The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop 283, your thoughts???

All,

I'm doing a total frame off restoration/rebuild to a 1961 C10 stepside. It will be slightly modified for a good riding truck. I've pretty much figured out what I'm going to do right down to the engine & tranny. I know, its not like its a minor detail or anything.

I've considered a number of different combinations to get some decent horsepower and fuel economy. With 3.73 gears, I was considering a 327 but its been hard to find, however, I've see 2 283's kicking around on the local boards, with one being completely rebuilt. I know they are not known for "head snapping" horsepower, but they seem to be somewhat popular with the Stovebolt community. So the question I have is:

Is a 283 , if done right, a worthy powerplant under the hood of a 61 C10?

I want it to sound good, scoot along decent on the highway, but I'm not looking to drag race.....

Your thoughts???

Thanks,
NorthDM

The 283 is a good , economical, reliable motor. One you can install and forget about except for normal maintenance. Just my opinion.

I agree with fasteddie 1017 they are a nice engine but if you were looking for more power I would go with a 350cu. motor rebuilt to stock specs. with so many spare parts to choose from. There is one thing that I like to do to any engine that makes them last a little longer is to have the engine balanced during the rebuild. It will cost a little extra but the benifit is well worth it in my opinion. Good Luck on your decision making process as you will get a lot of different opinions and this one is just one of many you can think over along with the many GM crate motors and rebuilds avilable to buy across the country all ready to go in. your truck.
62Blue
Don

I love 283's. Years ago I had one in a '66 C-10 and was happy with its performance. Today I have three or four of them stashed away for a project to be named later.

My '57 Bel Air had a 283 with dual 4 barrel carbs and Duntov cam rated at 270 H.P. Brand new 4 days from assembly turned 100 mph and 14.05 e.t. at the drags. That is about as much as any 350, except high horsepower engines, will do. How much performance do you want, very few new cars will beat that today. Also note that due to the smaller displacement the 283 will deliver better gas mileage.

I still love the 283's. I had one of the head snapping engines in a 56 coupe back in my high school days. With it bored to a 302 and duntov cam and few other goodies you could not see I was the terror of the town for quite a while....until one day at the local drag strip the thin cylinder walls gave way I said a little prayer over it and built another one

They are getting harder to find. Some folks have 3 or 4 of them stashed....now where does that guy live

remember the late 60's camaro Z's
they were if memory works today a 283 bored to 302 "mouse motor'' w/ 327 heads or the other way round
fun to read:
http://www.holisticpage.com/camaro/camaros/302.htm

For an economical daily driver, it's probably a pretty good engine. I had the original 283 in my '62 Suburban. It'd been rebuilt at least twice, and had later heads on it, and was tired, but it still did a fine job.
The '60-'62 truck 283s have thicker cylinder walls, and can be bored .125-over, punching it to a 4-inch bore, for 301 (302) cubic inches. My block was already bored .060-over.

The problem with rebuilding a 283 is getting pistons for it. I've heard they're tough to find, and getting a decent compression ratio for them is tough too. For a street engine on pump gas, 9.0-9.5:1 is ideal. It won't need Premium to run, and won't feel "soft" like lower compression does.

After lots and lots of thought, I simply went with a GM crate 350; it's the bottom of the rung in the GM Performance Parts catalog, rating "only" 290hp, but 290hp is stouter than most any small block from the glory days. For $1,300 ready to go (add my intake, carb, exhaust and distributor), I couldn't have built a 283 for that much. In fact, building a 283 would have been a good bit more expensive.
At the same time I did mine, a friend built a 283 for his '63 truck. He's happy with it, but spent more money. I'm happy with mine, and spent less money.

I left my engine black, and dressed it with chrome 327 valve covers, the stock Rams horn headers, and a vintage Edelbrock C3B intake, modified with a PCV port in the valley pan at the back of the intake, and a port in the oil fill tube.

I was going to rebuild the truck's 283 for a drag motor in my '57 Chevy wagon gasser, basing it on a set of NOS Ross high compression pistons I found, but the pistons are only .060-over, and the block was already bored .060 and needs to go further to clean up. I'm keeping that block just in case I find a set of 302 pistons cheap. And because I don't have enough junk in my shop!

-Brad

The trick way to build a 302 is to use an early 327 block with the small-diameter main bearings, and use a steel 283 crankshaft. The 327 already has a 4" bore, so cylinder wall thickness isn't a factor, and the 3" stroke 283 crank will spin up to 8,000 RPM all day without problems, as long as it's balanced properly.

If you want a real screamer, get King's crankshafts to build you a 38-lb. lightweight shaft (stock shaft weighs 55 lbs.) and put a set of Nascar-specification Honda rods with it. The rod journal size is less than 2" diameter, and with the right set of pistons, you'll have a 9,000+ RPM engine. The downside- - - -the rotating assembly costs over $5,000.00.
Jerry

the 283 was always my favorite chevy motor...reliable with good fuel economy and plenty of nuggets for a small 8. i have a 235 in my truck now,but if i knew gas prices would be stable i would love to put a 283 in my 62 Mark

The 283 in its original form is the best, toughest engine anyone ever built.

Thanks all. I appreciate all the input....

NorthDM

I love 283's, in stock form they're virtually indestructable. Don't mind all the racing stuff, it isn't what you need in a truck. If you have to buy a core, build a 400. With truck purposes in mind, it makes almost no difference cost wise, and will build you gobs more torque, down low where a truck will use it. It is the same block externally, only difference is the balancer to those who know what to look for.

Devin

northdm,Drove many strictly stock 283s in the 50s They were always reliable and economical to run. Points and plugs and an oil change every so often kept them happy. I chose one for my 49 Sub because I didn't want a godzilla stroker, hemi, 454, 600 HP, crate, etc,etc motor. At my age I have pretty much grown out of the go fast mentality although I must admit I occasionally have to fight off the urge to squawk tires. A TH350 or R4 behind a stock or mild 283 will give all the performance you could want with reasonable mileage. I built my Sub for a reliable cruiser/daily driver and it should be able to keep up on the Interstate. It sounds like we are thinking alike. Good luck on your project and build it like you want it however that me be. Its your truck.

Weeds

Best mouse Chev ever made.

Weeds, I think I'm going ahead with the pursuit of a good 283. I've looked awhile now for the "perfect combination" engine & tranny and am considering costs as well. I've found a 283 listed locally that was supposedly professionally rebuilt. I'm calling on it tomorrow after the blizzard so that I can make arrangements to take a peek at it.

Once again, all of your inputs are greatly appreciated....

NorthDM

Look to see if it has "Power Pack" heads a big plus

you can get any, I repeat any part for a 283 that you can get for a 350, 327 or anything else. Start watching my classic car on cable, they have new, high quality USA made engine parts advertised every day (not this chinese crapola that we are forced to buy alot). Crate engines area much more economical, AND they often have a warranty. Something to think about. I get parts at napa, they are a little high, but can always get the parts, even the weird stuff like GMC 305e big block v-6 parts.