So next on the list - break in the new cam in the fresh engine.... I had a buddy drop by so that one of us could sit in the cab watching the gauges and the other could keep an eye out for leaks etc (plus having a second set of eyes if anything went south)
Luckily - other than the fact that I stupidly had the distributor out by 180 degrees (which we caught after about 5 seconds of cranking.....), it ran mint, sat at 2500rpm for 30 minutes, nothing stupid happened, no leaks, so all was good.
Then the next day..... puddle of coolant on the floor. I had intended on changing the radiator to a almost brand new one I had, but I didn't have the correct brackets & fan shroud for it (it was the 19" tall one instead of the 17" tall one), so I'd cleaned up the old one and put it in, it had never leaked before. Apparently the massive amount of mud and silt on it was what was holding it together lol. So.... a new rad was purchased & installed....