Front Shock Recommendation
We have some pretty rough roads in Australia, all Valiants here were fitted with .880 bars (v8s and sixes) and weren't a problem.
You have the ability to adjust your ride height, just screw it up a bit if it's needed.
The bump rubbers have a job to do, they protect the car, don't fiddle with them too much. We always found the Koni dampers did the best job of controlling the suspension, but I'm sure other brands have caught up a bit since the seventies.
One thing to watch, don't go for dampers which have too much rebound resistance, they might tend to hold the suspension down over a series of bumps.