Have you tried plugging the PCV hose to see what happens to the vaccum? And have you sprayed carb cleaner around the carb base to see if the idle speed increases with the cleaner at some point?
You can measure the cam timing if:
1) You find true TDC of the #1 piston and mark it on the damper; that part is easy. This gets used as your reference point for setting up the timing wheel.
2) You mount a timing wheel on the front of the crank; takes a small bit of work but very doable.
3) You put solid lifters in place of the hydraulic ones on #1 cylinder and find a way to support the 2 pushrods in place. Not too hard with stock heads.
4) You get/borrow a dial indicator and mount it up to accurately measure the movement at the tops of the 2 pushrods.
If you do all the above, then you can measure the opening and closing angles at the .050" lift points on both the opening and closing ramps of the intake and exhaust lifters. You would then compute the intake and exhaust centerlines, and then know the LSA, and have the .050" durations very closely, and can compute timing. And you can get a close reading on advertised duration by measuring the .005" lift angles, opening and closing. With all that, you will know the timing and the cam specs with good accuracy, and can then know the cam's characteristics and what to expect for idle vacuum.