Has anyone tricked out a 283

[65truckowner]

Keep the 283 They are great engines and get decent mileage like said above. Put a 4 barrel carb, and a set of 411s in the rear. Should be lots of fun with that set up. I have one on the engine stand in my shop that is going in my next project a 66 chevy truck swb.

[AcampoDave]

I run a 283 bored 60 over. That makes it a 292. Edelbrock performer cam and manifold with a 500 cfm performer carb jetted 2 stages leaner in the cruise mode. 283s like air velocity passing thru them. I run 305 heads which are ported and polished with roller rockers. These heads keep the compresion stock but provide slightly larger valves and hardened seats for unleaded. I also stuck with ram horns combined with 2 inch pipe and Porter steelpak mufflers. Keeping valve size and pipe diameter conservative keeps air velocity high for smooth spirited throttle response. I can drive all day long on my stock tank of gas and the motor sounds delightful when I bang thru the gears on my Saginaw 4 speed. The small motor is a bit lopey with the rv cam and the sound turns heads in town. It is quite powerful but better described as spirited and fun to beat on. It winds up fast but at a guestimated 250 hp it's not a serious burn out maker with 308 rear gears. It will burn out with some clutch, but that aint really what it's built for.

[bj383ss]

My dad had a 283 in his 64' El Camino. It was all stock except for the power pak heads an aluminum intake and Carter 500. It was rebuilt sometime in the 80's before he got it in 1988. He had it til 2007 and it survived my heavy teenager foot. With 3.08 gears and a powerglide. It would run to 60 mph in first gear! That engine was a lot of fun and very tough.

Bret

[JWheeler331]

Originally Posted by AcampoDave

I run a 283 bored 60 over. That makes it a 292. Edelbrock performer cam and manifold with a 500 cfm performer carb jetted 2 stages leaner in the cruise mode. 283s like air velocity passing thru them. I run 305 heads which are ported and polished with roller rockers. These heads keep the compresion stock but provide slightly larger valves and hardened seats for unleaded. I also stuck with ram horns combined with 2 inch pipe and Porter steelpak mufflers. Keeping valve size and pipe diameter conservative keeps air velocity high for smooth spirited throttle response. I can drive all day long on my stock tank of gas and the motor sounds delightful when I bang thru the gears on my Saginaw 4 speed. The small motor is a bit lopey with the rv cam and the sound turns heads in town. It is quite powerful but better described as spirited and fun to beat on. It winds up fast but at a guestimated 250 hp it's not a serious burn out maker with 308 rear gears. It will burn out with some clutch, but that aint really what it's built for.

Thanks. Good info. Im not looking for my truck to be some super fast truck or anything. Just want a motor that has decent power, good throttle response and maybe some good sound.

[TommyDuncan]

A lotta old timers swear that the 283s (and 260/289 Frods) handle abuse better than the bigger/later small blocks because the cylinder walls are thicker and distort less under high heat. I have also heard that the block contains more nickel which makes it stronger blah blah blah...
As long as it makes enough power for your needs I would keep it.
Both of my Chevys came with small journal 327s but I would run a 283 if that is what I had.
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[rideblue00]

AcampoDave: what cam profile do you have (specs)

[JWheeler331]

Originally Posted by TommyDuncan

A lotta old timers swear that the 283s (and 260/289 Frods) handle abuse better than the bigger/later small blocks because the cylinder walls are thicker and distort less under high heat. I have also heard that the block contains more nickel which makes it stronger blah blah blah...
As long as it makes enough power for your needs I would keep it.
Both of my Chevys came with small journal 327s but I would run a 283 if that is what I had.
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Eventually I will prob. drop in a 327 or 350....BUT.......if the inside of this motor is not in too bad shape, I could refresh it and enjoy it for a while like it is and take my time on the other motor. The motor has a Edelbrock intake and carb on it but I have not opened the motor up yet to see what the inside is like.





That speaker on the air breather is for the sirene that goes along with the previous owner's Andy Griffith Theme.

The motor seems to run good but is not a pretty sight under the hood.

[Rich 5150 69]

IMO if you are planning another motor, just keep that one running, work on the new, I don`t think I would even pull a valve cover....the cost to build the 283 is going to be higher than a 350, especially if you want HP....your best bet is to get the 290 HP 350 from Jegs, free shipping for 1999.00, you can`t hardley build one for that and you get a warranty...
http://www.jegs.com/p/Chevrolet-Perf...55609/10002/-1

[JWheeler331]

Originally Posted by Rich 5150 69

IMO if you are planning another motor, just keep that one running, work on the new, I don`t think I would even pull a valve cover....the cost to build the 283 is going to be higher than a 350, especially if you want HP....your best bet is to get the 290 HP 350 from Jegs, free shipping for 1999.00, you can`t hardley build one for that and you get a warranty...
http://www.jegs.com/p/Chevrolet-Perf...55609/10002/-1

Not a bad deal.

[T Smith]

That doesn't look like a 283

[JWheeler331]

Originally Posted by T Smith

That doesn't look like a 283

I have not looked at the numbers on the block yet. I am just going by what the PO told me.

He said it was a 283. Quite possible that he was incorrect though. I guess I need to check it out.

[Rich 5150 69]

Get the suffix code from the pad under the alternator...that will give us a starting point...

[T Smith]

That's a long water pump set up, I know any of it could have been changed but I don't know why they would have.

[AcampoDave]

My cam is a 281int/296 ex with an SAE duration of 278/288. I stuck with the rv profile because a small motor will "feel" it more than a bigger one. The 283 has a short stroke which lends to its durability and longevity. The smaller crank circle exerts less side to side thrust on cylinder walls. Think about a ratchet. A tight bolt requires a long ratchet (the long stroke motor) but, once you break it loose a shorter ratchet (the 283) can do the work fast and easy because the end of the handle travels in a smaller circle. You can spin it very quickly. Each rpm on a short stroke motor is actually less distance traveled. That's the upside, the downside is sometimes you just need a big freakin' ratchet

[gimmy 64]

no breather tube either ?? could be a stock 305 thats why it is gutless???

[markeb01]

Back in the 1970’s my first ever V8 conversion was dropping a 283 in a 54 Chevy sedan. I’d say it was somewhat “tricked out”, at least it was at the time. The main feature was the Duntov solid lifter 30-30 cam. In early form I added a Rochester 4GC 4 barrel and had the early staggered heads. I bought the Corvette valve covers brand new at the local Chevy dealer for $5 each in the original boxes!



Later I swapped to a spreadbore manifold and installed about the coolest carburetor I ever owned. It was a spreadbore Holley 650 double pumper, great on gas (comparatively) on the tiny primaries, and like flushing a toilet on the mechanical secondaries.



Eventually the heads wore out and were replaced with the later straight across style, so I had to replace the Vette valve covers with Cal Customs. I think I had to pay the outrageous amount of $10 each for those! They may have been the double hump “camel heads” but I no longer remember. The only thing I didn’t like about the 283 was the crank had no threads in the snout for a balancer retaining bolt, and it still had the canister style oil filter.

[JWheeler331]

Well, I removed the Alt. to try and find the numbers on the motor......I could not find ANY.

I did snap a few more pics. The motor does have some pep to it. Its not lacking any real power but could use a tune up.







Anyone know what carb that is?



Numbers on the front of carb. I think the 1405 means its the Performer 600 CFM.



I dont know where the numbers are on this motor. We took the alt off but did not see any. Maybe its somewhere on there but without taking off the rest of the front....I could not see.

[JWheeler331]

Originally Posted by gimmy 64

no breather tube either ?? could be a stock 305 thats why it is gutless???

Gutless?

[AcampoDave]

Jwheeler, do you have a crankcase breather or a plug for one in the back of the block by your distriutor? Never seen a 283 without one.

[66Submarine]

The heads are the "power pack" heads like a 283 should have.

[JWheeler331]

Originally Posted by AcampoDave

Jwheeler, do you have a crankcase breather or a plug for one in the back of the block by your distriutor? Never seen a 283 without one.

Do you have a picture of what you are talking about? I am not too sure. I can check tomorrow though.
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[JWheeler331]

Originally Posted by 66Submarine

The heads are the "power pack" heads like a 283 should have.

Most of this is new to me so I'm learning. You guys are good though. I'll have to research power pack heads.
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[AcampoDave]

I don't have a photo but the original breather was a metal tube that came up over the back of the intake where it connected to a rubber hose which joined to the base of the stock air filter base. That metal tube plugged into a boss, or hole really, cast into the block. It's about the size of a 50 cent piece right near the distributor. Around 1966 the advent of the pcv valve made this breather obsolete so later model 283s had the hole plugged with something similar to a freeze plug.

[JWheeler331]

Originally Posted by AcampoDave

I don't have a photo but the original breather was a metal tube that came up over the back of the intake where it connected to a rubber hose which joined to the base of the stock air filter base. That metal tube plugged into a boss, or hole really, cast into the block. It's about the size of a 50 cent piece right near the distributor. Around 1966 the advent of the pvc valve made this breather obsolete so later model 283s had the hole plugged with something similar to a freeze plug.

I will look tomorrow and see if I see anything like that.
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[vgnope]

Backside of the motor. Driver side of the block.
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