[77 TRASHCAN]

Originally Posted by Formulas

I have always wanted to take a mellow approach to a 4.5 build, ... Stock 3in main block, out of the box 85cc E"heads adjusted to 10-1 compression, Obviously great rods and pistons, Crower 60919 cam with 1.65 rockers, decent intake and exhaust tracts, stock stall converter with a 2.56 gear out back and drive the pants off it....... Seems like the 4.5 arm is less suited for high RPM and longevity this case would dimmish both inherent shortcomings and still be enjoyable to operate... .. I already have the crank and block.

I was thinking of similar build. Ported 6X-8 heads, maybe around 9:1 compression ratio

There's a good tech article on SD Performance that Dave performed, title is Ram Air manifolds vs. Headers. A 4.5 stroke crank in a stock block.498 cubes, Ram Air manifolds. It's a good read.
Keep the RPM's under, say 4500.........