Define “great compression.” Those engines will run, albeit poorly, with less than stellar compression. Ideally, compression should be 100 or up.
That being said, odds are you did miss something in the carb cleaning and/or reassembly. Did you try adjusting the low speed needle more outward? (These engines take awhile to dial in the low speed adjustment, with some patience.) Did you use new packing for the mixture adjustment screws? Did you use a new main nozzle gasket between the upper and lower halves? Did the mixture adjustment screws turn with your finger tips before you tightened down the packing nuts? Does your low speed mixture needle have a good point on it? Is the float installed correctly and not upside down? (It is possible to do.) Did you use compressed air to blow out all passages? Does the throttle plate move freely? The side passage Crosbyman mentioned is the main low speed part of the carb. Using a WD 40 can with the red spray tube, blow into all those passages and make sure they are clear. I would take your carb apart again and check thsee things out. If it starts easily, that is a good sign that the engine is not junk.
Long live American manufacturing!
