Well, simply calling it out as a Craftsman LT 1000 does not help anybody who might wish to help. The nomenclature "LT 1000" is a generic reference to an enduring model name. What is needed for getting specific information about "which" LT 1000 requires posting the full technical model number (typically begins as 917. and can be found under the tilting seat). Saying LT 1000 is like saying I have a Chevy Impala....Yeah? Which one?

Well, it's going to be hard to "read the tea leaves" (sediment junk) in this carb bowl because the bowl will empty itself just removing it from the carb. Still it might be worthwhile to clean the outside of the bowl and the nut (or fuel solenoid) that holds the bowl to the carb body before taking the bowl loose. Then, hold a gas-proof catch container lined with a clean, white paper towel under the bowl while you loosen and remove the bowl. The bowl will drain but the towel will catch trash so it can be examined. Also look carefully at the inside surfaces of the bowl for trash that might be stuck there. Finally, remove the main jet, or look into it at least, to see if it is partly clogged. If you find nothing trashy about the carb and bowl, you will need to proceed to remove the cylinder head for a look at what damage has been done to the piston and cylinder walls.

Basically, all you need to do is splice the two wires in the jumper connector together. Cut the jumper wire in half as suggested by my photoshopped image, strip some insulation off each, and connect them together in a 10 gauge butt splice, both stripped ends of wire in the same end of butt splice. Insert an extension lead of red 10 gauge wire About 8 inches should do) in the other end of butt splice. Cover the splice with heat shrinkable tubing. Cut off the red connector from the charge output wire on the regulator. Use a 10 gauge butt splice to connect the red regulator wire to the extension wire you added to the other 2 wires. HINT! Besure you put your heat shrink tubing onto the wire BEFORE you crimp the butt splice down. Joining the two red wires in the jumper connector serves to provide power to the orange wire that will operate the headlights, the red wire of the jumper serves to charge the battery.

unless you typed what you didn't mean to say? I Never heard of adjusting valves in the open position and not TDC. I would think pressure or Lift from the cam shaft would be present??? IMO the idea is to take all the slack or pressure off the cam shaft to push rod and adjust a few thousands for heat variations as the engine warms up and the parts grow due to getting hot (expanding)? I would make sure the valves are adjusted right and are closing (compression check) before I would tear it apart. But that's me. Evidently walts thinks your model engine has compression release system and that would require the 1/4 beyond TDC. he has helped amany on this forum with valve train problems. If it was me I would Seek his advice on how to adjust the valves on your model. If they are adjusted right then look elsewhere?