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My head (biological, not metallurgical) is spinning here, too. How on earth could a rebuilt head cause the oil control OR the compression rings to "blow out" on startup? If they were faulty or worn before the head was removed, then OK, I can see it. But I can't imagine the failure sequence. Did the shop give any details, like exactly how this could happen? People replace heads all the time without having to do ring jobs. Please, shop mechanics, explain this. Do they tell each customer to do new rings with each rebuilt head?
Try a cylinder compression test. The valves have been seated correctly, so you know any leakage can't be at the top side of the cylinder. This should pinpoint failed rings, if any, although it might not catch a bad oil ring. I would imagine that if the oil control ring is bad, then the compression ring must be too.
Try this as well: remove the valve cover and try the ATF test on the valve stems of the TDC valves, maybe with some fluorescent dye in the oil. Pull the plugs and see if any oil leaks down. That may show you if the stems/guides/seals are the culprits. I am still betting that they are.
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