[TR] TR Engine Blocks

[terryrs at comcast.net]

General restoration question:  

I first found my "barnfind" '59 TR3A in a shed in Osinnee, NY for $500 back in about 2001.  It had sat there since 1975.

It was a $500 car, no question.

Anyway, it was so rusty, the only reason I wound up taking a chance on the frame being solid was a) you could get all the parts for it, but also b) I found out it had wetliners, so the car could be 100% restored to new (except for the crank).

Question:  Most antique LBCs, like MGA's, anyway,had solid blocks.  You can bore them to what, .003 over before running into trouble with too thin walls?  So what do restorers do with cars they pick up, begin a restoration, and find the block is shot.  Are there aftermarket new blocks, or do machines put in somekind of custome sleeve to build the cylinder back up?

Just curious.

Terry Smith, '59 TR3A
New Hampshire