I'm bringing this thread back from the dead to show the completed piece.
It was a great project and is a beautiful mod if I say so myself! If anyone is interested in doing the same PM me and I can give you a list of what parts you'll need, where to get them and who to have them assembled.
Here's a free bump since I subscribed to this thread to remind me to do a similar mod some day. I'll probably just go through the easy and cheap route; get a V5 PO and a SMP 300M and then do a dial swap. Anyone know which SMP has the best dial?