Happy to help if / when I can and glad it worked out for you.
What is unfortunate is that this is a repeating problem that has a clear and very precise answer. All of the 'motor oil, clutch plate, clutch spring, hot / cold, humid / dry situations causing insufficient and, especially varying behavior of the clutch are really (wait for it) clutch hydraulic problems. Somehow a tad (technical term) of air gets into the system and it is an absolute BIT$@H to get out. Often when I have bled a problem motorcycle clutch, I have not even seen so much as one tiny bubble in the outgoing fluid but once fully- bled, it acts like a new bike again for a long time.
To add even more unfortunateness (sic), dealers often do not address this situation correctly either. They either manually bleed the clutch (does not work), or go looking for the things listed in the above paragraph.
Okay I power bled it and all is well! I held off posting for a bit to not jinx it, but I think it's all well and good. I cleaned out the port with a toothpick, then bled a bunch of fluid through that. Then bled the top bleeder screw and got a bunch of air out. Went to the bottom and didn't see much air. Went back and hit the top bleeder again and by now the clutch lever felt really good. Test ride confirmed it. I have about 200 miles on it now and it is still solid. Big trip to Road America for superbike racing this weekend will be the ultimate test. About a 1000 mile weekend with a combination of freeway and back roads.
Remember, motorcycle clutch hydraulics are like human intestines: neither one needs air and if present, is bound to cause often erratic and always unpleasant results.
Brian
Thanks again to all who posted and especially B.D.F.