283 sbc in a square body?

[stepside-mitch]

I paid a visit to a good family friend the other day and he happened to have a 1965 chevy 283 that was free if i got it out of his shed. It is all here and is backed by a powerglide. Just wondering if any of you guys every built a hopped up vintage 283 for your truck. please include pics i you can

[INSIDIOUS '86]

If you know what your doing they can be high rpm screamers but low on torque so they are best in lightweight vehicles. The factory 350hp 327 hp cam and some worked 202 heads and a 4 barrel and headers should make a fun drivin truck for DD
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[85Bowtie]

I don't see the point in throwing money at a 283 just for the sake of it being free. Your money would be much better spent starting with a 350 or 400 that wasn't free.

[Tom]

Originally Posted by stepside-mitch

please include pics i you can

What would pics do? They would look the same as any other small block of any displacement made.

Originally Posted by 85Bowtie

I don't see the point in throwing money at a 283 just for the sake of it being free. Your money would be much better spent starting with a 350 or 400 that wasn't free.

Better spent in what way? Overall power sure, but what if max power isen't his goal? And since most things people start with [intake, carb, ignition, exhaust] will all swap over to a bigger motor later I see no point in spending money on a different motor right now. Besides, rpm's are fun

[xrcr]

I have a soft spot for the 283 since that was the first engine I ever owned. It was in a 62 impala ss that had seen better days but man was it cool. That thing was a sled. I have since grown to appreciate "stupid" horsepower but it has also taken me 30 yrs to be able to afford it.
Bottom line is build what you want, not what everbody else wants.
xrcr

[85Bowtie]

Originally Posted by Tom

Better spent in what way? Overall power sure, but what if max power isen't his goal? And since most things people start with [intake, carb, ignition, exhaust] will all swap over to a bigger motor later I see no point in spending money on a different motor right now. Besides, rpm's are fun

If max power isn't the goal, then what's the point in spending the money on modifications at all? So you can rev high and still be slow? My honda revs high, but is not fun.

[BigBlocksRule]

Smaller isn't always better if it struggles to pull the load. It's nice to have the torque of a bigger engine if you hitch onto something or need the extra ooomph to pass or get out of somebody's way, and if it's tuned right, mileage will be as good or better.

[special-K]

The 283 is arguably one of the best small blocks ever built. If I have to explain you'd never understand. I'd pay for one over a free 305 any day. I think it would be extremely sensible by what today's needs are to go with a 283. People used to argue about it being worth modifying a straight 6 over a V8 but you sure see a lot of it going on now. A 283 won't struggle to move a pickup and will get better mileage than a 350.

[rwhit57]

The 283 is a great motor, the only draw back is the canister style filter but there is an adapter for that. They are not that low on torque at around 300 ft lbs(9.5 to 1). If the motor is good and you don't have to throw a lot of money at it to get it running and that's what you want to do, you won't be disappointed. The whole key is what compression ratio it is. If it's a 9.5 to 1 motor it will be good, if it's the 8.25 or 8.5 motor it will be a little weak compared to most 350s.

[Pyrotechnic]

I'd rather have a 283 or 307 over a 305 any day. If it has a forged crank, then you can really have some fun with it. I wouldn't spend too much money on one though. Take your time and hunt down good deals as you build it.

The key to making a 283 work well is proper rear end gears, and if you are running an automatic a high stall converter is a must. If you run highway gears and tight converter you will be disappointed.

[85Bowtie]

Originally Posted by Pyrotechnic

The key to making a 283 work well is proper rear end gears, and if you are running an automatic a high stall converter is a must. If you run highway gears and tight converter you will be disappointed.

Is this not true of any N/A engine?

Face it, 283's are useless. It sounds like it's more of a nostalgia/sentimental reason to use one than anything else. The only reason 305's suck is because they were developed in an era filled with smog regulations and emissions heads/components....and I think maybe the bore is severly limited to oversizing because of the water jackets.

[meter swinger]

Originally Posted by 85Bowtie

Is this not true of any N/A engine?

It sounds like it's more of a nostalgia/sentimental reason to use one than anything else.

I think its a great reason to run one. I'm putting most of the factory garb back on the 327 in my 59 because i like the looks. A close friend has a 283 in his 62 impalla. I'm sure he could drop in an LS3 he certinly has the money, but the engine is beatiful. If someone were offering me a free 283 in good condition. I'd have picked it up by now. But if you want something to pin you back in youre seat i'd look elsewhere.
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[rwhit57]

Originally Posted by 85Bowtie

Is this not true of any N/A engine?

Face it, 283's are useless. It sounds like it's more of a nostalgia/sentimental reason to use one than anything else. The only reason 305's suck is because they were developed in an era filled with smog regulations and emissions heads/components....and I think maybe the bore is severly limited to oversizing because of the water jackets.

Come on are you serious? The 283 is may be a little small by today's standards but it's not useless. It was the V8 that became the powerplant for thousands of hotrods. It ran from 57-67 in everything from Corvettes to big trucks. Sure, plenty of nostalgia, it's the motor that Duntov developed the famous 097 solid lift cam for, not to mention it was the first motor out of Detroit to have fuel injection. It was not limited to oversizing at all. Depending on the year of the block most 283s could be bored to .125 making basically the same 4.00 x 3.00 setup as the 302 Z28 motor. .

[Pyrotechnic]

Originally Posted by 85Bowtie

Is this not true of any N/A engine?

Actually, what you are talking about is not true. Every engine will have a different rear end gear and torque converter that it works well with.

I can put 3.08 gears behind a healthy 454 and it will actually run pretty well. The 454 has enough torque to move those gears just fine. However, a 283 would not have such an easy time pushing those gears.

Keep in mind, the 305 never made more horsepower than the highest performing 283. The 283/307 have a larger bore which is far better than the smaller bore of the 305. The small bore of the 305 shrouds the valves, and limits how large of valves you can run.

[skillet]

I have a soft spot for the 283 too, since it was in my first truck, a '67 stepside. My dad had rebuilt the 283, drove it for 2 yrs. and gave the truck to me. Then I drove it for the next 17 years. Never pulled a trailer with it(well once, a deck boat), but it did a lot of work over the years. For me, it was the perfect blend of power and economy. It was a sad day when I let her go. If you're still out there ole girl, please forgive me.

[meter swinger]

a couple in factory type garb.
one of my favorite engines as far as appearance.

[meter swinger]

Originally Posted by stepside-mitch

. Just wondering if any of you guys every built a hopped up vintage 283 for your truck. please include pics i you can

This is the OP's question. Let's try to keep it on topic.
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[BigBlocksRule]

I kinda like a 565 myself...that's two 283's

The 283 was the hot lick for a lot of years, but bigger bores and longer strokes took over once they were engineered. 283's are actually getting very hard to find and command a pretty penny if you have the right one. The 283 engine was a major player in the demise of the old flat head engines. For a small power plant, they packed quite a punch in their day. When you get right down to it, all Chevy small blocks (and big blocks for that matter) are derivatives of the little overhead valve mouse motor. They've been kicked aside by folks looking for more power, their small bore limits breathing ability which is THE major contributor to making power. I'd kinda like to build one with more modern heads, induction and cam, you could probably get great mileage in a light to medium weight vehicle.

[S10Fan]

My 65 Chevelle (daily driver) has a 283 and powerglide automatic. The motor has nearly 150k miles on it and still runs strong. The car has plenty of pep and will hang with the best of them on the interstate. I have zero complaints concerning my 283!

But, I don't see myself spending any money on it should there be any sort of major failure. I'd grab me a nice 350 (because they're plentiful) or look at one of the 5.3 LS based motors.

[dmartin1]

Id love to have a cheap/free 283.
i too, think that the 283 is a great motor.
i remember as a junior in highschool my auto shop teacher did a 283 build for his 1954 chevy truck restoration.some top end goodies flat topsand a complete rebuild that little motor could put some spanking on other cars.

to me as m opinion i like the 283 as well as the 327.

[INSIDIOUS '86]

You guys are missing the point I ran 7 sec 1/4miles with a king cab duelly and a 283 with a one billion shot of nos and 8 turbos and a two barrel.

Duntov 350hp 327 cam fuellie heads a four barrel and some headers with whatever converter/gears will be fine with that you can go both ways 2800 stall with 4.11 gears for some fun or 3.23 gears and a 700r4 for some fun stop light and daily driver action. Either way why not run a 283 with those mods? All of it can be transferred to another engine just a easy.
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