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From: price@noscvax.UUCP (James N. Price)
Newsgroups: net.auto
Subject: Rebuilding/Swapping a '57 Chevy engine
Message-ID: <300@noscvax.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 27-Mar-86 19:22:38 EST
Article-I.D.: noscvax.300
Posted: Thu Mar 27 19:22:38 1986
Date-Received: Mon, 31-Mar-86 08:29:23 EST
Organization: Naval Ocean Systems Center, San Diego
Lines: 42


Ladies and Gents of net.auto.  This is my first posting, so hope I don't
sound too ignorant or ask an inappropriate question.

I own, for fun, a nice '57 Chevy with a straight stock 283 V-8.  The car 
apparently has about 130K miles on it, but the engine doesn't seem that
worn.  But I do get some blow-by and blue smoke.   

My wife and I are planning to do a total restoration on the car during the
next two to three years.  First the drive train, then the paint, and
finally the interior.  On the engine, I have three choices about how
to rebuild it:

1)  If I want to keep the car straight stock (for purposes of showing it,
for example), the 283 has to be rebuilt.  If rebuilt with stock parts, 
it requires leaded gasoline of at least 92 octane, the long term avail-
ability of which doesn't look too good.

2)  If I don't care about keeping a stock engine, I can replace the 283
with a low mileage 350, and voila, a "new" car in a good looking "old" 
body.  But then the car would never be "stock" again.

3)  I can have my cake and eat it, too, I understand by putting in  
different kinds of valve lifters and seats so that the rebuilt 283
will run on unleaded gas, albeit still needing the premium octane levels
due to a 9.4 to 1 compression ratio.

If gasoline availability were no object, I wouldn't hesitate to go for
option 1).  I'm inclined to go with 3) assuming that high octane unleaded
will be with us for quite a while (like 10 years at least?)  My only
significant incentive to pursue option 2) is cost--about 1/3 less than 
rebuilding.

I'd appreciate any thoughts out there on the issues of stock vs. non-
stock cars, long-term availability of leaded gas, long-term availability
of high-octane unleaded gas, and true-life stories of anyone who's
been in this situation before.  In other words, I'm open to any advice! 

My direct mail address is PRICE@NOSC.ARPA.  My work phone is (619)225-2665.
Thanks in advance for your thoughts!

Cheers--Jim Price, San Diego, CA