Is he actually rebuilding it or just doing the top end? Many of us have used his parts with great success and he knows his way around the 961 engine. With some changes, you might get it quieter but that also depends on where your noise is coming from. Some have loud primaries, some have loud top ends, and some just sound like an old Russian thrashing machine.
Singing from the same hymn sheet here sir. What would be great would be a standard 'send me your engine and fix all the bits I know are wrong' service at a standard price with any additional upgrades on top. Very much like buying a performance car engine. What scares me is the current cost of spares from TVS - a handful of replacement parts could easily end up more than selling the bike and buying a new TVS bike..... I heard that Ollie has a 961 Endurance Racer. That gives me hope. Then all you have to do is find a way to get it across to him through the French Customs.....
Ollie has likely carried out most (if not all) repairs/modification/upgrades before, so he’s gonna know which parts are required and therefore a ballpark cost - maybe. Well worth an ask I would think Clive - nothing ventured.
To be honest I wasn't that impressed with the TVS bike, mine rides much better, could do with more poke and yes less vibration and engine noise! so worth spending a few quid on. No problem with French customs, just ride it there! My wife and I rode to Sicily in May (on a BMW) only problem with the French were the speed cameras on the 'D' roads 56mph seems awfully slow!