Craftsman Mower Starts Very Hard But Runs Good After getting started

Hello everyone, I am new to the forum.
A few weeks ago I bought this craftsman mower from an auction. The mower is #917378771 with Briggs Motor #128602-0215-E1. They said it had been sitting for a long time and had not been started in quite some time. I took it home and took apart the carb and it was unbelievably dirty. I gave it a thorough cleaning and put it all back together expecting it would run fine (which is usually the case when I have had similar situations). Well, that was only partly true. It was very tough to start without using starting fluid, but once it got going, it ran great. Once the engine is hot, it starts fine on the first pull. Only the cold starting is a problem. If you have any hope to start it normally, you have to prime it about 30-40 times. The primer bulb looked fine, but i tried replacing it anyway with no luck. The gasket that goes between the plastic air filter intake and the carb was in real bad shape. I tried to make it work with some silicone but it wasn't great. Perhaps the biggest issue, is that the stud bolts that mount the intake to the carb are stripped out pretty well. They do thread in, but they never get tight. Even when they are all the way in you can still turn them with your fingers. It appears to me that the primer is the only thing not functioning correctly, which may be cause the intake doesn't seal tight enough on the carb. Would that cause my issue? I have ordered a new gasket, and the grommet that goes on the breather tube, but i'm not sure what to do about the bolts not biting. I tried wrapping them in some thread tape to get a better bite. Any other suggestions besides replacing the carb? Any other ideas that maybe i'm not thinking about that might cause the problem? When i have the intake off, and i blow air thru the hole that the primer feeds, i see fuel come out in to the carb, so i think the primer is just not moving enough air to work efficiently. Any advice is welcome! thanks for looking.

Mower diagram - http://www.searspartsdirect.com/par...47/1500600?pathTaken=&prst=0&shdMod=917378771
Engine diagrams - http://www.searspartsdirect.com/par...roducts-Parts/Model-1286020215E1/1245/1503500

Sounds like those intake tube bolts/screws are the issue. I try to find a fix a thread kit for those.

I you used silicone between the prime housing and the carb, I probably plugged the prime line in the plastic housing. Need to get the proper gasket. But that will not help unless you get those stud bolts tight, or you will have a permanent air leak.

Thanks for the input guys. I think i did actually silicone over primer inlet in the carb on accident before i realized it. I actually hadn't thought to check on the intake, but did and it was open. I got a new gasket for it and installed it, but no luck since i can't seem to get the bolts tight. I think I am going to try to tap the threads on the carb to a slightly bigger size and find new bolts cause heli-coils are a bit expensive considering the mower isn't worth that much. Thanks for all your suggestions and i'll let you know how it goes. I also heard from another person that doubling the gaskets can sometimes help with priming issues, though I'm sure my main problem lies in the stripped bolts