Jesse, this is what I really think you should do. Install the lifters, get the engine running well and drive the crap out of that thing for a year. Get all the enjoyment out of it you can. If that doesn't motivate you to keep with it and do more, then you have a good running car and can either sell it for more than you could now, or do the engine/trans swap in the future. Tri-carb (sorry if I typed that wrong Norm
) would be so cool on that thing.