best mufflers for the 302?

[88Vic]

On a related note, if I switched the cat'd H-pipe for an O/R H-pipe (no cats), would that be noticeably louder?

It's definitely noticable but not horribly loud. For instance on my truck I had a cat and then a Magnaflow performance muffler (straight through type) and when I had the cat removed it was a big difference but still a very tolerable volume. I say when your cats go bad it's a waste of money to replace them unless they're needed for emissions. With the mufflers you'll be able to hear it but it won't be too loud. And with those cutouts right after the H-pipe it'll sound like a ferocious beast