107teen, I am not an expert on pre 50’s outoards but I have worked on a few. The power head just unbolts, it comes off in a big chunk. If it were mine I would take a small screwdriver and push lightly on the rings through the exhaust port. If the rings move a little they are probably not stuck that is a good thing! It is easier to clean up parts when they are un-assembled. I have not pulled the pistons out of mine but I wouldn’t hesitate if it looked like a ring was stuck or broken. These motors used a leg that is a rough casting. It collects carbon from the exhaust bigtime! The leg is a bugger to clean out but it should be done. There are small holes that I used to poke a wire down the leg to loosen carbon. Never use automotive oils in outboards. TCW3 oils don’t carbon up nearly as much as the old oils did.
couple pictures
dale
Four small holes for removing carbon.
Just a small amount of the carbon that I scraped out.