Triumph Repair: Spitfire Mechanical Fuel Pump, rocker arm, fuel line

Question
I am restoring my old Triumph that hasn't been started in 10 years. I managed to get it running pretty quickly, however, I noticed the old fuel pump was leaking. I went ahead and bought a replacement and installed it and now I can't get the car to run (unless I pour gas into the carb). I did pull off the fuel line from the single carb and it does seem to have a little fuel coming out, however, I am thinking not enough. I noticed in the repair manual it talks about"check to make sure the rocker arm lies on top of the camshaft eccentric and not underneath". I am not sure how that check would be accomplished. Do you think this might be my problem? Thanks in advance.

Answer
Possibly;   first step would be compare your old pump to your new pump; are the pump arm lengths the same?  there are two versions the short one has no spacer, the other pump (longer) needs a spare to sit on the lobe correct.

Some pumps have a manual primer; if your does that would be the first thing to check; to see if you can prime the pump.

If it doesn't have a manual arm to prime, remove from the block and manually work the arm to make sure you have fuel flowing; that way you can make sure it isn't about the pump not being primed.

Sometime the eccentric lobe on the cam wears excessively;

I"m not sure how to check the arm once installed other than it attempts to pump fluid; I would remove and re-insert paying attention to whether the arm is inserted; if indeed the arm is to be on top of the lob, then you may have to pay attention to where the lobe is oriented; if the eccentricity is at the top of its travel; you will have to compress the pump arm while installing, to have it on the correct side of the cam.

Hope that helps.  I've always converted to the electric pump, and that eliminates this issue.