400 budget compression HELP +++++

How come you wouldn't want to deck the block? Not saying to chop .500" off but maybe if you have it cleaned up say .020" - .030" or so to square things up then get the pistons you're looking at, you'd be close to zero deck, no? Factory blocks tend to be all over the place with deck heights, so you could have some cylinders off enough to make a difference. Just sayin'.

If you're getting pistons, then the whole thing is coming apart anyway. At that point, decking the block wouldn't/shouldn't be a huge deal if you know a reasonable machine shop. Probably two passes on the surface machine.

But if that's a no go, .025" down is not too bad. You could use the .020" steel shim head gasket. Would be good to know the chamber size your real deck height before you buy anything.