So as promised, an update. The 52t chainring came in and I installed it Monday. Did not have to raise the front derailleur. Did my 10.x mile route and noticed a huge difference in how tough it is to pedal the top gear. Also there was an increase in speed. I was going fast enough for my out-of-true wheels to finally affect the ride quality.

Anyway I'm loving the new chainring but it didn't eliminate the wobble. I guess that leaves the spider and chainwheel but I won't be able to dig into it any further until I invest in the tools, but thanks a lot for the help guys!