So here it is, all of it. How much we spent, on what parts and where to get them.
Lets kick this off right away, here's a pricing break down of the parts we used in this new build:
Now, you're probably wondering where we got a lot of those parts for the prices we did. In short, we found great deals. To the surprise of many, Amazon now stocks a good amount of automotive parts - including LS goodies. Take a look here at what they have listed already, and feel free to brows around while you're there. Note this is an affiliate link, so we'll get a little bonus if you buy something using our link--which all goes back to these fun builds!
After stopping there, we also utilized Ebay and rockauto for sourcing a lot of the stock replacement parts we used, like the Piston & Rod deal (that also came with stock pre-gapped piston rings!). Most of the front end components such as the timing chain and tensioner, oil pump and front cover w/ bolts all came from rockauto -- which is a great resource to be had!
For the aftermarket bits, our most utilized resource was Summit racing. We had some foundational luck since we both worked at speed shops and were also able to get some deals on a few parts through work.
All in all, it can definitely be done for cheaper, or more -- really just depends on what you are after. We hope this helps shed some light on where we got such good deals from. All due diligence!