I have another thought; why not consider making it a 2 valve/cylinder, single overhead cam design with cam followers and eliminate the pushrods and rocker arms. The head could easily be made to flow enough to make plenty of power. Just design a good intake and exhaust port and your there.
I built a 1952,302 GMC truck engine with 1950's, 308 Hudson connecting rods, Pontias wrist pins and a custom JE forged piston. I saved 1.25 lbs per piston/rod/pin. The engine turns 6000 rpm easily and makes 347 HP @ 5400 RPM on the dyno.
Ron
