92 3vze no start after head gasket repair
 

I'm on day 4 of trouble shooting, researching forums, etc with no luck. Just did the head gaskets and can't get the truck to fire. I smell gas, verified spark at the plugs, verified cam timing and distributor timing, verified the vacuum lines are in the right places, but nothing. The engine will crank and occasionally sputter really roughly, but won't start.

Any ideas on things I can check? The engine ran fine before the head gaskets went, so I'm inclined to believe that I just didn't put something back right, but who knows.

You didn't put something back right.
I would start with the fuel delivery itself.
Recheck every electrical connector and vaccum lines.
Check if the distributor and timing is 360° out. TDC on compression? Maybe you are TDC exhaust?

I'm going to check to make sure the injectors are getting a signal later, but I smell gas and don't think that's it unless the cold start injector is going without the rest of them.

Been going through everything I can see, double checking vacuum diagrams and electrical connections and can't find anything wrong. I feel like that's the most likely thing I screwed up, but I've been over it several times and can't find anything.

Whole engine has been verified to be at tdc before putting in the distributor. Crank is at tdc and both cams also. Been down the road of turning the distributor 180 degrees out already with no luck.

Seriously scratching my head at this point, running out of ideas. I have another ecm that I might try just to try, but I doubt that'll do anything different.

I just went through this (one a 22re) and it ended up being a loose connector on one of the injectors (causing it to run like total poop but it would run). Sound smooth and even when you crank it over? Compression test is a quick test just to rule something mechanical out.

For the injectors, a long screwdriver against the injector with your ear to the handle should verify that they are firing.

Please don't take this as an insult but are the ignition wires installed to the correct corresponding cylinders? I screwed that up once on my accord and it sounded like total crap.

Cranks smoothly, but I'll check the compression just to rule it out.

No offense taken. I'm 50% sure it's something dumb I did wrong or forgot to do, but I've triple checked the wires and even replaced the plugs.

Hello Rainy:
The upper part of the air filter housing contains a vane type of device (MAF) that actuates by the air flow created by the cranking engine.
The actuated vane closes a switch that tells the ECM to create a voltage path for the fuel pump to operate during the cranking process.
Once the engine fires and runs, the ECM uses a different voltage path to keep the fuel pump running.
The vane device is relatively delicate, and if it got banged around during your engine work, could be the cause of your problem.
It has other sensors in it to tell the ECM how, and in what quantity of fuel to supply to the engine, based on a host of conditions.
The thing to consider is this: Is the fuel pump running while the engine is cranking?
You can jumper the fuel pump on all the time using the diagnostic socket next to the fuse box to the rear of the battery.
This should eliminate any chance of the MAF being the culprit.
Don't ask me how I know this.
Art.

P.S. Does the Check Engine Light come on when you just turn the key on without cranking?

So I actually got it running, just running very poorly. There was a loose ground behind the engine I forgot to tighten down. Without anyone touching anything, it ran smoothly for a split second and then went back to running like crap.

My question now has to do with the AFM. While it's running, I can hear a knocking noise that I'm pretty sure it that vane in the AFM. Is that a symptom of running rough, or the cause?

Not sure about the knocking sound. You could try placing a jumper between +B and FP in the diagnostic connector under the hood. This will ensure your fuel pump is running after the engine starts without the need for the signal from the AFM. It may help you determine if the AFM is a problem.

Edit: I didn't notice this was already suggested by ZARTT above. Definitely worth a shot...