need help with engine

[Phillip123]

I have just acquired my grandfathers 63 C10 p/u. it is a stepside short bed in very rough shape. The cab is in pretty bad shape on roof and other usual places. I will get back to the body work later. I have pulled the engine out (283 ci) and pretty much disassembled. I am no mechanic by any means but have some basic knowledge of how a engine works. The truck has been setting in the bushes for about 15 or more years. It appears to have had a blown head gasket. My son is in his first year at a community college takeing auto mechanics and has torn down the heads, most of the valves have been burnt. With all that being said here is my question, I would like to step the engine up a little but not sure what size cam to put in it without having to change lifters, studs, springs, etc. Im thinking of boring it 4 over. Not looking to make a hot rod , just want a little punch to it. Staying with stock 3 speed and rear end I think. Any advice and guidance would be appreciated.

Thanks

[Auctioneerhere]

Go for a cam that fits your RPM range. Perhaps a HO 305 cam grind.

I would avoid going to big.

[Auctioneerhere]

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/a.../t-345981.html

Thread might interest you.

[Alan's Classic]

Moved ya to the engine and drivetrain section for more input.

[Captainfab]

With a new cam you have to use new lifters. I would also recommend reading up on breaking in cams with today's oils that lack sufficient ZDDP for flat tappet cams. Proper cam breakin, with a good breakin oil, or standard oil with a breakin additive is very important these days for the survival of the cam and lifters.

With a basically stock 283, you want to stay fairly conservative in cam selection. I would stay under 220 degrees @ .050", preferably closer to 200 degrees.

[bk2life]

Originally Posted by Phillip123

I would like to step the engine up a little but not sure what size cam to put in it without having to change lifters, studs, springs, etc. Im thinking of boring it 4 over.Thanks

Your son has the heads a part, it would make no sense not to put new springs in them while they are apart. New beehive valve springs, needing no machine work necessary are around 85 dollars for the set.
Also anytime you change a flat tappet camshaft you have to change lifters. No way around it.
Boring it 4 over. I’m guessing you mean .040 (forty thousands) over size? Nothing wrong with that, but I’d probably only go with .030 just to leave material over in case you need to pull the motor apart again.
Cam size, 260-270 advertised duration would suit your build.

[Phillip123]

Thanks bk2life. As I said I am no mechanic and I need all the help I can get. My son can have all machine work done at school. I really hate to show my ignorance but I need to be spoon feed during this rebuild. I am torn between going back totally stock and just adding a new intake, headers and 4 barrel or just slightly upgrading engine. The cylinder walls seem to be ok. I did scar one of the journals on crankshaft when removing pistons so will probably get a new one. Just would like to have a little umphhh to it, not a dragster. Trying to keep cost down and have reliable engine.

[GASoline71]

Find a good reputable machine shop. If your sons school has machine services there, you could go that route.

An engine over 40 years old is going to need a full rebuild with machine work. The heads will need to be tanked, magnafluxed (check for cracks), and reassembled with new springs and valves.

You'll look at spending around a grand for a rebuild. Which will include machine work, head work, and a rebuild kit. You machine shop should be able to provide you with a rebuild kit. Which should include a cam and lifters.

Gary

[bk2life]

i do disagree with the above post. an engine over 40 yo will not need a full rebuild.

but that will just get me and him into a pissin contest and that's not what you are looking for.

your boy in school most likely has a good shop teacher, and all the necessary tools to properly mic the motor and see where everything is.

if the cylinders arent messed up, a simple dingle berry hone is good enough for new rings to seat. new set of bearings and youve "rebuilt" the lower half for 200 bucks.

the truck has been sittin for some time, meaning mileage could be pretty low.

a camshaft/lifter/timing set kit is what you'll be needing, and wiht that you can get teh correct valve springs for the cam.

your entire rebuild could be relatively cheap depending on what your boy has access to in school, and if his shop teacher likes him.

my shop teacher liked me and i could do no harm..lol but there were kids he didnt like and they couldnt chew gum in class.

[GASoline71]

Nah... no pissin' match here.

All I will add... is that it is very uncommon for an engine that old with hundreds of thousands of miles on it, to not need a rebuild. If not now... very soon.

I've been there... running a super high mileage junk yard 350 swapped into in a '67 C10 that originally had a 292 in it. Oil burner, leaker, limited power output. Heck I was better off with the stock inline 6. It was not a fun endeavor. So after a year of pools of oil in the driveway, colling issues, and burning more oil that the rig fires in Iraq... I yanked it back out of there and rebuilt it. After that... man, what a fun truck to drive.

Gary

[Phillip123]

I think my son is liked by his instructor and is willing to help him cause he's interested in what he's doing. It pisses my son off that some of the other students are there for the government check and disrupt class. The school has the tools to do most or all of the machine work and that won't cost me anything other his tuition. I do intend on doing a pretty much total rebuild on bottom end and sounds as though I need to totally rebuild the heads. Just trying to decide if I want to stay stock or bore it and put a slightly stronger cam. Option 2 is put a 350 in it that my son has rebuilt. The thing is that the 283 will keep matching numbers on the truck.

[Racer2172]

Stick with the 283, mild rebuild. Go with the 350 later and you can really make some power with it later should you want more power. I had a 283 that was 40 over and decent cam and rebuilt heads in my 68 C-10 back in high school with the three on tree, it would smoke tires and won a lot of stop drag races.
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