At one time I contemplated a big block. I love the low RPM torque. Cramming one in to a tight space did not appeal, so I decided to do a very cost effective "junkyard 360" which upgrades heads, intake carb and cam, leaving the shortblock untouched. I still think that's a good proven pathway. It was contemplating the camshaft that got me over to the stroker darkside. With stock flat dish pistons one has to be careful since there are no valve reliefs. I got thinking about a piston change. I realized once I got into the shortblock I just wanted to go through the whole thing. I got reading about the 408, discovering that the 360 is an ideal candidate for stroking and would get me into the big block displacement zone. I decided since this may be the only performance engine I'll ever build, and a major determinant of how much I would enjoy the car, that although mopar performance is costly, I would bite the bullet. I'm not sure but a 440 may have been a less expensive option to arrive at a similar destination.