Thread: 283 v8 build good idea?

Tweet

I built a 283 with Camel Hump heads and Duntov cam and ridiculously-strong valve springs back in the '60's. No bottom end, but Revs! Never heard anything like it. Only ran about 5000 miles, but fun. Wouldn't do it again, though.

I did a Pi## winding 289 in the 60's..... same story no bottom end, but deep gears and a 4 speed in a Falcon body (best shift point was 7200 RPM). Ate clutches and had to adjust the lifters on a weekly basis. Lasted a bit over 9000 miles ( less than a year).

Went to a "mild" 351W and decided a liked torque and longevity a whole lot better.

I guess everybody 's gotta do it once. The guys that do it twice need help.

i am fairing ok with the exception of spun mains build your 301 and go have some screaming fun! BTW if you put a 327 crank into a 283 youmake a pos 307 thats a no no! its a 327 with a 283 crank that makes a 302. hey i run 12's c'mon guys!

307 is a no no??? I would like to hear your reasoning.

Originally Posted by nitrowarrior

307 is a no no??? I would like to hear your reasoning.

I think Scooter is just dead set against an arm longer than 3"

My stock bore 283 ran 15's maybe in the 14's with a few changes I made in a 3200#car. If you want to be different then do as one post said and do the small Jour 327. Its different and will give you a little bigger disp. I am building a SJ 327 now and have about $1,100 in the short block. Will cost another 1,500 for good top end kit and my long block will be complete for about $2,600 and hopefully about 400 HP. I did not attempt to averbuild my 283 simply because I don't want to distroy it. The bigger you build it the more chance it has of not staying together very long. And if it doesn't stay together you will be stuck looking for more hard to find 283 parts.

The deal is hes 65 and im 20. He really wants to build the motor just to have one again. We already have 2 1961 283 blocks so thats not an issue. Whatever we build its ganna have all the goodies and i guess if we dont like the 283 we can swap it out for another motor. By the way thanks for the info this is the only place that anyone even knew about 283's or motors to say the least.

Originally Posted by Seminole_Wind

Ohh yeah and matt i never said anything about him putting nitrous on it in the 60's bub. Go to youtube and type in 283 drag theres a 283 with 250 shot of nitrous running 10.40.

Yes, as everyone on here has told you, you can do it. I didn't look at the 283 you refer to, but chances are it's running an aftermarket steel crank, aftermarket 4-bolt main caps, aftermarket rods and the block is filled to the top with 'crete, negating the water jackets. So, it's not able to be operated on the street. I further suspect that he has to pull the pan often to change out the bearings.

It's simply a matter of moving air through the motor. The more air you move, the more horsepower you make. For instance, a 400 small block spinning 6,000 r's will move an ideal 699 CFM using an efficiency figure of 100%. A 302 will have to be revved to 8,000 r's to move the same amount of air. A 350 would move the same amount of air at 6,900 r's.

As you buzz the smaller motor faster to move the same amount of air as a larger motor, the requirements change in respect to the camshaft, cylinder heads and static compression ratio, moving further and further away from streetability. Any cam you bolt into a motor will have an operating range of about 3,500 r's. In other words, it will make power from 1,000 to 4,500 or 2,000 to 5,500 or 3,000 to 6,500 or in the case of a 302, to make the same power as a 400, 4,500 to 8,000 r's. So, the motor will not pull the hat off your head at revs lower than 4,500. Doesn't sound much like a street motor does it? This is way past a hydraulics camshaft's capability, so a solid or roller mechanical cam will have to be used. Here's an example of the cam I might choose in such a motor.....
http://www.cranecams.com/?show=brows...tType=camshaft
Please read the characteristics of this cam in the upper right corner of the spec sheet. You'll need race gas to operate it at minimum 12.5:1 static compression ratio. And check out the valve lift. Do you think you'll be changing out valve springs often?

Now, with all that having been said, yes you can build a nice 302 that will rev to less than the example and be streetable. Just be aware that you can make more power for less money with a larger motor to start with.

It all comes down to knowing what you want. Hot rodding doesn't make any sense, anyway,we're all nuts. If you want a lil' screamer, then go ahead and build one. My previously-mentioned 283 had to be driven around town in first gear, with 4.11 rear, but I loved it! Young and foolish, maybe.Older now. (Still foolish.)

the 350 disease yes it takes a little more effort but its well worth it to some of us. watch out for 11's out of mine this year

double post dang it

The 283 with a 4" bore is a big gamble. That bug bit me 2 months ago. I found that you can't trust what the internet says about this. Some say mid years can do the bore,,,even Mr. Vizard states this but some say that some 283 blocks were also used as 327 blocks and they can be identified by the scalloped bottoms of the cylinders that will clear the 327 crank throws.
Heres what the machine shops in my area told me,,," WHY????, GET A BIGGER BLOCK!". One shop owner with over 30 years has tried many in years past and plainly told me that only about 10% of 283's will take the bore and no year or identifying block caracteristic will identify them due to core shift.
He wanted $200 to even attempt it because no body shows up to pay for a wasted block when told the bore attempt went thru the wall! Some (few) 283's will but even those should be sonic checked to verify AND,,,probably an expensive 'off-center' bore due to core shift.
I went .060" over to be safe,,,,whats 10 cubic inches??? After all we're talking about a build thats under the 327 here anyway! Go 292 and gear the snot out of it and use a motor design(cam/compression/gear) to utilize the hi-rpm ability. Just my 2 cents,I'm building a 292 right now.

Originally Posted by R Pope

I guess everybody 's gotta do it once. The guys that do it twice need help.

what does 3 or 4 times mean?

Hilarious-