Yes Al's adjuster is a work of art.
Compromise is the solution.....
Make mine (takes about an hour) use that while you while away the hours testing and making Al's
One of the issues you may be experiencing is the spring preload is enough to pressing hard against the valve stem at rest. I have never measured the clearance but I know mine has some slack.
At most I would reduce it to an 1/8" and see what you have for performance