Starting issues

My experiences are
Pick-up coils work or they don't.
mopar timing chains don't make noises.
starting issues at near or below freezing are almost always an A/F issue, unless the cam-timing is off or the ring/valve seal is so poor that the falling piston just won't pull a charge in. When an engine has been flooded as badly as yours appears to have been, the oil gets washed off the cylinder walls, and then the rings are so dry, that the engine just cannot pull a rich enough A/F charge in to sustain combustion. Then if the engine has other known issues to which you admit, then all bets are off.
IMO, you need to prove the cam timing,
and get some oil on the rings,and
do a compression test. Then
fix the doggone choke, and
prove the engine isn't sucking air, once it starts, and finally
fix the carb issues.
If the fuel bowls are full or near full, you don't even need a pump; on a carb'd engine, it is just a fuel transfer device.
The ignition timing can be out from, 7 to 10 degrees (and more) either way from ideal, and with proper fueling, it will still start and run.
It is possible to test the ignition system by; pulling the distributor out, near-grounding the coil wire, turn the key on, and simply spin the driveshaft, to observe a stream of sparks issuing from the coil wire.
For maximum coil output you can jumper the coil plus terminal directly to the battery,just don't forget to remove the jumper later,cuz the engine will not shut off by the key.
The colder the engine is, the more critical adequate compression becomes. Dry rings on a tired engine will make building enough compression nearly impossible. Throw in late valve timing, and a lousy A/F charge, and maybe here is where you are.