I cant seem to figure this one out myself so I had to ask. My carberator is the 1904 holley carb. The problem I am having Is when I go to start my car up gas just comes gushing out of the venturi tube at the top of the carb. I looked in my manual and it says the carb is choking itself out. Last night I took it of the car and took the needle out cleaned it up took of the float bowl cover and cleaned it all out with carb cleaner. I didn't completey take the carb apart just cleaned it up a little. So is the carb choking itself out cause of a misadjusted choke? or is there some gunk that got stuck in the carb?
Sounds like you've got a needle and seat or float level problem to me. Fuel is filling the float bowl and coming out the overflow.
I checked the float bowl last night to see if it was level. Ill double check again today. i pulled out the needle and took a look at it and it was a little black on the tip of it so I cleaned it and put back in. I think maybe some junk in the carb might be the problem my feul filter looks a little dirty. hopefully I can get this solved quickly.
okay problem fixed so far. it didn't flood out this time I took off the carb checked my float level and it was a little off. I then checked the choke and made an adjustment there. so it was either the choke got misadjusted or the float was off.
okay so now I got it to stop flooding itself so now it idles rough. any Ideas? I have a vacuum gauge and its reading about 15, 16 on the vacuum gauge with little movement on the needle. I can drive it but when I come to a complete stop it just cuts out. uuuhg!
I would check the fuel pressure should be at 4 1/2 lbs psi some stock pumps will exceed that, that would cause almost all the problems you are dealing with.If the pressure is higher than that put a regulator in the line.
Do your regular tune-up carb adjustment routine - adjust mixture screws and idle speed - until the car idles properly (in gear if it's an automatic) and pulls highest steady vacuum. Check timing. Don't forget to plug the vacuum port! If it still idles rough or has low vacuum, look for a vacuum leak - cracked hose, missing vacuum cap, carburetor base gasket, etc., etc. If the car stalls when pulling away from a stop - as opposed to when you are coming to a stop - check your accellerator pump and adjust/repair as required. If the car seems to be running excessively rich (sniff the tail pipe) and won't idle smoothly at the proper idle speed no matter what you do with the idle mixture screws, suspect the power valve...especially if the carb is old or you've experienced a backfire recently. The alcohol in today's fuel is hard on diaphrams. Good luck!
I agree about the ethanol in the fuel . It plays hell on old rubber products that are in all our older cars ! Eats the rubber up and you know where it ends up at . That's why I now p*** up on NOS parts and carb rebuild kits now . Jim
Okay so I got it all warmed up tonight. plugged the vacuum, checked my vacuum and idle speed. its a 3 speed w OD. my vacuum reads 17 the idle speed reads 450 500. took the timing light checked my timing its dead on. drives great down the road but when I come to a stop it just cuts out. I start it back up drive down the road and come to a stop it just cuts out. Its not sputtering and knocking it just slowly cuts out. I look at the vacuum diaphram tommorow night and see what I come up with I with also check for leaks cracks etc. thanks for all the input fellas.
Bump the idle speed to 600 - 700 and see what happens. If it stays running I'd suspect a weak fuel pump. It could also be hot weather vapor lock, thanks to the amount of alcohol in today's fuel. If the car runs good cold but feels like its running out of gas when it's hot, suspect vapor lock. You can try temporary band-aid fixes, but the only real cure for vapor lock is an electric fuel pump. Use a low-pressure in-line pump mounted under the floor as a pusher. Mount a toggle under the dash so it doesn't run all the time. In-line fuel pumps are very quiet because they do not mount to the frame or to the sheet metal. BE SURE TO INSTALL A FRESH BRAIDED HOSE WHERE THE FUEL LINE JUMPS FROM THE FIREWALL TO THE ENGINE. THIS IS A SUCTION LINE IN THE ORIGINAL CONFIGURATION BUT BECOMES A PRESSURE LINE WHEN THE ELECTRIC FUEL PUMP IS OPERATING. EVEN A TINY PIN HOLE IN THIS LINE WILL MIST GASOLINE ONTO THE HOT ENGINE. INSTANT BIG FIRE!!! I ALMOST BURNED UP MY SHOEBOX BECAUSE OF THIS MISSED DETAIL. Good luck and keep us informed.
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