for me i try to figuare out what rideablity I want from the bike, "bar hopper or touring", on my 117ci first thing for me was Weld, Balance, and True the Crank, then adjust the compression to what you want to do with the bike. for example when i built this one, i wanted the compression ratio to be long distance touring freindly so mine is about 9.8, them choose a cam that will put you in the rpm ban that you will spend most of your time. for me I want the torque to come on around 2500 to 3000rpm range and hold out good till 6000rpms before it falls off badly. adjust the head work to accodate the cam with some room to go to a bigger cam in the future if my needs change. I talked and talked with my builder before we got into it, just so he knew what i wanted and I knew what was possible. I asked for all the useable torque at the tire that i could get and still stay in line with what i wanted to do to the motor. I am very happy with the results

take you time talk to different builders, surf the web and look at dyno sheets, gain as much info as you can and dont be afraid to ask builders "WHY" when you dont understand. If a builder wont take the time to help me understand, it makes wonder what else they aren't taking there time on. jmo