billsr2

My engine has been red for decades, might go back to Black. Kind of on the fence...

I have figured out most of the hardware. ready to torque things

Searching the web for photos today. I took several photos of the water manifold hardware but I have nothing (as does the shop manual) of which head bolts go where. Ditto for which side the temp sender goes, various plugs & fittings... Maybe ya'll can provide some links or photos? I did not expect this engine to be apart for 13 months...

A fresh engine will start around 5K, how much you can do yourself will affect price. To drop off the car & pick it up with the engine restored these days would likely start at 10K. And most of those jobs will require remediation. A cheaper option? an '86 Camaro!

I might be game, mine has an ear sawed off

One of the first things I did was to replace all that stuff 15 years ago. Especially on a plastic car.

The seats turned out well.

Kevin Orloff is reproducing these from standard pans, they look really good. Mine was massaged with hammer & dolly work + lead filler for $200!

Modern counterfeit brake switches are documented ad nauseam. Old stock or Harley switch.

Am interested in how faithful a repro these are.

Looks pretty good!