Funny you should mention carb fires, I had one yesterday that heated up the open hood, didn't want to cover the thing with fire extinguisher dust and it wouldn't ingest itself by continuing to crank the starter. I had to throw a pair of welding gloves on top to put it out.

It does sound like you have some plug wires on incorrectly or when you stabbed the distributor back in you missed it by a tooth or so. Did you put the crankshaft in the #1 piston top dead center, compression stroke position before you pulled the distributor? Maybe check the plug wires just to be sure they are on the correct plugs. Firing order is 18436572. If the plugs are all where they belong you may have gotten the distributor back on a camshaft tooth over one way or the other..Pull the # 1 plug and turn the engine by hand (socket on the crankshaft nut and a long handled ratchet or breaker bar) until the mark on the damper is approaching the timing marks on the front cover. Put your finger over the plug hole and check that it is in compression not exhaust stroke. Set the crankshaft to top dead center on compression stroke # 1 cylinder. Mark the distributor housing just below #1 wire tower with a felt pen or piece of chalk. Take off the distributor cap and check if the rotor is pointing to where #1 terminal mark is.. If it isn't loosen the distributor and turn until the rotor is pointing to the position of the #1 mark. If you can't turn it to the mark because it is hitting the firewall or head then you can change the position of the wires in the cap to match the rotor or pull the distributor and reinstall it so the rotor ends up pointing to your mark. I like to turn the distributor so the rotor is pointing to a point just before the mark, that will get you close to the correct advance for starting, Then it's a matter of starting the engine and turning the distributor to get it at the correct timing.