The debate between the FE Ford Motors (incl 390, 406, 427) and the 429/460 was similar to the debate between the Chrysler Wedge (383/440) and the 426 Hemi.
The Hemi could make more power, and was preferred at the track, but on the street (w/o Wrinkle wall slicks) the lighter 440 (with a broader power band) was hard to beat.
My 427 was very strong from 1,000 RPM to 6,800 RPM. A lot of the aggressively built small blocks were much peakier with the power output, needed gears, and were harder to launch with street tires.
I had 3.50 gears, but a tranny from a 289 Mustang (first gear was 2.71 instead of 2.20 in the close ratio trannys), so I could drive on the highway, but was very tough to beat in the 1/4 mi. None of the none "tubbed" cars were beating me.
I had an original set of the T/As on the back, which had continuous tread lines around the circumference. Later versions had tread blocks, which dissipated water better but did not launch as well. I believe they were G-60 15s. They worked very well.