I had the same problem once. I've found that the head gaskets on the 302 motors are not mirror images from left to right. On the driver's side, the head gasket goes right side up, with the "front" sign and the arrow showing and the tabs up. The passenger side must be placed on upside down, with the "front" sign and the arrow (while still being on the front) against the block with the tabs up. I've done it wrong, and while the cylinder holes line up, coolant holes do not. It re-routes the coolant right past the head.
I may be way off base, but that was the first thing I thought of, especially since you've checked pretty much everything else. I hope this helps.
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Friday, February 16th, 2007 AT 6:37 PM