ahh so maybe that explains why mine are all level with the deck top, since I had the crank reground and the block milled.... Maybe the crank grinder made sure the journals were ground to the same plane /stroke, so to speak? I'm no machinist I don't know how they do it. When I took the engine apart, I found two journals undersize and the rest untouched... After I had my junk machined I didn't have this height difference. I didn't think to measure it before teardown. My pistons are a couple years old, the flat top ones with 4 useless (to me) valve pockets. Forgot what they were or where I got them from. The car has not been on the road since 2011..... ugh.