What part of "Clone" or "Tribute" are people not grasping?.....

I'm amazed when I talk to some people who want to buy or build a clone of something ultra-rare. I understand the reasoning-and I have no problem with it. I don't have $100k or more to buy one of the few 697 "Real" 1969 Trans-Ams that still exist. However-since Pontiac sold almost 120,000 Firebirds in 1969, it would be pretty easy to buy a base model and with the help of Year One and NPD-buy the hood,scoops and spoilers and graphics. Even if I had to pay 15 grand for a decent base car, and then put another 10 into it converting it to T/A status-25 grand is a lot more affordable to most peoples wallet than 100+. And when your driving it-people will still "ooh" and aah"-no one knows it's a fake unless you tell them. And when your banging through the gears and smoking the tires-are you going to be thinking about serial numbers? Probably not. And since it's not numbers-matching anyway-it doesn't have to original to the "nth" degree. If I built a '69 T/A clone-I might use the 350 V8 that came in some base models. Or I might use the 428 I have in my garage or stroke a 400 to 461 inches. Or I could do it up like a Trans-Am SCCA racer- flared fenders, roll cage and put a snarling, high-winding small-block Chevy in it as a Tribute to the cars that Milt Minter and Jerry Titus campaigned. The 303 Pontiacs weren't super reliable-and because some Canadian Firebirds had Chevy engines-the SCCA allowed teams to run 302 Chevys in Firebirds if they couldn't get parts for the 303 Pontiacs.  I don't need to search the galaxy and spend a mint looking for a 1969 RAIII or RAIV 400-because the car's a fake anyway!!  But 99% of the guys I talk to that are thinking of doing a "clone" or "tribute" car don't think that way. I spoke to a guy who was building a Cobra Replica-and was lamenting that he couldn't find a side-oiler 427 Ford for sale at ANY price!!! Are you kidding me? I asked him what he was thinking-Factory Five has a complete kit that sells for $19,995. It has the seats, guages,suspension, everything. All you have to do is add the engine and tranny-and the frame is set up to use a small-block Chevy, or a small-block Ford, or a 4.6 / 5.4 Ford Mod Motor. Just specify which motor mounts you need. Even if you spent 7 grand-say 5 grand for a 385 hp SVT 351W or a 400 hp 383 Chevy and another 2k for a Richmond 5-speed-you'd only have 26 grand in the whole thing, assuming you could do the labor yourself. Anyone who has a complete 60's vintage 427 Ford that isn't restoring a Galaxie or a Thunderbolt or a "Real" Cobra and is willing to sell it is going to want 15 or 20 grand for it, and then you may have to rebuild it!! You'd have more in just the engine than you would in the whole car if you did it with a 302 / 351W!!! And it's not real anyway. 427 or not, no ones going to pay you a hundred grand for a kit car if you try to sell it, especially when Factory Five will sell you a turn-key model for like 40!! I talked to another guy who wanted to build an AAR 'Cuda clone. He was whining that he couldn't find a 340. I told him-buy a Blueprint Engines 360 based 408 stroker from Summit Racing they have 375 hp and 460 lbs of torque and have a 3 yr/ 30,000 mile warranty-or if he wanted to build it himself go to the junkyard and get a 360. There's millions of them out there in Dodge and Plymouth cars, trucks and vans from 1971-1991. ( '92 and later "Magnum" engines use a different intake manifold ). Edelbrock still sells the "Six-Pack" manifold and Holley still sells the carbs. "But it wouldn't be correct without a 340." he said. "Duh!!" I replied-"It's a 318 base model that your tricking up!! "Nothing about it is CORRECT!!!"  "If you put a Mopar Performance 426 Hemi crate motor in it-it's cool, but it's still not an original Hemi car!!!  Anyhow-here's some good advice for you folks considering building clones. # 1. Any similar engine will do. For example if your building a Ford Thunderbolt clone, or GT500 Shelby clone-it doesn't have to be a 427 or a 428. A 390 looks the same externally and there were millions sold in various Ford cars and trucks from 1961-76. You don't have search the galaxy for a 389 Pontiac to put in that '66 Tempest that your making into a GTO. Something like 15 million 400s were produced between 1967-78. One of those will do. You don't have to mortgage your house to get a real "DZ" 302 Chevy for your '69 Z/28 clone. A 350 will do. Or GMPP will sell you a 4-inch bore 4-bolt main block and a 3.00 inch stroke crank, rods and pistons if you have to have an "actual" 302. #2. The same goes for transmissions. Don't search the galaxy for a Muncie rock-crusher for your Yenko Deuce Nova clone. A new Richmond Super T10 from Summitt will  do just fine. If your building a '64 Impala SS clone-you can use a 350 and a TH350. It doesn't have to be a 327 and a Powerglide with 1963 or 64 date codes. It's not "REAL" anyway!!!  So take the path of least resistance and less dollars spent. You'll be happier and have more money in your pocket, and if you ever decide to sell the car you might get all or most of your investment back. Which you won't if you go crazy making a clone "Correct". That's all I'm saying. Mastermind