Thanks for the kind words, John! I was very fortunate to grow up in the company of folks who fed their families and paid the mortgage by keeping Babbit-pounder stovebolts running- - - -back when a professional-quality "in the frame" ring and valve job cost the princely sum of $125.00. The shade tree wrench jockeys did it for $75.00 or so!
Just as an aside- - - -the machine work alone on the crankshaft for that "261 that looks like a 216" is going to cost me around $450.00, done by an old geezer who has a couple of years on me and specializes in making stroker crankshafts for antique tractor pull engines. That's the main reason I just bought my own crankshaft grinder! By the time that one's up and running on the dyno, I'll have $4K or more just in parts and machine work, and enough labor time to build three engines the way we did your 261.
Fun and games, guys- - - -"We do the difficult stuff every day- - - -the impossible just takes a little longer!"
Jerry
