DiscoTime said:

'Cause I didn't bloody time it!
First time on the inside of an engine. Just missed a step.

Crower's spec is a high idle (like 1500rpm; can't remember at the moment) for the first 30 minutes.

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Gems Management can only advance/retard so much.

if it is GEMS. "NAS SPEC IS GEMS"

IMO it would be a good idea to take it back apart and re-time it.

They should have given you special cam lubricant to put on it while you ran the new cam and lifters in.
And yes a fast tickover for at least 20 minutes.

DiscoTime said:

...reporting back!

Much, much improvement! Baseline measurement for such an upbeat report: Fired on first crank. Cough, spittle, hack, and roar. Stead, lumpy (LUMPY) roar with the new cam and an old old muffler.

Roaring decibels increased by a slight gap between the cylinder head exhaust ports and the exhaust manifold. Just one port effected. The machinist appears to have gotten a bit too aggressive on the exhaust porting... Need to find a way to shim it up with an aftermarket shim or something or other. Hopefully won't resort to a JB Weld to plug the gap every 1,000km...

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Sounds like your machinist should be shot. He should only have been working inside the exhaust ports not on the surface. Or did he open the throat so wide the manifold cannot cover it? Asshol! You may well end up having to have a blob of weld put where he fecked it up and then getting that machined flat and inside the port to match the manifold. What a twot! And ally welding is not something any old welder can do! He MUST pay for this.
Or else I suppose a machinist might be able to grind out a ring shape around the port, then a washer of the right size could be positioned in it and fitted, then gun gum used to seal it all. But I wouldn't do this.
What a stupid mess!