of high priced and difficult to get parts. The small Volvo engines are now Perkins engines that are made in Japan (at least that was true when I re-powered seven years ago).

Westerbeke used to hide all the information about their engines so you had to buy parts from them at inflated prices. I don't know if they still do that. I had one of theirs in my last boat - over 20 years ago - when I broke a banjo fuel fitting they said $80 bucks and a four week wait (in the middle of the summer season). I had it brazed and back in service two hours later.

Have you considered some of the smaller, hungrier suppliers?

I am very happy with my Beta Marine engine. It is a Kubota and they tell you all the engine info so you can go to any Kubota dealer for parts. They did a great job of customizing it for my needs. One of the great things that they can do is custom engine mounts to simplify the engine swap. That is how I was able to swap a Perkins 4-108 for the Beta BV2203 in less than a week (with a lot of advance planning). I did have the advantage of dealing directly with the factory in England. Now, almost three thousand engine hours and 7+ years later I am still happy with it.