Who says paying $300 for a set of new rods is good money? They are inexpensive. For various reasons. But,, they are stronger than any prepped LY rod. I use a lot of LYs in my builds. They are fairly light, strong, and available. Stick ARp bolts in them and go. But, if you need/want full floating pistons (like the good forged ones) paying to have the small ends bushed will push the cost of redoing the rods up above $350 easy. At that point, buying the cheaper rod, and having it checked and corrected if needed makes $$ sense. The end result is stronger, for a little more $$. In the cases I've had, it costs $100 above the price of the rods. 2 sets from Brandon (one H beam, one I beam) needed to be fixed. They also need the pin bushing honed to size. Brandon says to use emory cloth. I say use a pin hone. That's why they were invented. But, for a total of $390 or so, you have a set of rods that can run 600hp easy. LYs really start being questionable at around 550hp with decent pistons.