Thanks for clearing that up SorryIWin. I've been staring at that post for the last few days going "I don't think he read that right."
Terry's initial response got me curious, so I spent a whole of two seconds on Google and found a ton of calculators will show you roughly how much changing compression ratios will change hp numbers at different base hp ratings.
If anyone else is curious, here is a pretty simple one and it links back to a ton of other calculators for other things.
**I don't have anything to do with wallaceracing and and don't know anything about their products/skills/reputation. I am not endorsing them in anyway. I am just sharing a resource I found.
You can see by just plugging in numbers that until you get to fairly high starting hp numbers, the difference compression makes is relatively marginal. Personally, I don't have any tuning experience, so I would rather go low compression in any build I were to start because it would give me a better chance of success, as Terry explained.
Without an experienced tuner, I don't personally think the difference in a relatively low HP build is worth the extra risk. When you're trying to push the limits with an all motor build or set some new record, I could absolutely see a high compression build being worthwhile. But for beginners, like myself, that are just looking to learn and make a fun street car, it makes more sense to go with a relatively safe build to get into something reliable that's still fun to drive. I'm sure that's the same mindset that lead others to go that route. That's just my opinion and I'm sure there are some guys running high compression that will disagree. I would be interested to see what they have to say, as I'm sure they could teach me something.
Despite the OP, I did find this thread interesting and Terry managed to clear up some of my personal confusion about tuning. Thanks to everyone who shared something.
