This week Todd, Will, and Myer sit down to talk about something that gets asked about constantly but rarely gets explained right, camshafts. If you have ever wondered why your buddy's diesel sounds smooth while another one lopes like a muscle car, or whether a bigger cam is going to kill your fuel economy, this episode breaks down exactly what is going on inside your engine and why diesel camshafts do not follow the same rules as gas performance builds.
The guys also announce something big for the diesel performance industry. Power Driven has acquired Colt Cams, the original name in diesel camshaft development founded by Jeff Colt, and it is now officially under the Power Driven umbrella shipping out of America. The crew talks about what owning that brand outright means for R&D moving forward, including in house cam design and testing on their own engine dyno.
From there the conversation gets into real cam theory. Todd, Will, and Myer explain why diesel duration numbers look nothing like gas cam numbers, why a factory Cummins cam is built around torque and RPM range instead of high end horsepower, and why a bigger cam on a Cummins diesel tuning setup usually helps fuel economy instead of hurting it. They cover the difference between 12 valve and 24 valve Cummins camshaft design, how a single lobe activates two valves through the bridge setup, flat tappet versus roller lifter reliability, and why the intake valve closing point is considered the most important event in camshaft design.
Whether you are running a 12 valve, a 24 valve, or a common rail Cummins, this episode gives you a real foundation on volumetric efficiency, cam terminology, and how to think about camshaft upgrades the right way instead of just chasing bigger duration numbers.
This is part one of a deeper camshaft series, so if you want to understand what is actually happening inside your diesel engine, this is a good place to start.
If you learned something from this one, subscribe on YouTube and follow the podcast wherever you listen so you do not miss the rest of the camshaft series.
Colt Cams are now part of the Power Driven lineup, so if you are looking to upgrade your camshaft or just want to see what is available for your Cummins, head over to PowerDriven.com to check out the full selection.
Shop Power Driven Diesel: https://www.powerdriven.com
0:00 Intro, why they're covering camshafts
0:42 Colt Cams acquisition announcement
2:08 Episode overview
2:25 Diesel cam duration numbers explained
3:02 Does a bigger cam make a diesel lope
6:36 Do cams hurt diesel fuel economy
9:17 Diesel vs gas cam duration comparison
10:33 The Junker Up Cummins cam story
13:41 Turbo, head flow, and cam interaction
18:53 Volumetric efficiency explained
20:13 Camshaft basics, what a cam is and how it works
22:58 12 valve vs 24 valve Cummins cam design
23:56 Flat tappet lifters and valve lash adjustment
26:12 Why flat tappet cams spin, taper vs offset design
27:53 Cummins lifter sizes across platforms
35:27 Straight cut vs helical gear
37:21 Early Cummins cam breakage and core strength evolution
41:06 Roller lifters and steel cams in other platforms
41:44 5th gen Cummins roller lifter issues
43:05 Cam theory, intake valve closing point
47:19 Wrap up and next episode preview
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