Technical 283 running rough and hot

I had a problem with mine would heat up at idle. 180 down the road and 210 after idling for 5 minutes. I used the biggest crank pulley I could find and the smallest fan pulley I could find. I increased the fan speed about 15% by doing this. It still warms up at idle but only to 200 and cools right back down when moving.
200 is about right for an sbc on the street. Colder causes problems. A****st the worst is cylinder washing and premature wear. Actually about 220 degrees would be best as long as you have a good cooling system and the temp won't creep higher. The newer chevy motors are designed to run at about 220.

 

To add to that . . . If the car is mainly driven in town and over shorter distances the oil doesn't come up to full temperature for any real length of time. As a result the oil isn't hot enough, for a long enough time, to "boil off" any moisture, condensation, blow-by and other contamination that collects in the crankcase. This is probably even more critical on older engines that only have open c/case venting like a road draft system. A later, closed PCV system works much more efficiently.

Higher coolant temps are also needed to properly operate some automatic choke set-ups to get the choke opened fully when the engine reaches full operating temperatures.

 

SBC Satin Black Short Water Pump Pulley - Double Groove

• Diameter is 6-1/4"
• Outside Length: 3"
• Mounted Length: 2.71"
• Shaft Diameter: .63"
• Bolt Hole Pattern: 4 on 1.75"
• Belt Width: .38"
• Replaces GM # 3995642

SBC Satin Black Short Pump Crank Pulley - Double Groove

• Diameter is 6-3/4"
• Overall Thickness: 1-1/4"
• Stock"Shallow" variety
• Replaces GM # 374403
• Use in conjunction with single groove crank pulley (91038812) for 3-groove pulley combo

SBC Satin Black 3rd-Groove Crank Pulley - Single Groove

• Use in conjunction with double groove crank pulley (91038811) to make 3rd groove
• Diameter: 6-3/4"
• Replaces GM # 3751232
• Example from Speedway