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If you were going to sell a small block Chevy kit I think you would be OK because most kids out of high school auto shop can assemble one half blind folded and not worry about it blowing up. Selling a FE kit to some of these folks who cannot figure out which way to hit their spinners to get their wheels off.......I would be scared about that.
How about this idea: What about selling an "Engine Assembly Experience", similar to what you can do when you buy a new Corvette and can work with the guys who hand assemble the Vette engines. Offer guys the opportunity to travel to your shop for 4-5 days and work hand in hand with you assembling their engines under the guidance of your master engine tech leadership. I'm sure you could get them to help with grunt work like cleaning/prepping parts, cleaning the shop, and other tasks to help offset the "pain in the ass" factor of dealing with some customers.
The plus side is it would be an eye opener for some customers who complain about how much something costs once they see the amount of time you invest into an engine, along with your capital investment in tools and equipment.
I know that if I ever win the lottery and can afford a Kirkham with a KC all aluminum FE I'll be negotiating a deal with you and David to allow me to be there every step of the way in the build process, no matter what the cost would be (I guess that's just the mechanical engineer in me).
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