400 diesel is haunting me

Im working on a 400 diesel standard tread. This tractor came to my shop in boxes. The Engine was on a pallet and I was told it was overhauled twenty years ago and never ran and I beleve this to be true. I have the tractor In one piece now but I cant seem to make it run right. It Wont start with out a shot of eather even when you have it up to running temp. It Idles rough and puffs a little black smoke at idle. When you get past about half throttle it smokes like hell and falls all over its self. Im running it with no air cleaner, have had the pump and injectors rebuilt, all new fuel filters, have checked to make sure the return to the tank isnt pluged, and checked the pump timming several times. I even pulled the valve cover to make sure I had the #1 cyl. on TDC when I set the pump at 26 degrees like the genuine case manual said. It seemed like I lost ground with the rebuilt pump so I pulled it back off and took it back to the pump shop today but im guessing that they will tell me the pump isnt the problem. Im starting to wonder if the cam timing is off. Would it run at all if the timming marks were off a tooth one way or the outher? This one has me by the shorts!

Is it possible you've retarded the timing instead of advancing it. I don't know how to set the timing on it but I thought I would ask if it was possible.

Do the heads have there power cells in them? Might be something to check.

sounds like one i had once. that one the pump shop had the pump head 180 degrees off. that pump has timing windows on both sides, they set it to the wrong side.

YES IT WILL RUN , LIKE THAT,, My 800 would stammer so bad it would blow the muffler off ...LOSt a lot of religion over that one . i would not rule out timed cam,,,BUT DONT GO THERE YET , my bet is that the pump is out of time ,,I Know You Have Wore yourself Out ,,my 800 , gave me the same fitz , took it to my b-i-l , he figured out the timing issue . HOPEFULLY you have a good hearted knowledgeable tech at the pump shop that will talk with you and walkyou thru this ..YOUR 400 will RUN LIKE A DREAM , rite now IT IS A NITEMARE ..stop washing it down with ether,.. my 800 luves the stuff now, after the headaches we went thru ..

Newton miller was right on the money on this one. the pump head was out of time!