I finally got the carb and fuel system on my 1969 302 sorted out enough that it starts easily and runs smoothly. It is a new rebuild with a 600 cfm Holley vacuum secondary and a medium/mild cam (forgot where I put the specs). I did the usual tuning; spark plug gap, point gap, timing, idle mixture, idle speed, and everything seems good.

It starts very easily from cold without using the choke; does that mean it's running too rich? The spark plug has black soot on it after a short run, so I am thinking yes. But I'm not sure what I can do to lean it out, without going to smaller jets.