I have been working on my 67 coupe and i freshened up the old 289, i did not mess with the cam or timing chain, just put some new gaskets and inspected the rotating assembly and re-assembled it. I feel 90% sure I got the distributor dropped on TDC, i did it 3 times just to make sure. I put a carburetor on there (holley 600 4bbl). It was used but i tore it down and cleaned it and blew air through every circuit in the carburetor, i can blow air down the intake with the carb attached and gas does trickle out of the venturis, so im almost certain the carburetor is in good shape. When i pump the carb and crank the car, she busts off fine, but when it burns that gas up it dies....its acting like either the timing is off a cog perhaps?? or its not sucking enough air to pull the gas out of the venturi's. Also i have turned the distributor all the way to the right (bumping the water neck) and it busts off best there, but its also hard to start there, the starter labors to crank when its here. As long as i am pumping the carb it will run.....soooo ideas? carb or timing? (also when i turn it all the way to the left it backfires like a shotgun at close range)
Carburetor or Timing?
- Thread starter robbz28
- Start date
blown65
Founding Member
Well, you could move the distributor 1 tooth over to not run into hitting your water neck.
As for the other, could be something with the floats in the carb not adusted correctly, needle and seat issue, good sized vacuum leak somewhere. I would be looking at the carb if it was me. Get a second set of eyes and pull the plugs on the side of the carb and see whats going on with the fuel level.
Timing light would probably help, set it to around 12-14 to baseline.
As for the other, could be something with the floats in the carb not adusted correctly, needle and seat issue, good sized vacuum leak somewhere. I would be looking at the carb if it was me. Get a second set of eyes and pull the plugs on the side of the carb and see whats going on with the fuel level.
Timing light would probably help, set it to around 12-14 to baseline.
Yeah, i am thinking carb as well, but i believe i have the timing too advanced as it is with all the load on the starter....but this is one of those "next gen" carbs from holley with the "new and improved" non adjustable floats. I will check for vaccum leaks again, i hate sitting at work stewing about it, wish i was home where i could play!
Also, i have checked the needle and seat, took the bowls off and inspected everything, it all seems to be working as it should be, i ran some air through everything, even blew into the fuel inlet and worked the floats and they shut my air on and off for me, i even took the power valve out and inspected it...starting to move toward vaccum leak, just dont know where i could be getting that from...
Are you actually pumping fuel to the carb? From what I understand, I had a similar problem when I was first starting my car after rebuilding the motor. Namely, my fuel pump wasn't able to pull gas from the tank up to pump and into the carb while it was turning over. The only way it would run would be if I filled the bowls.
What I did was I manually pulled gas from the tank by disconnecting the line that feeds from the tank to the pump at the pump and siphoned it through and reconnected the line. This solved my fueling issues. Does this sound like the issue you are having?
What I did was I manually pulled gas from the tank by disconnecting the line that feeds from the tank to the pump at the pump and siphoned it through and reconnected the line. This solved my fueling issues. Does this sound like the issue you are having?
It's more likely the timing's not quite right yet. Are you still running points ? If so, then they could be a problem too. The best way to set the initial timing is to align the timing mark to where you want it set on the balancer, then remove the #1 plug wire and ground it with a screw driver (leave a gap for a spark to jump) then with the key in the on position, slowly rotate the distributor back and forth and watch for the spark. When it sparks.... stop right there and lock the distributor down. Next fire it up, adjust the carb to where it'll idle on its own, then fine tune the timing. You're looking for 10-16* BTDC as the initial timing.Once you have this done and it doesn't idle the way it should, then look at the carb as a cause. And if you are running points, get rid of em ASAP and replace with a Pertronix unit, or any other drop in electronic unit.
Yeah, i have plenty of fuel pumping into the carburetor....i like that idea about grounding out the spark plug, i have never thought about that. I just removed the plug and waited on the "whistle" then rolled the engine manually to the timing mark (which could have slipped over the years). I am going to try that when i get home (the spark plug trick). I also put a new intake on the car, i don't think i have any problems with it, but i will inspect it closeley for any possible leaks.
RGS0907
New Member
I think its my carburetor, i got it off ebay, and the dang thing looked new, it had been used, but very slightly, i blew out all the passages and checked it out, but it just wont do right, i am going to see if i can bum a spare off of someone and test my theory. I did the spark plug trick yesterday and found out i was on TDC and the car will sit there and run as long as im pumping the pedal, but it won't pull gas out of the venturi...so im thinking its more clogged up than i had thought (just because 100psi of air will flow through it dont necessarily mean 5 psi of fuel will) or its got a crack or something in it im not finding.
woodsnake
15 Year Member
I think it's your timing. The distributor should not be all the way up against the intake manifold. The vacuum advance should be ~in the middle, almost pointing straight towards the radiator.
Yes you can wire the cap differently, but you will be happier with the greater room for adjustment having the distributor and advance in the right spot.
Yes you can wire the cap differently, but you will be happier with the greater room for adjustment having the distributor and advance in the right spot.
blown65
Founding Member
Where the distributor is pointed means zero. You can have it point 180 degrees the opposite direction and it could be dead on, or 180 off. It all depends on where you stab it. Only thing negative about having it all the way one direction is your out of adjustment if you need to go further.
woodsnake
15 Year Member
I just went thru this on my kids 70 XR7. The vacuum advance was all the way into the intake, and we were out of room for adjustment. Pulled the valve cover, took out the number one plug, pulled and dropped the distributor back in where it was supposed to be and bingo! Right in the middle, plenty of room for adjustment, perfect.
Guess i should have specified, that i have resolved my timing issue, its not against the intake anymore, i got it moved over 1 tooth and it sparks when it is pointing straight toward the radiator, so plenty of play to the left and right now....i just went to autozone and got me a shiny new carb, i know the guy there, he is pretty cool, told me as long as i dont mess up the carb and get it nasty if that don't fix my problem i can bring it back...
blown65
Founding Member
Well just to let you guys know, it WAS the carburetor, i sat that new carb on there and she purred like a kitten, next im going to set my valves proper and my timing with the light, get it over to the exhaust shop, then body, paint, interior, etc....I thank you guys for your help and ideas.
65FBE2
Member
I would rather buy a ratty looking carb used than one that looks like new. A new looking "used carb" normaly has been a problem for someone else and he is just unloading it on some other sucker
Those are the carbs I jump on. 
They may have been a problem for someone else, but it's never been the carb's fault with the ones I buy. The last I bought was the 570 SA I have on my 89 Ranger's 5.0. Ran perfect right out of the shipping box after changing the powervalve (not that it needed it, but it was cheap insurance against a ruptured P/V diaphram from sitting up) The one before that was plugged solid on the primary side from a guy who neglected to run a fuel filter. He also never tuned it to where the secondary side opened up. That side was spotless inside the bowl. My 3x2 setup was bought used and only a year old. Ain't had one minute's trouble from it. I never buy new carbs. I only buy the new looking "problem" carbs you avoid.
