top man, i aint taken the sump off yet but i as good as know thats exactly what has happened. Not to worry i am keen on doing my rebuild now. thanks for your reply. I am glad i got 160,000 out of it without ever opening up the engine. Obviously only for valve stem oil seals and rocker cover gasket but apart from that i aint done nothing to it. I could just do a minor repair and have her up and running quickly but i want to go the whole hog and give the car what it deserves, i want bout 220bhp and 220lbs of torque then i will be happy. Alot of head development and flow testing will be needed to get this car the way i want it and as for the bottom end i am thinking of the american tall block option. what you all reckon????