TR2/3/3A Choke

Having a hard time starting when cold. Two issues. Have suspicions that my choke is not activating enough. It retracts from the dash about 3/4". There is still about a 1 1/4" of cable left before the sheath. It seams tight enough. The second issue is that the starter seems to turn over easier from the solenoid button rather than than key switch. If I use the key switch the battery gets weak quicker. Any advice?

This is a TR3A, right? Pull the choke out and lock it (if necessary, put a couple of clothespins on the shaft or have someone hold it for you); then check how far down the jet heads are from the mixture nuts. You should be able to get about 1/4", which is more than necessary. If you can only pull the knob out by 3/4" then my guess is that the jets aren't moving at all. If so, reply here and we can go over ways of making it work better.

Try feeling the solenoid after cranking long enough for the battery to get weak. If it gets really hot, the solenoid is probably bad; but it might pay to check the starter current. (A bad starter can sometimes draw too much current, which could also cause the solenoid to get hot.)