btsai,
Tom Lucus a.k.a FE/Specialties falls in the mid range on pricing, and high on quality and attention to detail. He's not cheap, and he's not outrageous. Tom (believe it or not) has an engine shop dedicated to building FEs alone. About 80% of what he builds are just FEs. He is certainly not getting rich on the level or work and attention to detail he provides to his customers. He has a passion for building FEs for people. He tries to remain competetive and could certainly charge more, but does not. I think he can charge more!
Where he seems to make up for the difference (in personal satisfaction) is getting constructive feedback from satisfied customers like me. Because of referrals over the last few years, he is now building motors for people in the U.S. and in other countries. His specialty is FE blueprinting, porting, and performance assembly for about the price of mainstream engine package shops. The result is that he gets return customers. He could make more money doing other things, but his passion for FEs keeps him at it. Good Guy, and he tries hard to please the customer.
