Clare Snyder wrote:
Put some "top lube" in the gas - something like Marvel Mystery Oil.
Some in the oil too - I'm betting you had a stuck exhaust valve and
you want to free that up.

I cannot rule anything out at this point but I did have the head off at one
point and valves seemed okay. They cannot stick closed, right, only open?

One thing I totally forgot about was there was a time when I yanked the
cord and it just seemed to lock up. I pulled the plug wire and turned it
backwards a bit and then it was okay. Liquid locked? Yes, maybe but who
knows? Up until this morning I was thinking that was further evidence of
some serious internal mechanical issue.

It could be a combination of things. Poor carb, air leaking into the
suction, poor compression, weak spark. Faster cranking might get around
all of them. We shall see.