FINALLY, Took the carburetor off and disassembled only to find clean bowl, needle and needle seat. Flushed the bowl and blew out he lines. Repaired the tear in the outer intake gasket and reassembled. Reinstalled the assy and reconnected the fuel lines and linkages. Had to use a universal elbow clip for the choke. Reconnected all the fuel lines (double checking the correct hose alignment)! Still had a challenge! Removed the replacement filter and put a generic fuel filter in place of the one that allowed filter cartridge replacement. Realigned the choke and throttle cables so they were easier to adjust. Started on the second attempt and has been running like a BOOH since. Cut three acres the first time out without a hitch.
Thinking the linkage cables were in need of cleaning since they work much easier now and the engine never missed a beat during the grass cutting. Even with the same spark plugs. The filter could have been sucking air as well which was fixed with the over the counter replacement. Will post if there are any other issues with this repair.
Thanks for all the suggestions! It never hurts to have someone else as a backup!!
