You were spot on sir. Thank you for weighing in! The online community has been a huge help in my rebuild. Lesson Learned: Physically feel the cam chain on the lower sprocket. If you only look at the cam chain guides to judge if the chain is on track, you can easily overlook the mistake. Thanks again Drew.
So what was the issue? I just replaced my head and valve cover and I am having the same issue. Was the chain not on the bottom sprocket of the crank shaft?
Get a service manual! You're turning the motor clockwise, as sheff said you're supposed to turn it counterclockwise. Can't you hear the grinding against the starter clutch?
So when you try and start the bike will it let out compression into the exhaust. like a thud thud thud.. If you do not feel any compression the lifers are not doing the job and slipping. If you can feel air pumping out the exhaust you can feel the pressure strokes as the valves are doing what they should. This is kinda an odd one.. unsure what would make it slip or if that's even an issue. Rebuilding top end is just the cylinder and the piston, not sure how that would affect anything in the timing chain. But idk. Also I really want that oil cooler you have on your bike, I've been looking at them.