[hobgoblin351]

You're idle is dropping when in gear because of the load of the engine. If it stalls , let it warm up fully, if it still stalls you'll have to bump up the idle some. Without knowing what kind of cam you're running it's hard to reccomend timing numbers. If it's stock or close to it somewhere around 6* BTDC should be ok.
That little red Holley book is a must read. But it does only cover 4150 and 4160 models. So if you have a different model it will be know good. If so try "Holley carburetors,manifolds&fuel injection" It covers alot more carbs and has more tips. It sounds like your carb just needs to be "dialed-in" and not rebuilt. Good luck