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I spoke with the engine builder. He says the cylinders are perfectly round and the pistons are in great shape. He sounded rather impressed with how it all measured. He says he cleaned up the cylinders with a scotchbrite pad and that the marks at the top are insignificant. I pushed back a bit but he says there is no concern.

If I were to sleeve the block, I would definitely change to forged pistons.

Thanks for the comment on the valve guide. I think I misunderstood the plan (because I know squat about rebuilding engines), which is only to inspect the head in all regards and replace the valve stem seals, but not the guides unless required. I haven't yet heard about how that aspect of the project is going.

Thanks for the feedback; I hear what you are saying but I do have to trust the people who have the engine in front of them. He's got 30 years experience building engines. I guess that's a lot of what I'm paying for. I don't want to seem like I'm ignoring your input, but I seem to be getting many different views, and our budget couldn't exactly accommodate this type of project without pause. Sleeving the engine would add at least $4k to the cost, and that is significant. Of course, if the compression or blowby is rotten after the rebuild, I will beg your forgiveness.

And thank you for the Time-Sert kit rental; those threads are amazingly deep in the block!