Honda-SOHC

Is £3k not a lot for one of these then?

As I have no date for my operation with indications that it will not now be until late November due to a backlog in Urology/Covid consequences I've now started plan C roughly as follows.

When the clutch casing has been re-painted & replaced I am going to do a final compression test both hot & cold to help me decide if a full engine strip is really necessary.

I am aiming to then remove the engine & put it on its NJ sourced stand, get as far as possible with the full frame strip down to enable powder coating.

I am guessing the engine is pretty heavy - so can it be removed complete or do I need to take off the rocker cover?
Any tips for getting it out of the frame please?

What engine parts are you painting ? Make sure they are free of any oil, inside and out. Oil stains on the inside of the cases smoke, and turn the paint. Oil or any grease on the painted area will bubble and lift paint. Prep is the key to any good paint finish 

At present I'm planning to paint the Clutch Cover & the front sprocket cover. BIL is giving me some old formula Nitromors paint stripper - I have cleaned the insides with Gunk at present to remove the light brown oil staining.

I've read about using SIMVHT31D paint with recommendations to bake it on in the oven.

Just need to know the cooking instructions - is it put in oven when wet (fire hazard?)or touch dry ?

In a preheated Fan Oven - what temperature is needed - for how long ?

I once put a flywheel ring gear in the oven and the bare flywheel in the freezer to fit the ring gear - it worked a treat! Wendy wondered what the hot smell was in the kitchen when she got home from work - I almost got away with it!

Hmm, never thought about it Mac... tho’ this stolen from Wikipedia..

“ An impact wrench (also known as an impactor, impact gun, air wrench, air gun, rattle gun, torque gun, windy gun) is a socket wrench power tool designed to deliver high torque output with minimal exertion by the user, by storing energy in a rotating mass, then delivering it suddenly to the output shaft. It was invented by Robert H. Pott of Evansville, Indiana.”
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In that case we agree a rattle gun is a great tool - it removed all my clutch casing screws easily. Mine has two torque settings for tightening but it defaults to maximum when undoing anything. I only use the tightening mode for wheel nuts - always using a torque stick - they are a clever invention for impact drivers.

I suspect that 0.00271" would stop the balls moving within the cage - or at the very least bind. I'm happy to fit the ones from NJ they will be good for many years.

I agree with your theory that when the tap is on there is sufficient fuel head/pressure for the float valves to shut off - so no leak but the pressure to shut the valve comes from the float arm not the fuel feed.

When the leaking tap is in the off position the vortice effect will mean that the resulting line pressure to the carbs will be substantially reduced rather than just the flow volume this happens when there is a substantial restriction in the valve or tap- my theory is that then as there is very little pressure on the top of the float valve it seeps as natural evaporation from the bowl occurs causing the needle valve to drop open.

As you may probably know reducing the flow in a domestic cold water tap by turning the tap head only reduces flow not pressure - this is true unless you have something that reduces the pressure. Pressure in liquids behaves in a  similar to voltage in a battery. I am guessing that the closed valve is acting as a restrictor. It's 50 years since I studied fluid technology at Uni so the detailed theory has gone! What you are left with is fluent pidgin english.