Thanks for the input Matt, Bruce, and Dave. This is a gas burning engine using a set of SCAT stroker rods. SCAT told me they would clear the cam but that I really should check to be sure. I found a used cam on Ebay similar to what I need and will use it to check rod-to-cam clearance. My application will need a custom ground cam and I want it to be a regular base circle but before I sink $400 into the cam I want to be xxxx sure it will clear. $69 for the used cam and shipping is cheap insurance. Don’t know how much the difference in diameters would affect the resistance to torsional twist, but a larger diameter has got to resist twist better simply because of the additional mass. Also looking at the higher contact load between the cam lobe and lifter that occurs as the lobe gets a smaller radius with a reduced base circle and the resulting potential wear.