Stock heads/rotating assembly, hot cam/vlave springs- how far can you go?

rumblefish360 said

@MRGTX Sometimes, having an engine up and running so you can enjoy the car is better than having it’s engine just sit on the stand.

I went this route with my Magnum engine in my ‘79 Magnum. I get to drive the car! It’s not as powerful as I wanted, but I’m driving it. That was more important to me. Adding a cam or better cylinder head later is easy enough. (when the money allows.)

ENJOY THE CAR!

Click to expand...

I totally agree!
Not being able to drive this car after all I went through to get it back on the road would really hurt.

I'm glad to hear that you're getting to drive that 1979 Magnum. It sounds like you're in a similar spot with that car.
Compared to a lot of the cars that we talk about in this forum, that's easily one of the rarer mopars of the last 50 years. Every time you take it out, someone will be seeing a Magnum for the first time. It's practically a public service! :D

Once you have a hot motor in there, it will be fun in a whole new way.

I don't know about you guys but while I do ok with income, these expenses are big ones for me. That crate engine (assuming nothing catastrophic happens between now and next winter) will represent sacrifices to other parts of my optional spending. I can't thank you guys enough for the advice as I try not to let my enthusiasm run away with my wallet. Hopefully the discussion is helpful for future readers too.