440 tunnel ram

Agreed all day long, extra stress on a worn out short block will lead to a broken short block. I would just get it running to it's current potential without any extra speed parts as much as possible before a proper rebuild. There is a world of difference in taking a light short wheelbase (nearly square!) car that is running 16's and then setting it up with the potential to run tens. You may want to see how it does in the 12 to 13 second range before going "all out" to see how it's going to handle a pile of grunt.