Brian,
You have a great project in mind. A 261, or at least a full pressure 235, would be the way to go. The 1953 Powerglide 235 and all 1954-1962 235s and 261s are full pressure engines. However, only the later (1958 or 59-1962) 261s come from the factory with a full-flow oil filter. It is my understanding that the port spacing and bolt patterns of the 216, 235, and 261 manifolds are the same; however, the later 235s and 261s have larger ports.
Have you seen the link to "The Forgotten 261" in the Tech Tips menu on the Inliners Home page? Acouple of other good links are below.
1954 Chevrolet Truck information; 261 starts on page 58 Tim\'s Trucks Homepage I acquired my first 261 in 1958 to put in a 1953 Chevy; I'm now rebuilding it for a 32 Ford street rod. I have another 261 that I want to rebuild with a stroker, like Tom Langdon's Cadillac 261, for a pre-1955 Chevrolet pickup.
Hoyt, Inliner # 922
