400 block is it cheaper to buy stroker kit

Really, they actually line bore 400 block (and clearance block for all the throws) to fit a 440 crank journal? That sounds way too costly than turning a 440 down or even buying a cast stroker crank. You think you can build a 451 stroker that will bust a cast crank? Challenge round......! Think about what goes into turning a 440 crank into a 451: Turning down the journals, turning down the counterweights, then balancing the whole thing. What you have left is a 50 year old crank that has hours of machine time on it and takes fillet main bearings ($$) and needs $$ in tungsten to overcome the weight taken out of the counterweights. And if you sunk all that money into a cast crank instead of an old forged piece...? You would be money ahead with a purpose built stroker crank, cast or forged.

They did it that way back in the day because you couldn't buy one, now you can just buy one and be done.

Exactly. Even 10 years ago, when I did my 451 for my charger, I had close to 2 grand in the rotating assembly alone. But back then, stroker kits were available but closer to 3 grand, now a days, they run half that.

The set up I mentioned above in an earlier post was just for my 440. In hindsight, a stroker kit would have been smarter and more cost benefitial