Not to get off the subject or anything but that rod you have looks like a LA rod. my understanding was all the magnum rods are powder metal? I have been wrong many times so feel free to correct me..
Powdered metal rods usually have a rough surface on the cap mating faces because the big end is fractured in half instead of machined... the connecting rods in my Magnum are definitely forged, the cap faces are flat from the traditional saw-cut method. I don't think Chrysler went with powdered rods in a V8 until the G3 5.7L Hemi, or maybe the 4.7L SOHC.
