Noisy strut rod?

In theory yes. Since all of the suspension components, including the LCA and strut rod, are moving in different arcs there will be binding at some point if the ROM is large enough. The goal should be to minimize binding as much as possible, especially in the majority of the normal range of travel.

That being said, I've always been able to get the full ROM pretty much free of binding since you're only talking about 5" to 5.5" of suspension travel. The ROM on my cars has been recentered around the lowered ride height, but like on my Duster even though the car is lowered close to 2" the ROM from bump stop to bump stop remains pretty much the same as the factory set up, so the suspension travel remains close to the same amount.
If I recall correctly, you are running adjustable upper A arms as well,ya?

Also, how are you getting that low? I feel like the LCA bump stop would prevent that. I’m only 1/4” off it and while I’m happy to have it there, it is waaaay higher than yours.
Love that duster BTW.

The reason I ask about the adjustable uppers is that I put the navy torque on the strut to achieve caster (3.5*?+\-?, with the moog problem solvers)
And I know I have heard better numbers than that. I feel that if you are getting more (neg) caster than that with stock components then there must be witchcraft involved…. But I dunno