Originally posted by timothale
Did you install a new gear,and are you sure you got the timing marks lined up when you put on the new chain? some gears have 3 slots. did you you put it together at 0. try a vacuum gage to see what it does.normally vacuum should increase as you slowly increase rpm.
Yes, new gears and chain, installed with 4 degrees advance.

I hooked it up to a vaccuum guage while tuning the carb (shortly before the problem began...which was after trying on a new ECU box and coil which led the thing to not even run...and now with the old ECU/coi/ballast it runs as described) The vacuum gauge showed a steady 17 inches of vacuum at idle, going up to 25+ with increased rpms and higher when I let off the throttle altogether allowing the engine to return to idle speed.

It does have a weak, orange-ish spark.l