Great post. Glad to hear you got exactly (or better than) what you wanted and/or expected. When I contracted for a custom frame, I had all of the misgivings you experienced when the builder showed me his drawings and specs after I had discussed what I wanted. And, like you, I got something much better than I expected. The fella (S. Bilenky) knew what I wanted better than I did. It's good to hear that I'm not the only one that had the heeby-jeebies after I had committed to the build.

Gotta love it when things work out better than planned. Long life to excellent bike builders! Custom, when you get down to it, is not as expensive as it seems.