I broke one of these in for a friend. It was a bugger. It was so tight that my starter didn't want to turn it over. Yes it did flood easily just as stated.
Use a good fresh glow igniter, try an idle bar plug, and follow the breakin proceedures for an ABC engine that have been laid out soooo many times in this forum.
Good News.. The engine after breakin ran great, started easily, and had quite a bit of power.