Budget 318 build

Dang.. I just erased a long post...rrrrr.

Just a few things:
- Milling 360 heads by .040" puts the chambers 1-2 cc's smaller than typical stock 318 heads. When you put on those stock 360 heads with out of the box Felpro head gaskets, you dropped the SCR down to around 7.3... no wonder it wouldn't go LOL. But if these are the heads you will use for the 360 build then figure that build out before milling them.... you can't put it back on!
- Try to scrape up the $$ to get some Mr Gasket 1121G head gaskets; they are about .021" thinner that standard Felpro's, and will raise SCR here by .35 points.
- There 2-3 different 318 stock-ish piston heights. The best are the 526's but that will not really get you much change. You just don't want the very low CR truck pistons. You have figured out that any significant CR change in the block is new pistons, and that is not in the budget.
- A simple head mill here would be in the $50-75 range each here if you provide them disassembled and cleaned. Prices here are lower than a lot of others places. I don't know any of the old shops in Roanoke that are still open so don't know what you would find there.

What CR gets you is:
- Better low to mid RPM torque. That helps general drivability and over all operation on the street.
- That gives a wider usable RPM range, which gives you better cornering (not a factor for drag racing where best HP tends to be the focus), and better fuel economy (better combustion efficiency).

CR is both static CR and dynamic CR. The DCR is set by both the SCR and the cam. It is also effected by altitude and you are around 2500' elevation IIRC so that matters too. The point of discussing the cam is that the long duration lowers DCR and effects the above, and moreso with altitude. For not much more $$, there are better cam choices for what you want to do. I expect the PN I gave you will give you better torque and the same peak HP because although the advertised durations are shorter, the lift is higher (like having bigger ports). Yes, the other will run, but I can't see why not go better for your intended application for another $20.