Long-since any updates here - stalled out when I went to clean up the sheared tensioner bolt. As has been discussed in many other threads, I snapped off the easy-out as I was attempting to remove the sheared bolt and pretty much all forward progress stopped there. Very slow progress left the engine disassembled over the past two years, but eventually a set of new, hardened cobalt bits managed to work thru the extractor bit and drill out the remainder of the sheared bolt. I managed to free up the cam chain tensioner pushrod last evening and now finally, FINALLY!, will be able to rethread the sheared bolt-hole and get the engine reassembled.
The machine shops I'd taken it to were reluctant to get involved (hm...). Looking forward to reassembly. Will also be looking at the transmission to see if I can't solve the 5th gear slip issue that started all of this work a few years back...