AJ's Opinion; what size SBM do I need

There no replacement for displacement, it costs the same to build a 360. You can bla bla bla all you want but a 360 core is where I would start.
I believe it is slightly cheaper due to piston selection or a lack there off. The cost offset isn’t really there. The end result is better. Bigger is better overall.

However, I still believe in helping those build what ever they want or can afford rather than shoving down there throat reasonings to spend more money and even more so after they say they don’t and/or they want to build a 318.