valve lash cold

Not sure what you mean? What I'm saying(or trying to) was he checked every 90* which is 8 "turns" (8x90=720*= 2 complete crank revolutions). I've always done it this way for solids without any issues.

He's checking in 8 places, not 4. Same way I've done it, zero issues.

Good luck with that, your engine will run. I probably check 5 times that, until they all check good. Then hot and running.