I've seen A LOT of posts about making HP with a 318-So why is it so ???

toolmanmike said
Good for 300 horse and 450+ lb/ft

Mmmmmm, 450 tq? Noooo.
350...... maybe.

Where it ended up would most likely come down to just how good the heads were, and what you did with a cam.

My “upgrade” from that combo would be a small solid cam.

Actually, I’m really not much of a hyd cam lover anyway...... so maybe I’d just go for the solid right off the bat.