They also say it shouldnt idle with the screw all the way in but that's the only time it idles smooth

 

I started this trying to get an idea how far the needle should stick out into the throat.
trying to get an idea as to whether I should just rebuild or if the body is trashed

 

Look maybe we're not communicating well or something but we established a few posts back the carb isn't right. Seated down yes you will see the needle a bit, adjusted correctly you should not. You say it won't run if isn't seated.

Drop any thoughts of screwing with anything for a minute and answer a few questions so we can help you.

Did the bike run before ?
What's the bikes history leading up to you finding the carb set wrong ?
Did you just buy it or something ? carb swap ?
Did you change anything else ?
Have you checked the jets yet to see what the are and if so what ? list them for us.
Did you do an intake leak check to see why the carbs so far off ?

Do the basic trouble shooting before you start tearing into things please.

 

The spring around the idle screw may be to long. Check to see if the spring is fully compressed and not allowing the needle to fully seat

 

Hello Aaron, I have exactly the same issue.I bought the carb new, after installing it ,would only idle w/ it all the way in and still a bit rich.I've tried going down 1 step on intermediate jet which then ran worse,replaced the idle screw and even called S&S. No help there either.This is many yrs. ago, Bike runs good otherwise.It will cough at times after cruising then stopping at a lite then accelerate.I chalked it up as being a bad carb body?