Three engines all with untouched cast rods, one bracket race 455 along with 455 and 400 dash driver engines.
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Only due to convenience and budget was I running cast rods. The bracket race 455 was supposed to be a one season only temporary engine that ended up running so good that I left it in for over a decade of racing.
The forged Crowerods that I had purchased in the early ‘90s to build my bracket race 455 were used for a short time in that 455 which had block machining issues causing thrust bearing failure. The Crowerods sat patiently waiting until 2015 when they ended up in my 421 HO engine. The 421 is essentially a stock restoration with internal upgrades.
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If I’m investing 6 to 12k in a decent Pontiac engine no way am I using cast rods in it, wasting money rebuilding cast rods is a fools errand in my opinion.
The money spent on heat treating and rebuilding the early forged rods will probably exceed or at least equal the cost of decent new offshore forgings. You won’t end up with a better rod starting with the early forgings.