VALVE keeper failure - FIXED!

[bowyer2002]

IT LIVES! 

After literally weeks of waiting on parts, getting WRONG parts, reordering and getting corrected parts I was able to...
Put it together without too much issue - new lapped valve, old springs, new keeper (grease to keep in place), new head gasket & new fluids. Front engine mounting holes were a little difficult to line-up but not too bad as there is some clearance for the bolts.

Earlier posts questioned the shims - they are all more uniform, from 2.65mm-2.75mm - I had to go to 2.20mm on the valve that had the keeper fail - now it is at 2.70mm.

I hit the starter & it RAN - though poorly initially, pulled carbs & cleaned them - fired right up!
Revved up to 5k on the lift w/o incident.
Went on short test ride to discover that I hadn't screwed the radiator cap all of the way down! Easy fix, then 10 mile test ride without issue.
Seat-of-pants-dyno evaluation = smoother engine & idle, quieter, more power.
Thanks for all the support and advice!