I thought it was worn or dirty injectors causing the blue smoke at an idle but the new set didn't fix it. Wanna made a short comment about smoke and surging under a light load if the timing is too far advanced. The PO put a Dodge rebuilt pump on the truck and advanced it almost to the head. Would this cause these problems? If so without witness marks is there a way to get close to stock without the gauge?
Thanks,
Ryan

 

Not really. The tools are the same as for old VW's, check VW diesel parts sites for good prices on the tools. I've seen the adapter and a dial indicator for less than $40.

You can just try retarding it a little at a time to see if things improve, too.