hey folks,
got bus back today, running pretty good - still burning off a bunch of the old oil that had sprayed everywhere though lol. yeah that would've been a good idea taking the block off it's mount and pivoting it around, but I really don't like the thought of balancing all that while my kids/dog "sit calmly" inside lol
fortunately total cost wasn't too terrible, about 1250 including parts etc, and now I have another 20 years before the new pan rusts out again - plus a good relationship with a hvy tow O/O and a decent med/hvy duty repair shop
thanks again for the outpouring of thoughts and ideas
can't tell you how good it was to run that bugger down some county roads again