283 small-block Chevy heads to the machine shop for block and head work | Redline Update - Hagerty Media

The small-block 283 came apart without much issue in the last Redline Update, so long-time watchers know what comes next: a trip to the machine shop. Well, this particular trip was hit with a little delay, but Davin knows how to capitalize on a little shakeup in the schedule.

The 283 was actually in pretty good shape once it was torn down, but Davin rarely leaves well enough alone. Take the cylinder heads, for example. The valves and seats are serviceable, but why not perform a couple small upgrades? The original plan was to have the pros in Thirlby’s machine shop tear down the heads and then complete the installation of new hardened exhaust seats and slightly larger intake valves. That plan shifted because Thirlby is running at capacity, so Davin elected to get some pre-work done to help the team out and make their lives a little easier.

The block actually got a similar treatment too. While the casting was OK, Davin took a sanding roll on his die grinder and went to town cleaning up all the casting flash and smoothing out anything too rough for a good, smooth coat of paint. That left a lot of rust and debris on the floor of the Redline Garage, but the block was still in need of the bake and blast cleaning at Thirlby, so that’s where the team started once all the parts arrived across town in the back of the Jeep.

The block was cleaned up before having the deck surface ground flat, and then the cylinders were bored to size. The heads got fresh exhaust seats installed and cut. The intake side received a slight trim as well to fit a marginally larger intake valve. To help the intake flow better, the chamber was trimmed back just a bit to help fuel and air enter the cylinder.

Now all the pieces are clean and freshly cut, so it’s time to order a set of pistons and get the bare steel into the paint booth. To stay up to date on the latest Redline Rebuild happenings, be sure to subscribe to the Hagerty YouTube channel.

— Kyle Smith

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