I have a 94 chevy 1500 with a 350 in it i have had the block bored 30 over and new pistons, connecting rods, and the crank has been turn 10 under (the bottom ends is strong and fairly new) i had a tbi on it and it has given me too many problems so i was wondering can i use any head on the block or do i have to stay basically in my years range or can i use vortec heads i am going to change,the intake,and go with a 600-750 cfm carb, also the cam i want to go bigger this is going to be my play truck any suggestions i want to get some serious power out of my block i am open to anything i am going for a 500 to 600 inch lift cam with a .50 duration between 220 and 245 thanx in advance and i am taking any all advice if you have build i would love to know what you used how much power it made i am going all out with this build . Thanx  

Going 'all out' in my sense of the phrase makes little to no sense here...

More than likely you don't have the compression, rotating assembly strength, or traction to build a max-effort engine for this truck.

To get it out of the way, there would be no problem switching to Vortec heads if your new intake manifold is of the 'vortec' design. Of course vortec heads bring about new problems with the maximum valve lift that can be used, but I would assume you would address that accordingly to whatever camshaft you choose...

I say you need to narrow down your range of expectations. The difference between a camshaft of 220° @.050" and 245° is night & day. If you were to stay in the 220° I say vortec heads would serve you well and would require 'minor surgery' compared to trying to use a vortec head with more duration and more lift. Now, if you wanted to use a 245° cam (if you really should would be decided by other factors such as driveline mechanical advantage and compression) then I'd say you need a much larger than stock port volume and that you would be maxing out a vortec head and would see more effective gains by going to an aftermarket aluminum head. Just feed me some more information and be specific about what you need help with...  

Ok my mistake when i use the phrase "going all out" i mean i want to go past the computer controlled peramitters and go with a good strong carb. set up motor. I know that my block cant give me the kind of hp that say a block that was prepped to handle high comp. would what i am asking is that the bottom end that i have how far can i go or how much hp could i get out of it? On the specifics the reason why i gave ranges was because i didnt know what exactly my set up would respond well at so i was giving ranges so if someone who knows a little more about matching heads, intake, cam, and carb could give me a set up or a base to start with. I am trying to avoid pullin the engine out again. So what i am asking specifically is could i get away with cam thats in there (192/203@.50 420/443 lift with center@107/117)and swapping out the factory heads for some better flowing ones Or should go for a bigger cam and some A.F.R. or sportman heads? I want to get some good hp out of the set up. I am going to use a carb for both set up thats what i am asking.  My tranny would be a beefed up 700r4 and i ahave 3:73 gears out back. Thanx  

Well, at least we have that out of the way. This is going to be a fun truck rather than an 'all out racing truck'...

There are huge gains to be had in aftermarket heads and  a larger than stock camshaft. This is where ALL the power is going to be if you don't want the buttom end coming apart. The stock '94 heads are incredibly restrictive with their swirl-port design, they need to go ASAP, as well as the stock camshaft. I will puke up some horsepower numbers to make this all relevant...

I will say that your current setup (stock heads, stock cam, stock-ish' compression) with a 650 Holley would probably be good for approximately 300 peak horsepower. Now, to start looking at the possible gains...

Now, throw in a Comp XE256, I'd say there's a 15 horsepower gain. Now, bolt-on a stock set of #885 vortec heads, I say there's another 25-30 horsepower.  You may even be able to go one step higher on the camshaft without losing too much more low-end (because your compression is awfully low I'm sure).

Just build this thing 'right' and fundamentally sound, don't go hog-wild, it won't be worth it in the long run...  

It doesn't cost much more to build a 383 stroker,with the weight of your truck this would get that heavy iron up hills better.I agree with Gib, that cam would work good and bang for the buck Vortecs.The XE256 has 212 int 218ex. and the lift should be okay for stock Vortecs.With max at appox.5000rpm a 600cfm & Vortec perfomer intake would go with this combo.Depending on budget Edelbrock has some 170cc Vortecs that would give a little more power but set you back another 5-600 dollars.  WIEDER