Newbie question from the ocean!

[shawnxj]

ahh i guess i kinda see your point i went the opposite way. i put gears and tires on it first and fixed the little things that were wrong while i took my time and accumulated parts. like i got a 4wt and a 12wt crank and rods for free basically which i turned around and sold the 12 wt crank and both sets of rods to buy a complete motor that had a knock. the rods need to be resized but that doesn't cost much and i got a pristine block and head with the 99+ intake and tb all for $150 plus $50 gas so in all actuality i was paid $150 to pick up other peoples "junk" to begin building my stroker. after having the crank turned, the block bored and all the bearings bought i'm only into this thing for $350 plus the $400 i spent on pistons so far but i still have to get the rods resized, pistons installed, balance the rotating assembly and buy and cam and valve train. all the while being able to drive the jeep when i wasn't adding new stuff.

i don't know where you call home but if you start surfing local jeep and 4x4 sites i'd almost bet money what i've done could be duplicated. i always see 258 for sale cheap or free and 4.0 about the same

[tdkask]

I guess there is a balance of both. If a better performance could come from just shaving the deck (or should it be head?) and opening chambers to compensate then it'd be worth it. I'm not afraid to do the chambers myself, especially if any DIY'ers have documented their results. But mostly I just wanna run a stock crank and rods and (upgrade) stock Ford injectors and as little more as possible. A cheap increase in HP/Torque is a cheap increase... no way to deny that, right?