which engine is better

I have a 1976 Trojan F-25. It had a Crusader 350 in it. I then dropped a 305 with a higher reduction in it just for kicks. I was not happy. Its an old and heavy boat. I then bought a MerCruiser 454 CID 360 HP and dropped it in. A real tight fit. But I bought it for $800.00 with only 150 hrs on it. I did a compression check and it read right around 140 psi. A big block is a low compression engie anyways. Now you talk about squirrely, if it was not for my trim tabs, I would be in dire straights. She fast but thristy. No a do have a Rochester 4-barrel on the engine. Very small primarys but monster secondaries. As long as I keep those closed, I get about the same milage as the 305 and 350. Torque moves mass....Dirk