Years before Pop died while he was still building engines for some west coast NASCAR guys, he said to me, "Jimmy, there are three secrets to making horsepower. The first two are cylinder heads. Third and most important, is cylinder heads!"
The short block is a January 1974 440 with the addition of a factory 440 steel crank, stock rods with ARP bolts and L2355F six pack replacement pistons with an internal balance. It's how Pop built it in 1997.
If doing again now, and keeping it a 440, I wouldn't do it that way. I don't mind the stock block and forged steel crank, but I would go with H-beam rods and some lighter pistons.
