Chad, ultimately you decide what your goals are and what your apatite is to push your parts.
Just my thoughts, not saying right or wrong. If nothing is wrong currently, looking at your combo, I would put a PTC NLU convertor in it and drive it(I have a vague memory reading a post where it looked like you were blowing through the convertor), so long as the alky and fuel systems are up to snuff.
If you have issues and are going to tear it apart, a forged rotating assembly is a good idea. My impression is guys like Scooby have been very methodical and are careful with the stock parts, inspection, and selection. Bison, Forcefed, and Mr Spool have taken stock parts very very far. You need a builder that is on board with your approach and will thoroughly inspect the stock stuff if you want to keep it and abuse it. I had a good run with my stock short block, but eventually broke the crank, whether I f'd up or the crank had a casting flaw I will never know, but that is the risk. I never had the stock crank inspected, so my bad, I just ran it.
When my crank broke I had a lot of collateral damage, still in the process of putting it back together.
I have had fun with my car, and while I don't like breaking stuff, I like working on it as much as driving and driving it(good thing). The hobby is expensive, builders, machinist need to make a living and the good ones have valuable skills, so it cost money. I do as much as I can because I like it, but will spend when needed, and sometimes gamble a little bit just because I can't help myself.
Good luck with your choice.