have you bought these parts yet? i read somewhere that using the 1.3:1 rockers will make the stock cam have a near .290 lift. i know, i read the dissertation on what matters more on a cam. from what i have seen on jap and these small engines, some of the best gains are from a mere carb swap. what of shorter pushrods/lifters? will they not be a multiplier for lift? i have also read that a gx200 flywheel/rotor used on a gx160 will give you 20* of advanced timing. i thought it a bit much if you aren't running a really hot engine. they also threw in a 8* key in the kit. does anyone make needle bearings for the cam? getting torque is probably easiest from the stand point of spacing the carb. get the two piece adaptor, and use a length of radiator or similar hose between the carb and head. depending on how much torq you intend on having will dictate how much hose you will have. i would buy two hoses, one to experiment with, one for fine tuning. the bugle pipes are supposed to give good gains as well. just rememeber, if you want the powerband a certain way, you have to tune that way. where is a needle in a 390 carb? it is not the same one as in a mik or kiehn. honda's odyssey had a 'T' that acted as a pressure regulator on their t/s 250. i think it is $20. gravity flow should be fine as most miks and kiehns are for gravity applications. ie motorcycles, atvs etc. in dealing with the bigger engines, blow by becomes an issue. this is only posed as a question for those who know more than i. if you were to remove the 'reed valve' in the rocker cover, would it not ease the blow-by situation? a cotton or metal mesh as in car breathers would catch the oil and return it to the crankcase. these engines would be so much easier to do if the cylinder was removable from the block!! as to fuel pumps, i've been told napa sells an electric one for $12-16. i'm thinking.... yep, that's about it for cheap and easy. if upgrading the carb, i would definitely go with mik or other slide type carb. they are way more adjustable. oh and a hotter plug depending on compression and timing. that's it, i out!
