Jason,
I think "not hard to find", as you say is relative. Sure they may not be hard to find in your area but in a place like, say, Georgia they are almost impossible to find.
As to why not more 302s, I would guess that build cost plays in to the picture almost as much as availability. The price that the few manufacturers of performance parts for the 302 (clifford research, Langdon, etc.) are absolutely ridiculous (to me).
The newest GMC 302 is still going to be several decades old. Any one you find has to be thoroughly examined. After you throw out those than are non-rebuildable, then you must go through the monumental task (and expense) of building it for high performance. After the upgrade (and several thousand dollars) later you have an engine that can still be blown away by a small block 350 at 1/4th the cost.
I hate to come across "anti-stovebolt" because I'm obviously not; It's a tough economy and people are using their dollars more wisely. And I believe that more people these days are thinking their projects through and assessing the costs before they begin work. Then the more economically sensible (and more powerful and versatile) small block v8 gets thrown in. Either that or a 292.
Just my .02 :confused:
