Well, with 165K miles, my daily driver needs a head gasket. So as long as it is apart, I thought I should do the heads and cam and try to get as close to 400rwhp without breaking the bank.

The mechanic comes highly recommended. Plus, since most of his work has been on pre-LT1 engines, he said that he would appreciate any info I bring him before doing the rebuild.

So what are the recommendations as far as the best bang-for-the-buck parts for this 355 rebuild? He normally uses Isky cams, and sometimes Comp Cams. He can port and valve-job the heads himself, or for a few hundred more dollars, he can give them to the CNC shop he uses for race heads. Beyond that, he is open to my recommendations, so I figure this is a great time to get this rebuilt just the way I want.

Any recommendations as to rings, pistons, cam, etc. would be GREATLY appreciated. VERY SORRY for the long post, but this is a major turning point for my stock Z.

Inexpensive and fast.

I wouldn't waste money rebuilding a set of stock rods, not when you can get a set of Scat 4340 I-beams for $235 (pressed pin).
If you have no plans of spraying lots of nitrous then I'd look at the KB pistons, they are lightweight and inexpensive. For rings, the Speed Pro file-fit moly rings are as good as anyones and the King and Clevite 77 bearings are both excellent quality.

The cam... may want to see what the heads flow but the Comp Xtreme cams make good power, and you should be able to make the 400rwhp mark with the 224/230 grind they offer. Isky also makes some great cams and I like alot of Isky's race stuff, especially his springs and lifters. I don't know what he offers for the late model cars though but I'm sure there are some good grinds available. Not alot of people use Isky's stuff but I've found that his race cams are some of the best out there for keeping springs alive.
Other than that I'd run a set of roller rockers and I'd probably splurge and go with the Comp pro magnums there.... either those or a set of Harland Sharps. Also tell your builder to keep the quench as tight as possible .035-.045 and the static compression will be fine in the 11.0-11.5 range. Guys run higher than that but I think that's a good safety margin compression. Most builders are still stuck in the 9.0-9.5:1 mindset but these engines will tolerate a bit more comp due to their reverse cooling system.
HTH.

-Mindgame

Get a summit rebuild kit. It has all the stuff you need to rebuild the shortblock minus a crack and rods. Get some ARP fasteners. Let him port the stock heads and get them moved up to 2.0 intake and 1.56 exhaust valves. A 5 angle valve job is a very good thing. Port the intake to match the heads. Mark Shaner LT1 throttle body. Get a CC305 and some 1.6 RRs. Long tube headers and a nice flowing catback and you will with no doubt in my mind be at 400 RWHP with proper tuning.

Summit kit - 529$
ARP fasteners - 60-70$
Ported heads with machine work - Depending on your shop 700-800 with parts
Port the intake - Up to your rebuilder
CC305 - On the net all the time for 150$
1.6 RRs - 200
Hooker LTs - 369 uncoated
Mufflex - 750 for catback and y pipe

This info is perfect. More input would be even better since I'll just print it out and he can look it over. In fact, I think he might be really interested in this stuff since he has a 93 Vette which is still stock.

Another question: He wasn't too worried about messing with the Rocker Ratio. He said it gives gains when working with a stock cam, but if we got the right cam, it wouldn't really be necessary. Any input?

That's true to my knowledge. Roller rockers will multiply the lift that the cam provides (ie a 1.6 would multiply your lift numbers by 1.6 divided by whatever your current size is which is 1.5). If you get a cam that has the right lift at say 1.5's, then there's no need to go to 1.6. But if you find a deal on a cam that is cheaper so you don't need a custom grind, you can use 1.6's instead of 1.5's to raise the lift a bit.

I know I'll probably catch it for this, but do to money, if I stick with the stock exhaust, what kind of "losses" will I face in trying to get to 400rwhp? Maybe I could go with an electric cut-out right away? How much would that help?

Mindgame - Regarding the rods, the builder is known for his blueprinting and balancing, so he is planning on balancing the stock rods. Would rebuilt/balanced stock rods be as good as new ones? Also, in terms of price and performance, how does the summit kit compare to combining the parts you listed (KB pistons, Speed Pro rings, King and Clevite 77 bearings, etc).

I could use a little more help on this rebuild. Since it is a daily driver, I have to have it rebuilt soon. However, I don't have the money to do it all. How would it work if I do the rebuild with cam and heads now and leave exhaust for later?

Headers are a must on these cars and you could see gains of 40rwhp on a stock motor from headers alone. I don't think you will even hit 340rwhp without them.

I realize I'll be plugging up the heads and cam, but exhaust will add at least another 1K to the rebuild. I have to do the rebuild and having the cam and heads done won't add much to the bill. Exhaust will though. And I still might have 340rwhp.

For example, if someone with a 400rwhp heads/cam car put the stock exhaust back on, would the car run OK. And if they lost 60rwhp, that's bad, but not TOO bad.

So for me, if I could get by for awhile, and save for the right exhaust, I could put that on later and then gain all that power... if it will work.

Can anyone tell me if this will work or not??

Just leaving the stock exhaust on isn't gonna hurt it driveability wise, If you wanna save money buy a cutout for the track, and keep the stock exhaust.