Update:
Pipes came in, they're awesome.
Had to take the entire block off to use an easy out to get the bolt out. pistons and rings were in way better shape than i had anticipated. Couldn't find the right "oil control dowel pin" that aligns the block on the crankcase so after 20mins of looking, I assumed that the PO lost or forgot it in the last rebuild. Torqued the bolts on top of clean new gaskets and try to turn the crank shaft to adjust the timing.
No go.
I the good news is I probably found that dowel pin, the bad news is I have to tear even more down to get it if it is in fact in the crankcase.
Woe is me.
I'm learning by trial and error. mostly error.
I'm putting pods on it and rejet even though I'm going back to the stock exhaust. After all I went through up to now, taking the carbs apart again is nothing if it ends up running like #$%* after the carbs are synced.