Yeah, I remember that build. Has it done anything off the dyno yet? Big difference making pulls on the dyno and loading the engine in the car.
The T/A block is good for what it was, but it’s not an X block which isn’t an R block by any stretch.
When I went to the X block it wasn’t because I wanted to spend the money. The T/A block was showing signs of head gasket distress, I had a hard time keeping the main line straight and round and the cylinder bores never sealed all that well.
The X block was a big improvement over the T/A and when I build the R block I’ll sonic test it like jack the bear and see what I get.
The filled pan rail is a big deal too.
I’m not saying it can’t be done, I saying it’s insane to try it because you can’t build, fix or tune for a block that doesn’t have the structure it needs.