360 cam / valve train help / choices

My $.02 on the block work...
The deck height on an engine should be set. The way you do that is to add 1/2 the stroke, the rod length, and the compression height of the piston. That gives you the deck height figure for zero deck. In your case, that's (3.58/2)+6.123+1.675=9.588. The normal factory as-machined deck height is around 9.63. In addition to the "tallness", there is also the fact that in production mode the decks were rarely cut perpendicular to the crank centerline. Menaing the deck surface will vary in distance both accross it, and along the length of it. If you are seriously interested in making good power the decks shoudl be "square decked". (not to be confused with "decked".) What that process does is indexes the deck surface off the crank centerline and cuts it to the desired height at the same time. It takes a special fixture to do this. Not all shops have it, but most will say they square deck anyway because as the consumer you don't know the difference and they can charge more for it. I have all my engines align honed to establish a straight round crank centerline and then I have them all square decked and I give them the deck height I need. I can have them .005 down in the bore, .010 above deck, or dead even. Then the only factors affecting actual deck height for each hole is the quality of the crank and rods. Some of the less expensive ones can be of as much as .005" in length which can really ruin your day...lol In any event, mock yours up if it's all machined but make sure you dont install the cam bearings or the oil plug over the #5 main cap so the block can be cleaned properly after. Also note the end rails of the block will also have to be milled (I use the same amount as the deck cut) so the intake can be fitted properly. You will want to limit your static compression to no more than 9.8:1 unless your cam choices are larger than 230°@.050. If the cams get bigger, the static can go higher.