I think the old adage, when in doubt, use more force, is ill advised. A quick story..my wife has horses, and when we first started out we had a particularly stubborn young horse that did not want to trailer load. We received all sorts of good advice, from putting his food in the trailer and only feeding him there, to forcefully pulling him in and keeping him there for a while, as well as many others. Bottom line, it was a miracle we didn't kill him. Lesson: for every problem there is a logical correct solution. Forcing it is NOT the way!
My advice and personal opinion: pull the engine, pull the oil pan, pistons, etc: check everything, replace rings, bearings etc. as needed. Do what you need to make sure the engine is not seized before you try to start it. After an 8 year time of just sitting its the least the engine deserves. Compared to the price of a new engine/tranny the cost of doing these things i quite minimal, and it will give you the piece of mind that you won't break down on the road on your nwe "maiden voyage".
