Lack of spark

have you tried moving the wires around to see if the problem follows them?

That would certainly be a good way to test the faulty ground theory. I haven't tried this as each wire is a specific length to reach a specific plug and they are run inside of a protective steel tube across the length of the head. I can try to remove the wires from the protective tube and try different wires on different plugs.

Does it have the original mag? Or has it been replaced with a more modern style

It has what I believe to be the original mag, definitely nothing modern. I've done some points and condenser systems and converted a couple to electronic ignition but I don't have a ton of experience with mags (beyond riding lawnmowers).

Maybe spark is grounding in that tube.

Good morning. I went out to check a few things this morning before I went to work and it turns out I cried wolf for no reason. I set my phone up to record (because I can't crank the engine and watch for spark simultaneously) and moved the one wire that I knew was good to the spark plug on either side of it and had spark in both locations, this at least told me that the plugs were grounding to the head properly. After that I hooked all the wires up to their respective plugs and recorded each one, they all have spark. Now whether it was the difference of the dark background this morning vs the bright sunlight yesterday, or the my wife's poor eyesight, it turns out that there really wasn't a problem at all. Now my biggest problem is getting the rings to seat so I have compression, and finding a diplomatic way to tell my wife that she needs her eyes checked. Thanks to those who replied, and my apologies for the false alarm. I do wonder about new carbon brushes in the distributor though, as mine seem to be worn down and maybe not making great contact, I'd like to hear thoughts about that.

Ha I wish you luck. These old crawlers can be cranky from time to time. The more people around, the more nervous they seem to get. I’ve seen brand new restored cats that crank over on the first or second pull, get a small crowd at a show and take 10 minutes to start. But that’s all just part of the fun. 

Ha I wish you luck. These old crawlers can be cranky from time to time. The more people around, the more nervous they seem to get. I’ve seen brand new restored cats that crank over on the first or second pull, get a small crowd at a show and take 10 minutes to start. But that’s all just part of the fun.