it feels great to finally stop talking about it and start doing it!
the 1971 block, rotating assy (chp street fighter 4.04 over), main girdle and balancer came from a guy named scott in pa. that came to $1350
he is also selling me his tremec, clutch, shifter, and aluminum driveshaft, all for $1850
he is going big block and has a HUGE blower he is going to strap on his fox.
he also owns a shop and is going to install the motor and stuff after it is built. he charges $58 per hour labor which is a whole lot better than the prices around d.c. plus, he has done it in his fox, so he is already familiar with the gotchas.
the c/r should be around 10.5:1, cam is as of yet undecided.
all told, i am probably looking at over ten grand, including new seats and carpet, hi def stereo, a mm grip kit with k-member, new paint, and a march serpentine conversion kit with all new and polished accessories.
i figure it is either this or buy a new car, and a new convertible stang runs around 30 grand.