I’ll have to check. One thing at a time! Went ahead and removed the timing cover and oil pan. Don’t think the oil pan was leaking at all, blue rubber FEL PRO did its job. The entire paper gasket on the timing chain cover was soaked through. I don’t know if that’s normal or not but I still don’t have a definitive answer on what was leaking. But after this, I shouldn’t have any more leaks from these surfaces.
Crazy the trouble I’m having to go through for this little 283 lol. I like this engine a lot and it’s a good running engine, but for once I want to do something stout so I think I’m going to next year. There’s a video on YouTube of a shop building a a 355 that dyno’d 480hp. They give you the entire build sheet so you can replicate it if you wish. I already have the 355, and it already has the flat top pistons and Vortech heads that they used. Would need some porting, flat tappet cam, etc., etc. but it’s really not an expensive build. Stock bottom end. I think I would go ahead and take mine all the way down and have everything went through at the machine shop and start fresh with new bearings and rings. I could probably plastic gauge it and throw new bearings in it without doing anything, sure they would egg shape a little but not enough to hurt anything. I would just rather have it super fresh.
Found a few small pieces of the push rod that broke in the bottom of the pan. There was a bigger piece in the valley up top, about an inch long, one of the ends. I’ve been cleaning surfaces and gaskets, repainting things, I think I may go ahead and prep and paint the frame rails and a lot of the stuff you can see anyway while half the crap is out of the engine bay.
