Need some build opinions.....

well, you can't go wrong with a good set of headers,nice 4 barrel intake, 4 barrel carb, HC pistons,a set of junk yard magnum head,a bit of porting and polishing, a stall converter,exhaust system,a snappier gear out back,bump up the ignition system....list goes on.

but all of those things could be done very budget minded....you could probably pick up just about everything i mentioned for under your budget if you didnt go name brand and stuck with a summit or a jegs branded item for whatever specific thing your looking at getting.

a good cam combo will go a ways to but you mentioned that was not part of the budget.....just know depending on the cam you go with, you may be looking at new springs and what not also, you could bump up to roller rockers and you could also run a different ratio rocker such as a 1.6.

many possibilities.

I would say budget minded you could get as follows.... summit headers $120,used eddy intake $100,used eddy carb $100,nice set of pistons $200,junk yard magnum head $150,stall converter $300,summit exhaust $200,better gearing $200,upgraded ignition components $150.......just that there is $1520.00 just to give a rough estimate.....and you could probably push around 350ish horse out of a combo something like this....plus of course the free do it your self stuff like porting and polishing and gasket matching and so on.

Im not the best guy to give you info on this subject and I am sure a bunch of others will chime in with ideas that you can go with so ....someone will get you taken care of