[bobH]

Some of us believe that floaters can last a long time, maybe approaching 'forever'. I think Ron posted recently about re-using old, original, floaters. Of course, he took a little flak over the comment. I have one friend, over 85, who has a bucket of old, original, floaters, that he routinely uses in his own engines. I've known this person for nearly 20 years, and he has never had one of his 'recycled' engines fail. (I'm talking stockers, no race/hot rods.) JMO
(There is still the puzzle of what went south in your engine. Where did all the material in the pan come from? Hope I didn't miss a post. Your bearings don't appear to be the cause of the problem - only the result of another problem.) JMO