Ok folks, and now we come to the part that I have agonized over for the last year . . . what to do about the engine?
It is a 305 v8 with a 2bbl carb, headers and dual exhaust. The guy I bought it from said the engine had just been rebuilt. Let's just say that was innacurate. When my buddy took the valve covers off, there was nothing but sludge in there. You couldn't see much else. He was also able to determine that at least one cylinder has a compression problem - cylinder #1. If you put your hand over the end of the tail pipe on that side, the exhaust pushes and then sucks your hand back in towards the pipe. He said that's a sign of a compression issue. Another problem is she smokes...higher the rpm the more smoke. Some days are worse than others. Lastly, she has two major oil leakes...timing chain cover and rear main seal. Timing chain cover is the worst. It's chrome. A buddy of mine said that chrome is weaker and softer and so you have to be real careful because they can bend and leak very easily.
Overall, she runs well, but you can hear a slight tapping.
The big challenge has been trying to decide whether to rebuild this engine or get a GM crate engine. I guess the unknowns of the rebuild are the #1 concern and cost of course. JEGS has a GM crate engine for $1499. I've thought seriously about that one because I don't know if I can rebuilt it for less than that. (Machine Shop, Parts and Labor). Here's a link to that engine:
http://www.jegs.com/i/GM+Performance...FQ6xnQodfEIAPQ
They have another 350 for $1,900, but I'm not sure if I need that one just for a few more HP.
Everyone seems to prefer the 350, but I like the 305 just fine. Even with 7 cylinders pushing, she has nice power and pick up. And around town, I'm consistently getting
15mpg even though she's limping!
I have even thought about replacing the seals and stopping the oil leaks and seeing how long she would last after that, but I fear that would be a waste of time, energy and money.
So, I welcome feedback and suggestions. It's a tough decision, but I know I must make it soon.