He mentioned he followed the book so I figure he is a rookie like I was when I did my engine. I have 3 different manuals for assembly mopar engines and they all say align the dots on the timming set so they are as close as possible. Basically 6 o'clock on the cam and 12 on the crank. When I installed my comp set I noticed the whole drive train didn't seem to move like it should and after watching it I realized it was a full 180 out. I didn't know what the heck was wrong and there was no instructions that came with the timing set of course. So I called up and ask comp what the heck was going on and they told me that all there sets both marks go to the 12 o'clock position. If I didn't have adjustable rockers I might not have noticed this issue till I had everything packaged up and in the car.
Also i am not saying this is is problem but if everything else checks out just trying to give alternative ideas to check out. I have been there done that with chasing down a problem you have no clue where to find.