So pulled the oil pan today as the engine has been sitting for 3 years. The oil had been drained out of it back when, and there was a little condensation in the pan which I kinda expected... but I didn't expect to see the pump pickup laying in the bottom of the pan.
In the 30 some odd years I've been building SBC's I've only had one other pump pickup come off... and it was after an wreck as well. Glad I pulled the pan.
Engine turns over fine by hand, and I also pulled the #1 rod cap and the #2 main cap to check the journals and bearings. All looked snazzy, so I torqued them back to spec.
This 355 has a Melling M55HV in it and I'm thinking about installing a standard Melling M55 instead. Since I have the pan off and the engine is on a stand, this would be the time to do it. I don't think I really need the HV pump. I initially intended this to be a street/strip rig... but I'm slowly toning it down a tad. It'll still be fun, loud, obnoxious, and fast though.
Gary