Well I havent got to see whether or not it really was the starter disengaging or if the knocking was internal. But I talked to my mechanic about it, and about my overheating problem, and he said the motor has probably just seen better days. I know hes being honest because this is my mechanic from Texas, and he knows im in Alaska and he wont be the one doing the work, so I take his word for it when he thinks the motor is probably just shot. Sooooo, looks like I finally have an excuse for my wife to let me rebuild it, hehe. I have never rebuilt a motor though, and dont know the specs i should get for my parts, and im debating on 383stroker or keeping it 350. Im going to have around $5000 total, and I will be doing all the work myself except for the machining of the block and heads. Those are really the only 2 things Im planning on keeping. If someone has the knowledge and time, could i get a suggestion on the stroker or keeping it 350 since im keeping the original heads, what needs to be done to the block and heads as in bore size, and everything that needs to be done to the heads. Also, a list of all the parts ill need, along with specs. I know it might take a while so Im saying thanks ahead of time. Im not going to be doing anything to the stock transmission (6 speed man) or the driveshaft, rearend etc. So it doesnt have to be real high hp and torq, id imagine the stock drivetrain will handle up to 375 to 400 or so, but not real sure. Once again, thanks ahead of time.

 

I would check out Lloyd Elliots' site out for the head work. He can get you going in the right direction. He'll do the heads based on your needs. He can also get you a custom cam based on your HP goals. It sounds like a le1 package would be good for. His site is www.eportworks.com . For $1100 you can be set with heads and cam. The heads will have the proper springs, completelty rebuilt with new valves, ready to run. They will also have port work and flow around 255 cfm on the intake side. The stock casting will probably be at its limit for an all out 383. But with your goals, the stock castings should be fine.
The engine kit can be bought from summit. This has forged pistons, new bearings(main and rod), oil pump, piston rings, freeze plugs, and gaskets. If you were to reuse the stock crank and have the machine shop polish it or turn it depending on your needs, you could save some cash. There are plenty of stock cranks out there making over 400 HP. Have the rods resized with some ARP rod bolts.The figure $700 to $1000 for all your machine work to the block, crank,rods and balancing, (a balanced engine is a engine) you could easily be under your 5K budget. It would leave room for some "supporting" modifications for the new engine. With the reworked heads and new cam it would really like some long tube headers. Maybe some 30lb injectors and a good tune from PCMforless or madz28.
For a few more hundred you could have a 383. you'll need a 3.75 stroke crank. The oil pan rails will need to be clearanced to avoid the rods smashing into them.There are some stroker kits out there starting around $1k. you'll need an internally balanced crank if you buy stuff seperate and try to piece the kit together. Balancing is an absolute MUST.
As far as assembly, I would let the machine shop do the bottom end. They have all the tools. Plastigauge is crap. Check this link out: http://web.camaross.com/forums/showthread.php?t=356798
It can be a little hard to decipher and is just not good practice for a performance rebuild.I am paying $200 for my bottom end to be built and let me tell you, it's worth it. I was suppose to pick up my block yesterday but they ran into a problem. I had them put on 4-bolt main caps. The shop that did it didn't seat the cap all the way into the block, there are little steps in the block that the cap must seat into completely. When they got it back, they decked the block, cleaned it and started measuring clearances and one cap had shifted. Hard to say if I would have even noticed it or caught it but it sure might have given me problems down the road. It's up to you, but I like to play it safe and let the guys who "do it for a living" do what they do.
Other than that there isn't too much to it. Going form 355 to 383 on a STOCK rebuild will not add too much more horsepower.But if you add the supporting parts it will make power.Adding a lot of power though, will make "stuff" break so supporting mods to the drivetrain is a good idea, if your power goals start to climb. Don't forget about chassis and suspension, you'll need to make the car hook to get it to launch, otherwise the power will just go up in smoke. Good luck and have some fun with it.

 

I suppose I should have added this but the other post was gettin long
You'll need to decide 383 (3.75 stroke)or keeping stock crank (3.48 stroke). If you decide 383 , get your kit and go from there but I would at least wait to see that your block comes out to a .030 overbore and the block checks out fine.
If you decide stock stoke, take your block and crank in to the machine shop. Tell them if you want to use forged pistons or hypereutictic( I hate spelling that damn word ) pistons. The summit forged kit sells for 529.00, by the way. You'll most likely overbore the cylinder .030 . When he is done machining the crank and block and resizes the rods, he will then tell you what size main bearings, rod bearings and piston size to order. He may have to take .010 off the crank or the rod journals. You won't really know till he is done with all the machining. If you opt to go with a new crank then you would most likely be able to just get the kit right away, assuming the bores in the block come out.With a new crank you should only need standard size bearings for the mains and rods.