That's a bummer, might want to give MoPs Normalize script a try it started out compatible with 8+. http://boards.polycount.net/showthread.php?t=52415 I agree, align to face would be handy. In 9 or maybe 2008 they added a "quick planar map" button that does roughly that. Super effective. Before that I think it was a script,…
A little off topic but: - Select by Planar Angle could cut down on a lot of the tedious selections. - Assigning matID's as you model can also be helpful in isolating mechanical pieces while unwrapping. It also comes in handy because you can hide/show based on matID. - You spent a bit of time finding, sorting and scaling…