Not Much New

I did get my first professional opinion that I should upgrade the timing chain to a double row configuration. I am having a hard time seeing the cost/benefit pencil out, so I'm moving onto my second (and possibly third opinion). I also posted a message on a fairly active Benz community board which has been a great resource for me personally. Maybe someone out there will have some great advice. How did people do this before the internet?

Slightly off-topic, my conversations with friends and colleagues about this project has sparked some great discussions about automobiles, especially our early ones, and their place in our lives. Some view them as utilitarian machines, getting us to and fro. Others I have found seem to have a genuine love for their early machines. Over the last couple of weeks, I've enjoyed discussions with those with strangely fond admiration for, among others, a '66 Karmann-Ghia, a mid-60's Triumph, and my personal favorite, a 1960 Ford F-100 named Blue, which sadly threw a rod on 520 a couple of weeks ago. There are more, like my friend Devin's absolutely insane 1969 Charger, which will eventually get a post all it's own (he may know something about timing chains too, and for a fifth of Maker's Mark, I may be able to con him into helping me over a Saturday). My own passion was sparked the first time I saw a 325i up close (the E30 designation, in 1986 or '87) at a local shopping mall where I grew up. I had to have that car, and was finally able to get one of my own in 2001. Most people I have run into seem to have a fairly black and white view of their cars - either the practical view, or the slightly nutty and bizarre emotional connection to a machine that can provide us our freedom, if only for a short Sunday cruise or over an epic road trip. The associations are powerful too - I remember my good friend in High school had a fleet of neat vehicles we would use for double-dating, including a '57 Chevy Bel-Air, and a 1969 Toyota Land Cruiser with a Chevy 283, camouflage paint and a bumper sticker that said ' I Eat My Road Kill.' The topper, of course was his '74 Toyota Corolla which we managed to kill for good, the same night I had my first real date and first real kiss. Had to walk home after the engine seized, but I didn't care. Ahhhh..... Memories.