I can't remember but I think a timing light is about 50 -100 bucks (as I say I can't remember)
Timing lights are worthwhile getting if you can or even better if you can borrow one.
Staticly timing can mean that your timing is a fair way out, I think someone else here had experience of how far out a staticly timed motor can be.
Also the timing light gave me a little bit of an indication that the dizzy was not what it should be, ie the timing would vary alot as I was trying to time the engine (something like 5 - 7 degrees if I remember rightly) so I replaced that dizzy with the pulsar one
If it has good compression then I am guessing it is probably not a problem with valves sealing but you are testing this at low revs (just flicking the starter over right) so maybe the spring has time to seal a faulty valve and at revs it doesn't
It is alot easier to see the timing marks when you are looking at them with a timing light, if you can't see them try changing the angle of the mirror (but I guess you did this already )
Hope this helps
PS: I wouldn't touch the timing until you get a timing light and can work out what you are doing if you loose your original timing setting then it can be pretty hard to get the engine going again. (if you do adjust it by ear etc make sure you mark where it was orginally so that you can go back to that point)
Oh and if you are adjusting your timing make sure that it is not running low on fuel
when doing the timing on my clubby I didn't realize it was so low and was trying to adjust the timing to compensate for it starving for fuel
and wondering why it was still running like SH$T
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