I finally figured out what it was... when I took it all apart, the "extended" brake lines that go from the master cylinder on the other side over to the RHD passenger side were disconnected and left hanging there... over time, well, a puddle of brake fluid formed on the header and when I started it up, smoky smokey... it evened out.
oil gague worked, 50-60psi
electrical read 13.5
only ran it for a minute, just to make sure that stuff worked.
I have to get exhaust on it, wire up a few more things and then try to figure out some brake lines to get brakes.
All in all, progress.
cb