I installed an all-aluminum 426 Gen 3 Hemi in my E-body in 2015 and have been tracking it ever since. I'm a dealer for Prefix Performance who builds similar race engines for the TA2 series as well. In my opinion an all-aluminum Gen3 is a great compromise with small vs. big block and super reliable 500 rwhp. Save your pennies though as they are not cheap around $20k

My advice, as I have been there before with my `Cuda, is to make a solid plan and to not deviate from it. I also had intentions of putting all the latest tech in my car but that eats up any budget fast. I was going to replace the `Cuda's 340 with an all aluminum 572 Predator 800hp engine but all the custom fabrication made it that if stuff broke great expense and wait times will mean less seat time at the track where it matters and most importantly having fun, the most. In the end I was able to sell my Predator stuff at about 75% of what I paid and saved enough for the 426 Gen3 Hemi that had just been released at the time. I build for reliability & durability, to me they are more important than horsepower.

I was enlisted in the USMC as well and being in the military will allow to to save up a decent budget if you are smart about it. Have fun!