My 58 Delray (Deathray) has a carb issue that's got me running in circles. The car had been mothballed for almost 20 years in a garage when I got it. The PO said it was running when parked (don't they all!) and had a rebuilt engine. Once I got it home I started fidlling with it and discovered burnt points and timing WAY out of spec. Once I got the ignition issues sorted, it will start and run, but it is running WAY too rich. The carb (Rochester) looks to be a new rebuilt unit. I took it off, cleaned it up to make sure everything was in good shape, and reinstalled-still ran way too rich. I took it back off, and dug around in a box of parts that was in the car and found a carb kit. I discovered it was missing the spring that goes on top of the check ball for the power valve. Replaced the spring-still runs too rich. According to the diagram that was in the kit and the spec's page, the carb is complete and float level is correct. I'm pretty sure the issue with the carb is related to the choke. The carb has the threaded center for exhaust heat to the choke, but the car doesn't have a line from the exhaust manifold for carb heat. I'm not familiar enough with the 235 to know if that's where my problem is...should it have a different carburetor? If the carb is correct for this model year, how do I set the choke? Right now, it doesn't seem to want to pull off at all-the vacuum line is hooked up, and I can feel a vacuum at the hole in the center of the choke housing when I put my finger over the hole in the center, but the choke won't pull off. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks
I suck at carbs but god love me I keep trying.You should go to a good jobber parts store and order the proper kit and do it yourself.Standard ignition still offers good rebuild kits.If you have a throttle shaft problem you might find a small machine shop in your area to help with that.If you can do the body work,you can rebuild the carb.
If you're not pre-heating your choke, turn the thermostat cover to keep the choke open all the time. I'm not sure what you mean by "pulling it off" (the choke body itself won't come off the carb unless you remove the valve from the shaft), but the 'stat cover/coil should come off without much coercing. Try taking a Phillips screw driver that fits into the heat inlet and carefully pry off. Beyond the choke, what size main jet does it have?
do you mean, clouds of black smoke rich? Gas coming out of places it shouldn't be? Is this a "B" Rochester? Frank
Auto choke carbs need to be connected to a heat stove off the exhaust, to work properly. The auto choke heat input should not just be plugged, as the carb doesn't work right that way either. Even better - get the universal manual choke conversion kit from NAPA. Also check for the correct gasket to the intake - you want all the holes on the bottom of the carb to match the cutouts of your gasket. Once you get it going, you will find out if the accelerator plunger spring was the correct one for this carb. It's gotta be just right, so you don't get hesitation when punching the pedal. Rochester Bs always run too rich and most are leaking because of warping due to age and only 4 mounting screws. I would look for a Carter YF with manual choke, instead. Much better response and mileage!
I've never run chokes on any carb, including the Holley 2bbl on my 235. Disable the choke and warm up the car so it sits at a health idle. Dial in the mixture screws with a vacuum gauge, set idle to correct rpm, and see where you're at. If it's still running real rich I'd start looking elsewhere for the problem... and if it is a Rochester "B", pull it off and get yourself something else... that's why I went with my Holley. -ns
The carb is a rebuilt unit-I had a new kit, and robbed the missing spring from it. Other than the missing spring everything looks freshly built.
Carb vacuum won't pull the choke off-like the spring has too much tension. I can get the cover off fine-sorry for the confusion. Should there be a heat line on 58? Where would it come from? If not running heat to it, do I just loosen off the the tension until the choke just flops around? Do I plug the heat inlet to get rid of the vacuum leak?
Yes, it's a Rochester-BC I think...whichever one has the auto choke, which I think is not adjusted properly. Is it supposed to have a heat line to it for a 58? Clouds of black smoke rich, yes. When I pull the carb, there is raw gas in the intake. As for gas coming out places it shouldn't, the outside of the carb is pretty dry. It was leaking a litle around the top, but after the last round of having it off the car I got the hard vacuum line from the base to line up a little better and the top clamps down cleanly.
If it's got a choke housing, it's a BC (http://chevy.tocmp.com/Rochester/9C325p03.htm). The choke stove connects to the exhaust manifold in tiny recessed pocket (look straight down from directly above). I used a later choke cover with a reversed coil to hold my choke wide open on one of my BCs.
Adjust the choke so it's open all the time and try that. That should get ya running . Somebody mentioned before, if ya need a choke, put on a manual conversion kit. KISS. If the float level was too high or the pump pressure way up there(or the needle leaking), it would be leaking gas out from where the accelerator pump link is and also might be dripping from the internal vent right into the carb when you look down the barrel. Frank
Thanks Frank- I have moved the cover over to the lean side so that the choke stayed open-seemed too lean then (high idle and spitting back through the carb), but I didn't try to adjust the mixture or idle speed at that position. Float level is spot on according to spec's, and needle and seat are new. Once I set the choke to the point it's always open, do I plug the hot air inlet so I don't have a vacuum leak?
I am not certain that the hot air inlet (from the stove pipe) will create a vacuum leak. I have an engine from a 57 in the garage and it has the said stove pipe. I cant see where it would create a vacuum leak. One thing i might do is put a fuel filter inline - if this thing has been sitting a long time as you describe, you might be getting little pieces of junk in the needle and seat. Crap in the needle and seat has driven more than one guy to drink. Its easy to convert to an electric choke and get rid of the heat pipe altogether. Just another idea Keep us posted. These little nuisances can turn out to be a bitch to run down.
6-the heat pipe is gone...there is a small hard line from the carb base that has vacuum to the choke housing. I can feel a vacuum at the heat inlet when I put my finger over it. The car is running on a gas can sitting on the fender to avoid the crud, so I'm relatively sure that needle and seat issues and float level aren't the cause of the problem. About that 57 engine...where does the heat tube run to? does it connect to anything or just sit on the exhaust manifold? Thanks for the help.
I'm at the office, so I'll have to check at home tonight for sure, but it looked like the pipe connected to a little sheetmetal clip that attached to the exhaust manifold.
Just put a rubber plug over the choke fitting if you're concerned about vacuum leak. As I mentioned before, the choke stove (heat tube) slips into a small recess port on the exhaust manifold. If you can get the carb dialed in without the choke, don't sweat the heat tube. Or, just swap to a manual choke. That's what I run on my 235 right now.
if you decide to do your own rebuild the napa echlin carb kit number is 2-5158 under $20 bucks. it sounds like a poor rebuild and on those carbs new floats always help. go to www.stovebolt.com do a search entering "carb" everything you wanted to know about that carb is there.
You don't need to plug the heat riser tube, but go ahead, if you like. there is a small amount of vacuum that is supposed to pull hot air into the choke, from the exhaust manifold (actually, fresh air that is heated by the exhaust manifold). So even when hooked up, there is a slight vacuum leak, don't worry about it. I think you have other problems, like the others have said. I would invest in a NEW carb rebuild kit, and CAREFULLY rebuild it again. Be sure all mating surfaces are flat, and seal well. All passages are clear, there is no junk in the fuel bowl. that the check balls seat well, and the springs have enough tension on them to seal them up. No cracks, or holes anywhere that shouldn't be there. Check fuel pressure with a guage. If the float was meant to see 3-4 lbs, and you're pumping in 6-7, the float level will be off, no matter HOW you set it initially. Pressure can overcome it. Use the newer style viton needle and seat in the kit....an old kit may have the old brass one, which isn't as good. All in all, be very attentive to all the parts in your carb, when you rebuild it, something may have been mised the first itme...happens a LOT! Even if it's rebuilt, it doesn't mean it's GOOD!
my 250 is doing something very similar to this and i haven't been able to pin it down yet. it's running too rich and fouling the plugs out. carb is a new rebuilt and the choke seems to be working correctly but after it starts initially if you turn it off it won't start again. i am also missing the heat riser tube from the manifold. let me know if you figure yours out.
The Jalopy Journal
