Right on Tech - I should have said "really good friends..." having been burned early on when I was in the Air Force and used the base hobby shop as my "engine building shop".

I'll only do one now if people want to be real patient and come and be a part of the process. Last build was for a friend of my son and he was extremely attentive and I had him scrubbing out the block and painting with Glyptal. He also sat and listened as I used various mics and measured everything - some parts twice. At the end of the project he had a very nicely built 400 in a Monte Carlo that started with the tap of the key and purred like a kitten lapping cream and yet could fry the back tires at will.

I've not bought used parts from ebay (I like to see the stuff in person.. I know, kinda funny that way) - but have scored big at swap meets - especially in the intake/carburetor and header department - new in the box for less than fifty cents on the dollar and a recent score of a brand new Mallory Unilite for $50. I stay away from unknown heads as it's jut to hard to tell if they're good and new aluminum heads are reasonable - especially for what they bring to the equation.

Yup - I still love the smell of a new build!
Glenn