam by increasing the compression!

[GoFast.....]

I was thinking today how unique it has been to be able to pick up the phone for years and talk to the guy who creates his own cams and sells them. Bob Wood has been answering the phone for years. I was talking to him the other day on his cell while he was flying down the Road. I have never put a wood cam in a bike without talking to him first. I mean why not talk to one of the greatest Harley cam produces in the world. You tell him what you have, How you want to ride and how much weight and he tells you the cam. The first thing I would say to someone that is choosing between Woods cams is have you talked to Bob and what did he say. 

[HD/Wrench]

The Lighter Side of Cam Selection:

Step into the Way Back Machine and take a trip down Memory Lane to the early days of hotrodding. Cams were identified as being of two basic types, full race or 3/4 race. I don't recall there ever being a half race cam, possibly because it would have been perceived as only half-fast and therefore not marketable ... dunno! Now, given a choice, Joe Average is gonna opt for the full race cam. After all, who in their right mind would only want to do 3/4 of the race? Joe Average thought of camshafts as magic wands with bumps on them and that it was required to use incantations from the local Voodoo priestess as well as liberal waving of a dead chicken in order to make proper use of them.

Fast forward to the present. We now use terms such as advertised duration, duration @ "x" lift, LC, IVC, LSA and others to describe what Joe Average perceives as (drum roll) ...
a magic wand with bumps on them! Incantations must now be PC and approved by the Pope and the animal rights activists have forced the use of a rubber chicken.

So, how much has *really* changed?


I hope you all take this in the spirit in which it was intended. Lighten up, they are just camshafts!

HA HA I had a 69 charger RT with a 440 and a 4 speed pistol grip shifter with a full race purple stripe cam shaft . Not much bottom end even for a big block but man it would pull the rpms.  By the way at least 1/4 faster than than the 3/4 race cam without a doubt.  Bigger is better so the biggest has to be that much better than bigger.  Tongue in cheek there guys .

[Scramjet]

I seem to remember in the 1970's that all I could get for my 1975 Sportster was Sifton "P" or "+P" cams.

B

[GoFast.....]

The 6 is not a big cam for a 103. I think its kind of on the small side