Sorry no disrespect but I dont agree. I am not soley looking at the gauge but using it as another reference tool. When the engine hesitates under slight load and the gauge shows a lean condition I feel like that is only helping determine the issue.
Without checking with a piston stop, you know absolutely nothing. The purpose of that is to check that the balancer is in phase with "everything else". If you're not willing to do something as simple as that, we may as well end these shenanigans right now, because if you won't listen and do that, then everything else might be wrong.
