Sorry. When I read in your post "No, going for max horsepower with the cubic inch increase.... " I read that as high powered. Not a stock rebuild. You're right - if you don't care about the power output, and only are worried about will it hold water and cylinder pressure, you can roll the dice with cheaper stock parts. Worst case it splits a bore. Middle of the road cases are overheating, lack of wall integrity, loss of ring seal. Best case it's fine. Odds favor the middle or best case, but personally I don't like any odds...lol.