Now down to the misfire/running issues.
Go back to my write up and take it nice and steadily one thing at a time. On no account keep jumping around with the next good idea!
Lets start by making sure the ignition is in A1 order.
So you're right, you need a new set of plugs in there.
Then go back and make sure there is good separation between the plug leads at all points. Don't make do with the lead separators you've got, cover the engine in them! And in particular make sure there is no chance of the leads touching each other coming off the disctributor cap. Cross firing is the sinble biggest problem on the V8.
Yes the V8 distributor is just like your moggy 1000 one, so not difficult to get the baseplate out and check on the state of the flyweights. They should be completely clean and free - don't use any lubricant putting them back.
You should have a running engine again now, so time to set the timing ( ). Take your time over this ( ). Set it with your strobe light, but then spend a bit of time driving it round the block, then having a manual tweak and trying it again. That ought to give you a feel for how the timing affects things. If you do happen to hit on a particularely good setting use the strobe to find out what it is. If no particular improvement, use the strobe to get back to factory setting.
I'm fairly sure that timing will have been the bulk of your issues (or a plug). But even if that's solved we still need to do the final set up of the carbs.
The state you are at at the moment is that the dashpots are proved, and the throttle linkage is correctly set. Remaining to do is to balance the carbs at idle and to set the idle mixture. Neither of these make a huge amount of difference at high throttle and high revs. But they dramatically improve things at low throttle and low revs.
Lockily, the cast aluminium elbows between the carbs and the aircleaner just pull off, as you'll be doing a fair bit of this! To balance the carbs, just whip the elbows off and listen to the hiss (suck) going into each carb. I use a bit of small diameter tube as a sthethescope so I don't have to contort to get my ear right up to the carbs. Adjust the idle adjustment screw until the hiss is equal on each carb and the idle speed is OK.
Now you need to set the mixture. Some people claim to be able to do this as in the manual by lifting the pin under the dashpot. I'm astonished by this. I always use a colourtune. Basically a spark plug with a piece of silica (glass) instead of an insulator, so that you can see the flame colour inside the cylider. Then adjust the mixture until the flame colour is on the point of changing from orange to blue. Orange is too much fuel, blue is not enough - just like a camping stove! Sounds simple? Well yes, but a lot of faffing about. You've got to make sure that the carb you are adjusting feeds the cylinder with the colourtune in = see if you can work out which carb feeds which cylinders and we'll give you marks out of 10! And you'd want to swap the colourtune about a bit to see if all four cylinders fed by the carb you're adjusting are behaving the same. Being old and lazy I'd probaly use four colourtumes!
Now back to the balancing. And back to the mixure. And back to the balancing. Until you have a setting that satisfies both.
Then have another fiddle with the timing and see if there is now a more pronounced differnce or you favourite setting has changed.
Then back to the carbs.
If none of this does the trick, it is allowed to dive up and take the car to a profeddional. I have! Lucky had a very peculiar problem when I first got him which eventually turned out to be a poor quality condensor. And he was a bit down on power. So I took him to a well recommended rolling road. Fundamentally they do exacrly what is described above, but using much more sensitive sensors to judge what is going on. And they are able to neasure a few things we can't - like voltage at the plugs.
They transforned Lucky from 62bhp at the rear wheels to 115!
Best of luck and take it slowly. It's only a nachine!
Only final thought. I have heard tell that HIF6's (as yours has) have been known to badly wear the needle and jet. In an HIF6 the needle is spring loaded, so can rub on the side of the jet opening. If you can't get sensible results from the mixture setting process this could be a possible cause.
Also, remind me whether you have cleaned out the inside of the float chamber on the carbs? Oh, and have you run the tank dry and refilled with new petrol in your ownership yet?
