Update: The new piston stop came in. Also, working on the engine again helped me remember a few things so I must correct myself on something I said earlier.
Correction: When I was explaining how I found TDC on the initial install, I mistakenly said I watched the intake close and the exhaust open, then rolled it back a hair. I had forgotten that small block heads go Exhaust, Intake, Intake, Exhaust. For clarity, I watched the closest rocker to me on #1 close and watched the rocker behind it open a bit, then rolled it back a hair. Sorry for the confusion!
TDC: I found TDC on the 273 and verified it on the damper. It was not right on the factory mark, but it was pretty close. Ill let yall tell me how close it was based on this picture:
View attachment 1716402637
Im still going to tear into it, re-lube the cam and lifters, and degree the cam to verify. This time, though, Im going to go a lot slower and record myself doing it for my YouTube channel. This way, I will have a record of what I did. Im still not hearing any compression escaping when I turn the engine and am still unsure of what could cause that from it just sitting. Will update once I get the engine apart. Thanks everyone!