What are the opinions on them. You know the ones that have no chain. Their arn't many available for the 5.2/318 that I have seen. I like the sound of them but I want function before form. They use them all the time in Small Block chevys. Let me know what everyone thinks before i waste money on them and decide its the wrong move.

 

I'd stick with the chain. Shoot, my truck's 10 years old and has 115,000 miles on it and the chain is still good. I could see the direct-gear setup like you're talking about on a high-revving sports car (Corvett) or the like, but for as long as the chain setup lasts on our trucks, I don't think the extra expense would be worth it.

My .02.

 

+1, And if you just want a nice little upgrade from stock, just go with a double roller.

 

I've use double roller only for years.

 

ya i know what your talkn about they sound good on a sbc..

here a link to a good double roller if you need one
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/CLO-9-1103/

 

I forgot to say this is for a rebuild i am doing.

 

I just went with the cloyes HD double roller for rockauto.com

 

a gear drive is pointless, it is there for sound. some people will argue they perform better but they dont.

a gear drive transfers power from the crank gear through two smaller gears on bearings, to the cam gear. this will cause much more drag and parasitic drain. they have also been known to transfer the crank harmonics to the camshaft which, over time, will break down the various parts in the valvetrain. The two bearings also add another part to wear out, i have seen a gear drive bearing fail... it sucks. These systems are best suited for weekend warriors that only see the street on sunny weekends.

I the best upgrade you can make in this area (for a daily driver) would be a double roller chain. the double roller will distribute the force on two sets of teeth instead of one and help prevent sprocket wear and chain stretch.

 

There is a practical purpose for gear drive replacements for timing chains. They are primarily for high performance engines that use radical cam grinds where valve timing is critical. In situations like that where valve overlap is crucial a stretched timing chain can cause mechanical contact of the valves with the piston. A geared timing setup helps reduce this since there is practically no backlash or stretch. Coupled with a degreed cam a gear drive can result in more precise valve train actuation. The drawbacks are like Helms said, increased noise and vibration transfer. They really aren't designed for use on a daily driver.

 

ok sounds like the advice is in.... since they cost more are hard to find and have no practical use for a daily driver the double roller is the set up

miami what kind of bumber is that