Bypassed a few local machine shops today to take my 54 Chevy 235 block and crank to get things ready for the new build,I drove the extra miles because of the previous visit and phone calls. I have to say I was impressed,They were up front about being 4 weeks behind while the other shops could get my stuff done "right away" I don't mind waiting to have things done right. When I got there to drop the parts off, they knew what they were,what the limits were,as well as having a better idea than I do about what does and does not work on these engines. I showed the guy my Harper set up that I intend to run and he was impressed with the set up and had a good bit of knowledge to share as far as cam grind,pistons and even the T5 conversion. All in all, I'm pretty geeked about getting this project going and look foreward to gleening a bunch of information.
I recently had a similar experience, found a shop within a block of other places I'd been that truly knew their stuff. It's a great feeling!
The one i found has several antique , and collector car engine blocks in work, so I knew it was the right place for my flatmotor. It was well worth waiting a couple weeks for !!! 4TTRUK
There's an engine machine shop here in Denver, run by 2 guys in their late 60's who have been into this stuff their whole lives. For me, that shop is a treasure. They KNOW what works and what doesn't. They KNOW their equipment forward and backward. They have machined more hemis, nailheads, caddys, olds', smallblocks, big blocks, and weird blocks than most of us have ever seen. It even smells right in there. You just can't put a price on that kind of thing.
I knew I found my ideal machine shop when I discovered that their pop machine dispensed Bombay Saphire with ice and queen sized olives for only a buck!
The Jalopy Journal
