Success! The Lock-Ease did the trick and the engine had a nice soft start. I need to work on why it always starts once, then dies, and then is able to start without a hitch the second time. It'll do this even on a hot day. The key is that it only does this after sitting for a week or more. My theory is that the built up fuel pressure from the previous drive bleeds off out of the injector pump over time due to a leaking check valve somewhere. It runs first just off the cold start valve, and while it does, rotates the injection pump building up pressure. The second start then has enough pressure to carry on. Anyone have any other thoughts? It's not a major problem, but is annoying.
