Thanks again y'all! It definitely isn't over yet, but good to know for sure. I'm still a little worried about that clutch rod bushing, but even if it isn't there, hopefully the input shaft is supported enough for it to be a non-issue when looking at "what connects where".
Yes, swingarm bearings looked pretty good actually! Likely because this old girl has barely been ridden. 20 years old and only 15,000 mi. I added a very generous helping of lithium grease and inspected the rollers which all looked good. Will be greasing the hell out of the CARC splines too when we get to that step-- maybe even today!
There was quite the mess of oil crud on the LH engine case, but the breather hose clamp wasn't even installed to the oil recovery tank, so I think that issue is/sorted. I will try and create a guide when all of this is said and done: the service manual is the best of any I've seen on previous bikes, but some steps need more detail. For example, unless you have very low-profile u-joints socket extensions (the kind that don't come from harbor-freight) it is virtually impossible to remove the clutch slave cylinder before the frame comes off and so working around the clutch line in an ergonomic nightmare. It's better to pull the line off from the master cylinder and thread it out of the frame-- this way you can also re-bleed the line and test the clutch before putting the whole thing together.
I have more to say but will do so later when I have pictures to provide intermission from the inarticulate word bombs I've been leaving thus far. If anyone has any insight into that bushing thing, do let me know!
