[KTL]

For reference I just had Pauter recondition & inspect a set of their std. 3.0L rods for just under $400. Brian's a very nice guy to work with. The reconditioning was only new wrist pin bushings and to measure/hone for proper end-end length. The big ends didn't need any work, which I guess is a sign of their durability. New bolts from Pauter direct (ARP 2000) were $9 each for their rods. The Pauters use a threaded big end rod cap and alignment sleeves. So the bolts are shorter (no need to be long enough to go thru the cap to receive a nut) and the bolt shank is not serving duty to aligning the cap.

So if in the future you decide to replace the bolts in the Pauters, you'll save some $ there over the factory replacement ARP bolts for stock rods. I do realize that the ARP bolts are re-usable. I simply replaced my bolts because they were of unknown age and figured $9 each is cheap piece of mind for a "race" engine like mine.