Timmer,
We've all been thru the thrash you are contemplating in one form or another. My 2 cents: If you have a stock rear say 4:11 go thru and check your valve timing and set stock to the year of your engine, check the book most are .006 and .013 hot if they are solid. If you are running say a 2:73 to 1 with a solid lifter cam pull a couple out of the setting this will move your power band up to better match your rear. Esample: (Cam Card .014 and .016 change to .012 and .014). If its running good move on and carefully pick your carbs, matched numbers are important. Strombergs are nice as are Zenith's but who can find them anymore. So you are stuck most likely with Rottenchester's. Rebuild them and match them up, follow the directions on this site or Inliners International as to drilling out the lead plugs and cutting springs. Get your self some smaller jets and play around with ground strap plug color.Then put on the intake and Fentons. Couple of things to think about here. Gasgets are nice but not necessary so long as your head surface and manifolds are square. I use high temp orange silicone with the intake rings, never had a problem on any engine. As far as exhaust pipe size, go smaller from the Fentons to the mufflers, then go 2+1/2 or larger from there back. This will help your gas mileage some in our hard times. Lots of information here and good people, pick their brains.
