"a fresh rebuilt 1977 440 motor from a machine shop" what does that mean? What pistons were used, cam...and so on. Has it been bored? Just because the stock 77 had 7.8:1 doesn't mean his does now, unless the re-used the pistons. The Speed Pro cast replacement pistons that were used in an a 70 440 I had made it about 9:1 w/ stock 906 heads. He should really see how far down in the hole they are. What about heads? closed vs open champer can also make a difference. FWIW I'd use a fresh lo-comp 440 over a old used up 413.