RTM wrote:

I’m not sure I even knew there was a non steel roller cam. For some reason I thought they were all steel.

And I think that is the heart of the myth.  When I first looked into this that's the answer I got, "all roller cams require a steel gear" but when I was checking on stock Ford gears for roller cam applications it came up as cast iron and I never could resolve that.  I got past it by reusing the gear that came on the factory distributor as I kew it would work with the factory cam.  I just called trick flow to ask what gear is required for the cam I just ordered and they said steel.  So I will make sure I have the correct gear for the new engine build.
 

Rufus68 wrote:

It would have been interesting if you had asked about the camshaft instead of the distributor gear.  Asked if the camshaft you ordered is made from a cast billet or a steel billet.  This would be the only way to be positive the person answering the question isn't going by "myth" knowledge.  Yes, I know you said you spoke to trick flow but do you actually know the knowledge level of the person on the phone.

I am worried about the EXACT SAME THING!!!  my plan is to wait until the cam comes and see what the paperwork says.  If I don't get an answer I will call back and ask the question.  But again I don't think it is as big of an issue as it has been made out to be on the internet.  They probably sell thousands of this camshaft and most probably run a steel gear so its likely okay with said gear.

I have thought about this enough to have a theory.  Not all cast is the same stuff.  We know flat tappet cams are softer and require the cast gear.  We also know billet steel cams require a steel gear.  What if the cast billets are a form of cast steel and somewhere in between in the hardness spectrum and you could run either distributor gear.  That would account for all the cast cams that we know are up against a steel gears (because of the myth) and those engines still running just fine without issue.  Based on this new info I would guess there are as many if not more roller cam/gear mismatches out there then correct parings but clearly its not a problem or the myth would have been corrected.
 

All rollers are steel.  Its now fairly common practice to press on an iron gear so a special distributor gear isn't needed.  I built a motor in the late '90s that had a cam like that.  Crane used to put "IG" at the end of the part number to denote it.  Typically a 5.0 replacement type cam isn't going to have that though because they assume you will reuse the stock distributor which has a steel or melonized gear.  So I don't think its a myth per se, its still important to check cam to distributor gear compatibility.  Its just not a case of where 100% of the time a roller needs a steel gear, or you should ever just run a steel gear and not bother to check. 

I THOUGHT........a cast cam could use EITHER gear but the steel cam had to use a steel gear. (this could explain why "the side of the road is not littered with cam gears....." etc)
I installed a steel gear on my distrib. from  PAW (remember them!) the first time I went into my engine. And since have had zero problems with cam or cam gear.
6sal6

Daze wrote:

TKOPerformance wrote:

All rollers are steel.  Its now fairly common practice to press on an iron gear so a special distributor gear isn't needed.  I built a motor in the late '90s that had a cam like that.  Crane used to put "IG" at the end of the part number to denote it.  Typically a 5.0 replacement type cam isn't going to have that though because they assume you will reuse the stock distributor which has a steel or melonized gear.  So I don't think its a myth per se, its still important to check cam to distributor gear compatibility.  Its just not a case of where 100% of the time a roller needs a steel gear, or you should ever just run a steel gear and not bother to check. 

That is not what the Howard's guy said.  He was very clear that the cam including the gear was made from a "single piece cast billet" and used the cast iron gear.  The important fact here is as you said "it's still important to check cam to distributor gear compatibility"  everyone makes their soup with different ingredients and there is no rule that applies and the hard fast rule we have all heard and most follow "all roller cams need a steel gear" IS A MYTH 😁
 

If its a cast billet and the gear is pressed on and is iron my conclusion would be that the cam is made from a cast billet piece of steel.  We commonly assume billet to be synonymous with a forging; its not.  A billet is just a solid piece of material.  A billet can be cast or forged. 
 

MS wrote:

I wish the cam makers would publish some definitive info. This is a situation where a stupid simple little mismatch can cause thousands of dollars in damage and require a bunch of time to correct a stupid problem.

But, in the end, they get to sell another camshaft if it winds up grinding the cam or gear.

This, 100%. I've been through this so many times it's maddening. Basically there is no rule of thumb and I think that's what Daze is trying to say. You have got to call the cam manufacturer and absolutely confirm every time! Don't believe the internet, your friend's anecdotal stories (sorry TKO ), chicken bones in a cup, etc, etc.

In my case I had to call Comp Cams twice until I got someone with a pulse who could intelligently answer my question! 
 

Steve69 wrote:

So where does Melonized fit in the equation?  Thats what comp cams say is what is needed for distributor gears with there camshafts.  

 
I heard it from a guy on the internet, that that is for steel

In all seriousness I really do think it is for forged steel billet camshafts

I seem to recall a few guys drilling out the roll pin holes to a larger size to prevent a failure back in the '90s.  I never had an issue with a gear roll pin.  I saw one that sheared once on an I6 in my buddy's shop, but seemed like those guys were making a mountain of a mole hill. 

With something this important I would always call the cam company.  My 331 has a Crane cam and the distributor is from Davis and has a melonized gear.  I made three phone calls to make sure that would all play nice.