283 Small Block Chevy Tear Down! | How much DAMAGE??

Note to self must remove fuel pump and fuel pump pushrod before removing cam 😉

You probably broke the rings when you removed them without taking the ridge off the cylinders. If it's from 1967 the ridge was most likely huge .

Real quick identification of the heads is that no 283 had heads with accessory bolt holes in the ends. You automatically know they aren't original.

The can in the lifter valley, and the plugged hole behind it were part of the engine venting system used at the time. It's missing the draft tube (look it up). It was fairly common for people to mod these systems with a PCV valve in place of the draft tube.

64-68 283. Chevy started doing side motor mounts in 58. So one year only for the 283 without them (57). The 55-57 265 was front mount only as well. Those heads are from a newer engine, likely a 70's vintage, and likely with 76cc chambers. Large chambers and the small bore of a 283 are going to result in very, very low compression ratios.

Seeing the top rod shell beat up could be detonation. That can also crack cast rings. Or the ring broke hitting ridge on removal.

The divider would be so you can use the manifold to your driving, single plane or dual plane intake. So you kind of have 2 options in one intake, street driving or high performance. The screw in the bottom looks to be just to receive that one part of the divider that sicks out to secure it better, but I'm not sure.

If it's got a bad ring groove at the top of the cylinders that can break the rings when you take them out

Very typical engine issues they rebuilt the 283 ran it without zinc in oil or cam break in done properly and it wiped the cam ate bearings and rings up. Get a set of bearings, rings, cam kit, cam bearings, and hone the piss out of it and then put valve seals in it and lap the valves (often overlooked) and u will have a tough little engine. It’s a strong engine like it is factory but if u want to have a little fun get a set of flat top pistons with shorter skirt (leave it current bore) hone the piss out of it put a corvette cam and dual 4 barrel or (personal favorite) 3 duces and that little dude will be fun. It will have good low end great mid and upper to around 6500-7000 maybe even 7500 rpm’s. There’s nothing like the sound of a sbc running at 7k and build the corvette replica it will do that constantly and forever if u keep oil in it. It will be a little loose by not boring but that’s a good thing much easier to break a fresh engine nobody ever tells anyone that I find out but I never hear of a old wore out sbc blowing up I hear of ones like apparently every guy who claims his rig has a 383 in it scattering after a handful of years but no miles to speak of. U keep oil in a sbc and drive it on the floor every time u get in it (1 or 2 quarts) per fill up. lol. The 283 probably run longer loose with just a old school (in frame rebuilt) will last forever. U can give Jesus a ride when he gets here. Lol. Good video young man. Insomnia is a bitch. Lol. Videos like yours help. Thanks. God Bless JM

It is possible that when they put the 4 barrel carb on and ran it hard, the engine pistons hit the ring ridge and breaks. seen it before. trying to make an old beater go to fast.

Early 283 heads have staggerd holes on the valve covers to bolt the valve covers to the heads... Later heads have bolts straight across from eachother...

outstanding! very informative

Fuel pump is what was keeping the cam from coming right out

You've got to take the fuel pump off too the get the cam out and the rod

The bearings actually look normal for a mid 60s 283. The engine design originally came with a canister filter. It looks like it has had an aftermarket screw on oil filter adapter. The filtration wasn't the greatest to start with.

Lets get a date off of the back of the bearings.

When you pop those piston and rod assemblies out you should put bolt protectors on the connecting rod bolts as when you drag the threads of the connecting rod bolts across the rod journal on the crankshaft it can scratch the journal and it will require polishing the journal at minimum and could require a regrinding of the journal. It does not seem like much but when a journal is hit or scratched it raises the metal somewhat and can cause bearing failure if not corrected. If this engine block is not cracked or has been run hot it is reusable. This engine has obviously been run hard and that pretty much tells the story on those broken rings, and also the ring end gap could have been too tight.

Rebore, hone and install a Kit of affordable claimer Pistons and King bearings (if crank is still fine) and a good new Elgin Pro Stock cam oild pump still will be finde, never had a bad original good old Melling/GM pump!

Yes! The 283 video has dropped!

That block has an oil filter addapter on it, early 283-327's had a long oil canster on it that took a #141 oil filter for the canster with a o-ring...