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From what I’ve seen you have kept the adjustments under 2 arc secs which should allow for much longer exposures.
Points to consider. But not necessarily each a cause of issues here
Check your subs prior to stacking every now and then something can cause a bump or two ( clouds etc you’d be surprised at how thin cloud is difficult to see, I have a thermal camera which picks out stuff I can’t see )
Coma etc, correct spacing for your field flattener can cause flared stars particularly towards the corners, (I’d look at this one first) , just reconfirm you have correct spacing for yours, don’t be scared to experiment a little to see if you do get an improvement, it’s possible your flattener is generic amd who knows if it is exactly the same with every scope, once you have it set it’s done.
Movement in the image can be caused by sagging in the focuser, I know I’ve done a focus prior to imaging and given I don’t have an autofocus setup, I’ve forgotten to lock down the focuser, you can see how much movement there is by gently wiggling the camera, prior to doing your run.
As for polar alignment find a system which works for you, everyone has their favourite, I like the Polemaster but each to their own. I’m spoilt as I have a permanent observatory so I can rock out each night ready to go, I would have thought, if you can set out 3 concrete pavers in the back yard to put the scope on, any soft ground issues will be gone, given it’s such a tiny amount of movement for alignment. Then once you have alignment mark the pavers so it’s repeatable each night, the less time you spend setting up the better.
As you said baby steps, and it looks like you’re off to a good start.
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