Tuning For Detonation

why not move up to 89 or 91 , and fugetaboutit ?
I know folks at .org that have ran double Fel Pro head gaskets to resolve similar over compression issues.
Another fix would have been to spring for a custom thickness copper head gasket. Then you get the compression you want and the engine also gets the timing it wants.
As you know, taking timing out of the engine to reduce knock is also taking performance out of the engine.