Help high idle after I rebuilt engine??

I just put my 90 geo metro back together this morning. I put a rebuilt head and also replaced the rings on engine. I got everything hooked back up put distributor back where it was but the engine seems to be really ticking louder than old motor and is idleing really fast. I dont dare let run too long do I? anyone have any Ideas? Doctor Bill if you read this was your engine really loud after you rebuilt?

I just adjusted the distributor and i can make the idle slow down but is that right?,. and I let it run for about a minute but it still seems really noisy to me.

The lifters don't have enough oil in them, they should pump up and the noise will subside. Your timing should have been close with the distributor at the same spot. Check to make sure your cam timing is right, if the timing belt is one tooth off, you have to turn the distributor pretty far toward the end of the slot, it should be near the middle.

OK the noise left and I adjusted distributor and idle is down, but I HAVE NEVER timed a vehicle with a timing light before how do I do it and do I just adjust distributor till the light and the white mark on crank pully line up in the middle of those numbers on the belt cover?
Any directions would be apprecitated. Oh yeah one more thing when I first purchased car it was getting 38 mpg then the Cat Converter rusted a hole in it so I just took It out (don't have a emmission test in North Dakota) and put in straight pipe anyway im sure the valve was on its way to being burnt before that but when i really noticed it I was getting 25 mpg. Now I just drove it 60 mile and had to put 2 gallons in it on new head why is my mpg at 30 and not 38 or higher like I've heard others is it the timing?

My engine ticked loudly upon startup right after the engine was reassembled.

It scared the living crap out of me! I was sure I had totally boogered the engine up!
I had to clean out my underwear!

Someone here explained about the lifters.

I had to re-time the engine but before that I had to replace the timing belt pulley
because I had not tightened the bolt well and the pulley nearly came off while the engine was running!

THAT fiasco is documented here also....with pictures.

I took off the Timing belt cover, cleaned it off well at the bottom and painted the
raised numbers and marks with white paint ("White Out") and the spot on the pulley.

Now when I time it, I can see those marks like "Wow!"

If you don't have a timing light - buy one - not very expensive.....a strobe light.
The destructions that come with the light should explain it well enough.

Make sure everything is lined up as per the Chilton manual, time it, then you can adjust the idle screw on the side of the Throttle Body, if necessary.

Did you clean all the carbon out of the EGR valve and the EGR tunnel inside of the Throttle Body (TB)?

Mine was completely plugged up - all the way from the Head to the back of the TB, thru the valve, with SOLID CARBON.....

http://img223.imageshack.us/img223/7341/magspringtryoutvg2.jpg

Look thru my Thread on the Throttle Body to see how I cleaned that all out with this homemade tool:
http://img232.imageshack.us/img232/6405/newspring2td8.jpg

http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/t619189.html

http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=510837&page=2

That may be causing your poor mpg - any comments anyone? Am I wrong?

DoctorBill