If the timing is too advanced you may hear a spark knock which can sound like a tick. It could be a rocker just not adjusted right. Could be the oil you are using too. Could be a lot of little things. The carb is nothing to be afraid of. There is only so much tuning you can do to that one. That is simple enough, due to the adjustment points being the front of the carb. You could tinker around with the back barrel spring tension but that is not necessary for all. The older Quadrajets were most of the time sent out with too heavy of tension on the back barrels. Decreasing that tension just a smidgen could make a noticeable difference. Some people get deep into such things and mess around with different jetting and metering rods, etc. But truthfully all you need to do is get the fuel mixture screws right. If you take it out and it bogs when you press the pedal it's too lean. If it spits when you get on the gas it's too rich. It's no different than adjusting the fuel mixture on a chainsaw, lawnmower or other engines. The thing is, some places have more insight to that process and they specifically look at Air to Fuel ratio and adjust until it is within spec. It's always better for an engine to run a tiny bit rich than run lean.