nm9stheham said

Those pistons appear to be KB quench head type pistons with the raised pad above the eyebrows, like KB373's. Should be around 9.5 static CR in an unmilled LA360 block with typical, unmilled LA open heads and a .039" thick head gasket. So 91 octane is doable IMHO (if the deck and heads are stock-ish).

That static CR also calls into question the passenger side cranking cylinder pressures; they are 15-20 psi low for that cam and cylinder combination at an altitude around Shelton WA. You would have to be up on top of the Olympic Mtns there to get cranking compressions that low... or the cam is quite retarded in timing. The compression numbers on #3 and #7 would be what is expected for that SCR, cam, etc.

All of this cranking pressure variation means IMHO that the cam timing NEEDS to be properly checked.

The bent pushrod on #1 is of concern. Did the BF rev this thing pretty high when he left that stop sign? The 1st suspect to bend that pushrod is valve float and the lifter's pumping up. So that leads to asking about what valve springs are in there. You also NEED to check piston to valve clearance in this engine; the cam is not extreme in terms of lift or duration but it still needs checking. That has to be done in a certain way with hydraulic lifters to be accurate.

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