Goals and advice needed

Thanks for all the pointers.. gives me something to think about… the stock 318 runs pretty good.. a lil smoke puff on start up which is probably valve stem seals… if I do intake, carb, and headers short term.. then maybe heads.. only down side to that is that I think even the smallest of chambers available will lower the current comp a touch more.. not dramatically but.. some. Maybe not enough to make a significant difference.. the next engine will get much more benefit from them obviously..

Who knows, the induction and exhaust may just be the ticket. I chose the low rise edelbrock intake because it was cheap used and I figured since the RPM range in stock from isn’t very high.. an air gap style wouldn’t give much benefit since they really help up top.. I figured by the time ya get to 5000 rpm anyhow, it’ll be out of breath …