Cool thread here. In my early days (early/mid 70's) i grew up with guys that cammed their street cars like race cars. Pump gas still allowed big compression in those days and however it idled and cruised was part of doing business. Many of the "hot" cars idled at 1200+ rpms...and who cared.
I understand how things over the years have changed. Our own "Crackedback" has taught me about pushing the envelope as far as timing is concerned. I still think that any street car even with today's pump fuel that needs 20+ initial timing is over cammed, or under compressioned, and lacking serious doable cylinder pressure. A lower compression, big cam, big breather can work, i'm not disputing that, but as a hot street engine, it's just too soft imo and throwing a bunch of timing at it is just a band-aid.
I think the best case scenario to maximize your combo is to "duration/int close" your cam for whatever static compression your running vs pump gas, and use the proper lift for your cylinder head breathing. Could end up being a shorter duration/high lift deal? With all the many off the shelf grinds available today, they may get you there. If not, a custom grind is not out of the question as far as pricing these days.
Maybe the large cam/big timing way is better on the street these days? I'm just going on my older experience. And i'm always willing to learn new ways of doing things.:thumbrig: