340 to 416 stroker build need advice

As I said, they have every reason to say that. My response would be, why, if it was needed that badly, hasn't there been a market for it until now? These engines were being stroked and hot rodded for 30 years. And making serious power and holding together. The issue at high rpm and loads is not the cap walking, but the center of the cap deflecting, which draws the cap mating surfaces in, ruining the bearing and losing the oil wedge. The fix is not stock caps and a girdle. The fix is a cap with a better material and clamo it more. So steel caps and studs... I've run 500 hp thru stock caps with studs. When the assembly is properly balanced, there is no issue with cap walk. Hughes is simply selling a product. If they made so much power they move the caps, then I stand corrected. But they do nothing special or secret. They just use modern parts and machining. And guys making more power, dont need a girdle. Program caps survive well at 550+hp, and at the 600hp point, really you should be using an R3 block anyway. So no, I do not believe anyone needs a girdle. Maybe caps, and then a better block.

You seem rather stuck on hughes. The prepped heads are $1715. Then you need to replace the springs, maybe retainers and locks depending. Add Hughes' price of $450, and now you're at $2165. A fully CNC ported set from another popular shop runs $2995.00 ready to install. Summit sells the heads for $1432/pr w/free shipping. They will need a performance inspection... mostly for guides. So add $350, plus springs for $200, and we're all done for $1982.00 and that's at my shop's costs, which I'm told are outrageously high. Just a different opinion...