In 1967 I built a .040 over 283 with 'Vette heads and a Duntov cam for my '54 Bel Aire. Good power at high revs, not much bottom end, but 4.11 gears and 14" tires made it work. For a while. When the 3-speed w/overdrive blew, I replaced it with a non-OD trans. The little winder didn't last the summer!
For what it's worth, I now have a 350 to put in it. 283 was the "hot setup" back when it was pretty much all you could get, but you can't beat cubic inches.