On the weekend (while pulling the engine out to change the front gearbox seal) I had my father unbraze the oil trap. I packed in three strategically placed (stainless) steel wool pads and it has helped enormously. Thanks to James Whyte, I picked the steel wool gem from those links above.

I haven't removed the intake hoses to check, but the blue smoke at idle when cold has gone completely. I'll be taking the piping apart next week to tap in some pressure/temp sensor lines (I can't help myself) so that'll be the final check.

I'm happy with the aftermarket pistons/liners/bearings. But the gasket/seal kit was a mistake. I've since replaced both front and rear crank seals with isuzu items, many gaskets didn't fit and the head gasket just looked awful. It has held so far though.

I'm still curious as to why isuzu's have such excessive blowby and why they need oil traps to not blow blue!