Let me address your questions. Have only addressed the 1st group. Need to go back this afternoon to answer next few (isolating the connecting rod caps) to determine what is causing the binding:
- Doesn’t appear that the head was split before. No scratches on the crankcase paint.
- Removed the pistons last night and they are not damaged. Rings compressed into the slots made for them, move easily. Top piston had more carbon than the lower. Carefully removed the rings and placed them in the cylinders to measure the gap. The gaps were very tight, .002 and .005. Rings are solid, then a lip and then the gap. If these need filing, it will be easy to damage them.
- Connecting rod caps. Have been careful to take photos and not mix them up. The bottom connecting rod cap has a silvery appearance, top one not so much. Caps on both rods were facing the same direction, I could clearly read the part number on them.
- I reassembled the crankcase halves without the pistons. Crankshaft spun smoothly in the journals, no wobble. Using reasonable pressure on the screws to tighten. Was able to spin the crankcase pretty easily. YouTube video on that.
- https://youtu.be/jhQ1LlPwj0A
