""It was running PIG rich in gear!""
On your next drive, after the engine is up to running temp, find a quiet parking spot and apply your emergency brake (or have a friend apply the brake) with the tranny in D. Then spend some time tuning your metering screws to achieve the highest vacuum reading while readjusting your idle after each adjustment (if needed). You should be able to tune it in D (13's or so) if you have enough initial timing.

"" It was dropping in the 11.0 range but it was still pinging.""
Was it pinging while showing 11.0 or did it ping under accel before it hit 11.0?

What was your leanest reading while you were out driving?