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Thanks egg, I think I may be having a choke issue, weird thing about it is that on my reman Hitachi the line on the choke that lines up with the line on the carb leaves the choke wide open. The only way to get it to that .29 measurement is to go counterclockwise quite a ways. The crazy thing is that i have a Weber sitting in the garage, but I want to get the Hitachi that came with the truck right so that I can pass smog here in maryland.

Normaly the choke should line up with the line and be open when the engine is warmed up to normal. When the engine is cold like overnight, the choke should also line up with the line but be closed. You need to open the throttle a bit to allow the chole to set.
It operates like this--cold engine, choke is closed completely, engine starts and applys vacuum to the choke pull diaphram that pulls it open a small measured amount (.28) so it has enough air to operate smoothly and not die. Within a few minutes it should warm and the choke gradually open. Blip the throttle accasionally as it warms to allow the choke to release.
I would adjust it untill it operates like above and not worry about the line.

Thanks egg, that is pretty much what i have done. I would say the choke is now rotated to about 9 o'clock. For the first time since i have had this truck, i got in it this morning, pressed the gas petal about halfway down and released and it then started right up. Needless to say, i am one happy guy right now. So fixing the choke plus advancing the timing to 10 degrees fixed me right up. thanks for the advice all.

NP...glad it all worked out for ya.