Greetings. I had a surging idle that turned into a no start with no cel. Usually when applying the brakes at low speeds would it surge. I ended up doing a rebuild of the top end. It's back together and still won't start. I've checked the afm, fuel pump relay, checked spark with a tester, jumped the fuel pump. It backfires through the intake sometimes when trying to start. I'm pretty sure the distributor is correct as well. I took it out to re check. Any help would be appreciated 🙏

 

Backfire through intake usually means timing is 180* out.

 

I double checked the timing and got her to tdc. The distributor looks like it's on the 1 cylinder as well. It was off 180.

it still won't start.
I did notice the distributer wires were not correct and corrected them starting at cylinder 1 and going clockwise to the next.

 

Did you set the firing order correctly? It's 1-3-2-4, so going clockwise around the distributor cap isn't necessarily 1-2-3-4. Make sure the firing order is correct. Also, make sure you have the correct plugs, too. Make sure the timing is correct, as well. 5 degrees BTDC with the jumper in the test jack, T1-TE1. Once that's set correctly, stop the engine, and pull the jumper, then restart, and the timing should be 12-15 degrees, and will be variable in that range.

You can check to be sure all the plugs are firing by placing the inductive pickup for your timing light on each plug wire, including the center conductor. The timing light will fire for each plug as the plug gets it's pulse. You can also check the plug wires, and never assume a wire is good, just due to young age, by looking at them in the dark. At night, with no lights on. If you see a lightning show coming off the plug wires, at least one is bad.

Finally, make sure the head's ground wire is good. It's the one between the lifting hook on the rear of the engine and the firewall. It's just as important as every other wire in the system, but frequently ignored.

Good luck! Pat☺