Jim, I doubt that you'll have "very little power off the line". You'll have about the same overall torque off the line as a Chev 350 in a Camaro with 3.73 gears. You will have to either slip the clutch more or spin the tires more with a close ratio. I vote for the tires.
The numbers are "rule of thumb" that slants the numbers toward street racing rather that cruising. They also assume, as usual, that you're running a Chev 350 in a Camaro (ratio of engine size to car size - barges need more engine). A 400 or 455 in a Firebird would obviously need less gear to light the tires up.
I usually use 8.5 to 9 as my highest number and frequently end up with less than 8 because I tend to travel more than a 1/4 mile at a time. I spend a lot more time above 30 mph than below but that's me.
Decide what is more important to you and adjust the numbers to suit.
I recently owned a 69 Z28 with 350/302 and 3:73. It had more than enough torque off the line.
Bob, I'm not sure why your Chevy combo was such a dog. Some of those 396's weren't all that great.
