what should I start with?

[rwhite65]

Ok the Gears:
Probably the best thing u can do right now. Since your car proabably has an 8 inch rear, gear swaps are easy. Instead of taking it to the shop, u can switch out the whole third member. Fairly easy to do, and will only take a few hours at most. Start looking online...in the back of catalogs..something like currie enterprises (expensive though) for a new third member with the posi unit or locker already installed. Will come perfectly ready to bolt right into the car. Your 8 inch rear will get u by until you start putting some serious power to the ground...with some sticky tires at that.

Exhaust:
will get your car sounding and breathing better.

Heads:
Porting the heads would be a great thing to do, but much more of a consuming project. Fords heads generally suck pretty bad as the guys have mentioned. If u r going to port them, paying a machine shop would be a waste of time. By the time they got u ported out, u would have so much money in them, u would wish u had just saved for a set of aftermarket heads.

My advice, go to some cruise-ins....get to know the guys into fords.....show them ur desire to learn, and let their knowledge lead u from there. I wish I had done this sooner, would have saved me a lot of money...and some stupid decisions could have been avoided.
Ryan