New clutch setup won't disengage

I have a Centerforce Dual Friction clutch setup on a new 10.5" steel flywheel. I fabricated a hydraulic linkage with a Wilwood master and a pull-type slave cylinder to a conventional fork/throwout bearing. It's inside a Lakewood so there's not much of a view other than through the fork hole.

I mounted the clutch onto the flywheel at least three years ago if not four (it took me that long to complete the car to the point where I could drop in the drivetrain, fire-up and break in my new 451). So yesterday I finally fired it up and broke in the cam... but could not put the car into any gear with the engine running! Shifts fine with it off. It occurs to me (and I've seen it in the past with all-organic discs) that the disc could be stuck to either the flywheel or the pressure plate from being clamped there for so long...

But I'm going to work through this logically. First make sure the air is all bled out of the system! Then measure the actual travel at the fork (I have almost all the slack adjusted out, just enough to keep the throwout bearing off the clutch fingers). It's possible that I need to redo the pushrod mounting to the clutch pedal but it feels sufficiently "heavy" that there should be plenty of plate departure.

Finally if I determine that the disc is actually sticking, I plan to jack up the rear, start the engine and while idling in 4th (about 20 mph wheel speed), depress the clutch pedal fully and gently apply the brakes a couple of times. I definitely don't want to use the starter as an impact driver - a good way to break pinions, or even worse, a ring gear. I don't know that this is the problem, just thinking worst-case.

So I have a question - how much travel is there supposed to be at the actuating rod hole in the fork with a Centerforce DF? About one inch?

Also any other ideas for freeing up the disc would be appreciated...
thanks
Charles