Eric's mods for low end power?

Im interested in getting more low down power out of my rm. In Eric Gorrs book he talks about machining some material off the bottom of the barrel to change port timming and compression ratio. I dont for one second doubt Eric's wisdom but i want to know has anyone tried this and does it work? Does the piston or head have to be modified so they don't contact at TDC? Also Eric states that a higher compression ratio is better for low down power, but then why are most race engines modified for higher compression and they use top end power?
What about changing the size of the transfer ports with epoxy filler etc, does this work? is it something you can do at home? what happens if the epoxy doesn't bond with the port surface and falls into the cylinder? does the epoxy hold up under heat and fuel mixture etc? Let me know if you've tried any of these mods and how well they work.