'53 powerglide 235 is a fine engine. Find you a 848 head and put it on that engine and it will be finer yet. Include a Yf2100 carb and a T-5 transmission and you will be very pleased. That is what I did. Could not be happier or more impressed with the performance of these combinations.
If you do need a new cam and lifters, go solid. It is hard to find a set of new hydraulic lifters where one or two of them don't hang when the engine is cold. They eventually free up once the engine reaches operating temperature, but you will have to listen to a lot of racket until the free themselves up.
