So I took the plunge and rebuilt my carb.. no better.. Bail me out here...

Bought a basic rebuild kit and a new float

My original problem is that you could pump the pedal a thousand times, and it would not start until you used starting fluid.

Then once started it was a bit hard to keep going, but once warmed up, ran great.

So I figured the accelerator pump

On dissassembly, the accelerator pump was bad, the rubber plunger was separated from the plastic part. Thought I had it fixed!!!!

It cleaned up really nice, sprayed out all the orifices, measured the float depth and it went back together without any left over parts.

Installed it on the car.
Pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump pump

well you get the idea.. nothing... Ok the fuel line is empty or something, I used some starting fluid and it started. Same as before hard to keep going until it warmed up.

The real test will be tomorrow morning, when cold again to see if it will start with a pump or two or 300...



Here's the kicker.. I did not do a bushing fix on the base plate. Could have leaked before but never noticed it.. I now have a leak out of the drivers side bushing on the base plate. This leaked more when I sprayed starting fluid, not when running..o No:

I also noticed a leak on the large fuel inlet connection - more teflon tape here?o No:


Some extra information... there is no choke on this car, bought it like this. Has an offy intake maybe the last guy did not have a choke that would fit? This could explain the rough when cold.. but it should still make an attempt to start when pumping right?


Before





During



After

 

Could be that the basic kit accelerator pump failed as soon as the new ethanol gas hit it... Cliff has mentioned this problem in the past about this... http://www.cliffshighperformance.com/acc-pump.html

The base plate bushing leak is the same thing as a uncontrolled vacuum leak... should be repaired and bushed... http://www.cliffshighperformance.com/bushings.html

Cliff's book as well as Doug Roes are invaluable info for the Do It Yourself Mechanic..

Although, could be numerous other things as well.....

 

I noticed that the carb does have a choke, yet you mentioned that it did not have one. Since you may have meant that it did not have the choke thermostat, and the choke stays open, I will go from there. ANY carb must have a choke to start a cold engine. Without one, you can pump the throttle ad nauseum with no results. Why? There is no heat in the engine, and little air flow throuth the venturis when cranking, therefore absolutedly nothing will vaporize the fuel. Liquid fuel is nearly impossible to ignite with a spark. The choke restricts air flow into the engine, and the increasingly richer mixture provided by the choke is what starts a cold engine. Once the engine starts, the choke opens part way to let the engine breathe. Regardless of the vacuum leak on the throttle plate, without a choke, the engine will ALWAYS be nearly impossible to start. Ray

 

on the fuel fitting leak:

if your carb has the 7/8 thread, carburetion.com sells a thick gasket for that fitting that seals up pretty good. its #G1126 sold in a pack of 5
http://www.carburetion.com/quadrajet.asp


If the threads are stripped and thats the reason for leakage, then a helicoil is the fix.

.

 

I don't run a choke at all on my cars, in a warmer environment, it works fine.

I think your fuel bowl is leaking out and you have no fuel in the float bowl after it sits. Did you do anything on the bottom side to seal the plugs?

Did you "set" the check ball under the screw when you put it in? That keeps fuel in the passages for the accelerator pump so it should squirt immediately and not have to fill. I lightly tap on the ball with a punch to make sure it seats in bottom.

When you finished the Carb, did you test the accelerator flow with fluid before you put it on the car? If not with fluid, could you hear air squirting when you open the throtle?

Way to go on the build though, now to just week the issues and go!

 

threads are good... is there a seal/gasket that goes in there anyway?
I recall some round gaskets about that size in the rebuild kit but I didnt put anything on it...will check that

I bought the epoxy to do this, but it was already done and looked good, so I did not mess with it. There were also 2 other smaller spots of epoxy towards the front of the carb

I did put the new check ball in, but did not punch the old one.. I read this in Cliffs book after I had everything back together!:spank:

I did not test it with fluid, but yes I did hear the suction/air noise when if moved.

Im about to head to the garage in a few minutes to see if it will attempt to start o No:

 

I had the same problem on my carb: accel pump had lost the cup. I have a bunch of the new blue cups on the way, gonna re-fit all the Q-Jet cores I have (3+). Even though it appeared that the pump was pushing fuel to the primaries when I worked it with the air horn removed, once assembled, the pump was hardly squirting any fuel in there at all.

Your choke linkage on the passenger side looks funny. Looks like a rod from a divorced choke could fit there, but there are no holes in it to secure the rod end.

Make sure all of your unused vacuum sources on the carb are plugged. If you get a RPM increase when spraying starting fluid/carb cleaner on the primary linkage, you'll need the bushing fix. I'd thought I could get by without doing any of my carbs, but now I know I need to put new bushings in.

 

I had the same issue with the fuel inlet on mine when I bought it. I found a variety pack of gaskets (I think at O'Reilly) that worked for a while. I eventually bought a reman. carb - but that's another story.

 

Thanks guys
I got some garage time around lunch time today

I leaned in over and moved the throttle with my hand, and I could hear the 'hsssss' of fuel squirting in which was a good sign as that did not happen before.

Hopped in, turned the key and vroom!!!
A cold start was impossible before the rebuild without starting fluid.

The offenhauser intake has a 'bowl' for a choke, only one bolt hole near it.. an oem unit will not fit for sure.

I have an edelbrock intake, anyone know if that will accept an oem choke thermostat?

Been thinking about an electric choke too, I have a 75 carb with an electric unit on it.

 

That well in the intake is for the divorced choke. My 430 wildcat motor has that well, and the choke cover is secured with a single bolt in the middle of the outer long side.

Here's a thread with pics of the divorced choke on another Buick:

http://www.v8buick.com/showthread.php?t=207462

 

Yes.

the 7/8" fuel inlet fittings have a small ring gasket that slips over the threads and seals on the front face of the carb.

The 1" fuel inlet fitting has a thin clear plastic looking ring seal that attaches to the inboard end of the threaded end of the fitting.

you can get the correct seals at www.quadrajetparts.com or I can send you a few if you dont have them.

 

I remember gaskets like that, I'll install it!

 

If you fix the choke, you might want to find a choke pull-off assembly to reinstall back on the carb, also.

 

so thats what the second vacuum pod on the back is for... hmmm

 

Never use teflon tape on any fuel fitting. It will find it's way into the carburetor and cause troubles.

The epoxy dabbed over the bottom plugs is about as effective as cutting your arm off and putting a bandaide on it. We pressure test carburetors every day repaired like the one pictured, and they leak every single time right thru the glue dabbed on them.

Upgrade to the modern accellerator pump assembly, the old style pumps, even with a "blue" seal on them, will NOT hold up in this new fuel.

The carburetor you are working with appears to be a commercially "remanufactured" unit, they ALWAYS have issues, and are more difficult to get working correctly than an unmolested factory unit.

The choke assembly mounted to it is from an early Pontiac carburetor, and will not work correctly with the Buick choke stove anyhow, at least not without modifications......Cliff

 

Cliff you really know how to make a guys day LOL :laugh: (Im kidding)

I guess the silver lining is that I rebuilt my first carb with a basic kit, and it was not as bad as I thought. Organization is the key

I will keep my eye out for a nicer Buick carb, and have a pro such as yourself take care of it for me.

:beers2:

 

Watch out when buying Ebay I got a newly rebuilt carb that had a bad heli coil job. Plus look at the fitting... gas just poured outta this one. Make sure you get pictures of this area before buying.

 

Cliff, do you have any carbs in stock for sale? or just do rebuilds.
I may have to look for a better core to be built as the one I have has its issues.

Im looking to do an intake swap in the next month or so, and to top it off with a better running/tuned carb may be the way to go