I keep thinking that I'll get caught up with the folder of posts that I have saved to blog about. With the last few months, I simply was swamped and I can't even recall what transpired two days ago, let alone a few weeks. If I ever intend to get back to blogging, I'm going to have just pick up where I am and hope that I can put a few of the "lost month posts" in wherever I can.
Today, I rebuilt a Quadrajet 4 barrel carburetor. I received the Quadrajet in pieces as the previous owner had done a thorough cleaning, but I wasn't sure I would be able to find all the parts and pieces. Luckily these carbs seem pretty simple I had purchased a rebuild kit and was hoping that I might be able to do this on my own otherwise I was going to need a new carburetor and an adapter plate (or new manifold) to go on the 327. I already was starting with a missing choke plate and no choke mechanism so it was a gamble to see if this thing was even usable as it sat. I figured a $30 kit was cheaper to try then dumping over $350 into a new carb. Most everything I read about the "Quadra-junk" carbs was not favorable, but there are still some devoted folks who say that is all about the rebuilding and proper set-up. While I was in Illinois for Memorial Day, I even tried to hunt down some expert advice with some of my Dad's friends and some of my high school friends and most people advised to me junk the Quadrajet and go with a new carb. I continued to read more and it just seemed to me that these carbs were getting an unfair reputation.
The fact that I wanted to accept the challenge, and mostly the fact that I'm a cheap person, I starting reading about how to rebuild these last night. This morning, I went to the hardware store and picked up some missing bolts for the carb and some epoxy to seal two of the problem areas that everyone talks about on the rebuild forums. I got to work on the rebuild and followed all of the steps carefully along with setting the float level, and made sure everything was clean. By this afternoon, I was able to bolt it on and fire it up. Even without the choke plate (which I have ordered), it runs decent with the stock settings. Unbelievable!
4 comments:
you got a land cruiser?!?
Yes, I just got a 1975 FJ40 Land Cruiser. I've always wanted an old Land Rover, but those are out of my price league so the FJ is the next best thing. It came with a ton of pictures and receipts from the first owner, and the second owner worked at Oshkosh truck so he did replacement of the rusty sections that were present in the rear end. He used galvanized steel sheet from his work. He basically prepared the whole shell and ran out of steam to finish it before he moved.
My first car was an Olds Ninety-Eight with a 455 that had a Quadrajet. I remember having my buddies in the car and I'd swat the throttle and the car would do nothing...and then...the giant sucking sound! Air would start to flow, our heads would all snap back and off we'd go.
You probably know this but there were plenty of guys drag racing in stock classes that were required to use the factory carb. My car was used up when I got it and I didn't know anything about carb tuning but they can be made to work.
Good for you taking up the challenge.
Yeah, I've heard these things can be really insane when they "hook up". I am picking up another couple of these this weekend who is cleaning out his garage, so Maybe I can rebuild one to keep on the shelf if this one turns out to be trash.
I love to hear about people's experiences with these though. They put them on so many different cars and trucks so people seem to have knowledge about them even if it is a mixed bag in terms of reviews.
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