450 hp at the flywheel as you noted, Jim. I'm sure that's what Tom was meaning as well. My modem decided to bail before I could edit and clarify, just got it going again.
What computer are you going to use, and who will be doing the tuning? What exactly are you after with your package? Sounds like you're keeping it on the mild side but understandably don't want to miss out on any fun! More cam = less fuel mileage in any combo, if that's a concern.
To clarify on the porting vs driveability, usually porting is perceived as a race only mod, and the cam is selected accordingly. Poof! There goes the low and mid range! Porting the heads increases the amount of air flowing at most if not all valve openings. The cam determines how the engine runs in the various rpm ranges and whether it leans towards street or race characteristics.
The amount of porting needed to significantly alter the volume of the intake port and thereby decrease air flow velocity (which can make the engine a bit lazy in the lower ranges but not necessarily) is - a lot! More air through the engine is good. More displacement is good. Neither automatically causes the engine to fall flat on its face or lose driveability.
