I have my original correct number carb freshly rebuilt by Jim Weise; now all I need is to put on new exhaust and install a correct distributor, and I'll be ready for December 3rd! Exhaust next week! :beer Frank
Well, I got the new carb running and everything, and I have 2 little quirks I need to work out. 1)The choke is new and intact, and when I set it for a cold start, the car starts fine, goes to correct fast idle, and then dies. It is easy to restart, and with a little gas it will keep running. NO biggie, but not optimum. 2) During a drag race style full throttle take off, it drops off badly at the 1-2 shift. It will catch up and go OK. I'm thinking the fuel pump may be the culprit for both of these problems... it is stock and of unknown age. Thoughts??? TIA Frank
Oooooo pretty! Temple!!! :TU: :3gears: :3gears: :3gears: I replaced my fuel pump because, as you probably know, my car was dying on the track from 1st - 2nd. :af: Haven't taken it to the track since replacing the pump, but will know more after putting it on the dyno this weekend. Let me know what you find out and I'll let you know what I find out.
choke question I need to find a choke stole(sp?) for my 66 skylark rochester 2gc, any ideas or suggestions? I am in NYC
I got a Mr. Gasket (don't say it) really cheap (a lot cheaper than a Stage 1) to try. Think it was a 9 psi. If it fixes the problem, I'll upgrade later.
Frank: The problem with acceleration could be the fuel pump. Another option: Do you know what the float setting is? Raising it slightly might be something to try. 1/32" at a time increments. Too high will cause other problems. Does it do this on the 2-3 WOT shift too? Did it do this before the rebuild? By dropping off, do you mean it just sorta flattens out, like a valve spring float issue? On the choke issue, when it dies can you just reset the choke and fast idle by stepping on the pedal once and restart it?
Frank: Sounds like it possibly could be having a power piston sticking in the down position with it occassional falling flat on the 1-2 WOT shift. Have you tried adjusting the float level? Since this carb is new to you, did you have any of these problems with the other carb you removed? If the problems arose when you bolted this carb on, then.....well I guess that points to this carb. Was wondering something, is that carb painted to give it that bluish color? Or was it dyed? I've never seen one that color before. On the choke problem, you said it'll come up on fast idle when it starts then die. You can restart it but have to play with the gas pedal a little. If I understood you right. Can you just simply reset the choke and turn the key to start and not touch the pedal again?
Frank, On the cold start issue, you need to adjust the pulloff slightly, to keep the choke plate closed a little bit more. This is simple. on passenger side of the carb, you need to bend the pulloff lever slightly, so as to not allow it contact the secondary hold off linkage quite so soon, this will cause the primary choke plate to stay farther closed, will richen the mixture, an keep the engine running cold. While we set these adjustments during rebuild, it is not uncommon at all on a 35+ year old motor that they may need to be "tweeked" a little bit for the particular engine it is sitting on. Any vacuum leakage, either external (hoses Pcv valve or other vacuum controls) or internal in the engine (valves or gaskets), will lean the mixture out farther than the factory had intended. I probably rebuilt 500 Q Jets in my years in the industry before I just started working on Buicks, and it was standard to have to "tweek" them a little after the rebuild was complete. The picture below is has a blue arrow pointing at the arm you need to bend slightly, to keep the primary choke plate closed a little bit more, to give the engine the cold start/cold run mixture it wants. But before you do that, I want you to put a vacuum gauge on the fully warm engine, and adjust the mixture screws in the baseplate of the carb, to obtain the highest vacuum reading. Warm A/F mixture must be correct, and any external vaccum leaks eliminated, before you start fooling with the choke. On the 1-2 bog, try this first.. take the fuel filter out. Often times a weak fuel pump will not be able to push the fuel thru the filter fast enough, and removing the filter will eliminate that restriction will be your first step in determining a fuel delivery problem. I believe the float level is 15/32, as specified for your engine/year. I would have to check that with the paperwork we have here to be absolutely sure, as I have rebuilt a couple Q-jets since that one, and they all tend to blend together after a while. That carb was on a 71 GS 455 motor on my test stand after we rebuilt it, and the primary power piston was functioning correctly at that time. The other thing is make sure your timing is set correctly, as this very much can affect engine operation when cold. The carb body was glass beaded, as someone had painted it silver at one time.
OK Jim, I'll try those things. The car runs 10 times better with the carb you rebuilt on it, than it did with the 73 model carb I had before. Frank
eeek.. I need to get my carb done... Now I've got three of em, I'll just have to dig in. Keep us posted as we might all learn something as you get it adjusted.
Problem solved I had two major problems: a big vacuum leak at the headlight canisters, and a bad fuel pump. My 17 year old was driving it this week and it got progressively worse-- we changed the FP and now she purrs like a kitten! Thanks to everyone who responded!! :bglasses: :beer Frank
