Got the engine raised. Only snag was that we unbolted the engine mounts, but the mounts separated when it was raised. i.e. the bracket and mount stayed put on the tower. I'm pretty sure that's OK in the short term, but I should probably replace them.
I also changed the oil filter, and so far no drips at all. I didn't end up doing the rear main.
I updated the link above with pics (forgot to do pics of it raised). Thanks everyone for all your help and suggestions.
