Thanks for all the help guys but I after adjusting the pin clip and using silicone to close up those 'slits' where the carb meets the intake, I got it running for the first time yesterday. It makes sense that it was an air problem as I had gas and spark.

The bad news is that when I went to tighten my head bolts later after oil was coming out the gasket seal, I got overzealous and set the torque wrench at 17. I ended up stripping the thread on one of the bolts- hopefully not the engine thread!

I swear the problems never end- self-created or not!