Howdy jnaki! Last thing first. No lake pipes or collectors, only glass packs. Also, I don’t get any stank inside the car while driving. The only time I notice it is while it’s idling in the driveway. Well, you might say, “don’t idle it in the driveway!”. Actually anywhere it’s idling It stinks. Now to the birds. Man, do I feel your pain. The fellow that had our house built in 1935 was an entomologist at Yale University. He planted some very unusual trees for this area, (the Northeast), on the property. One of them was a Cork tree. A majestic tree with delicate leaves and Cork for bark. Oh, and dark cherry like berries that would come out once a year. Every year like clockwork, flocks of Starlings would stop to feast on the berries and stay around just long enough for their digestive systems to cycle and expel maroon colored guano onto everything in sight. I do miss the shade that old tree provided. Be well Jeff
I think its the Ethanol That's in the Fuel is your Problem That's why I have been using Non Ethanol Fuel fore the Last 6 year's there must be places in CT. that Sell that Type of Gas for Lawn Mowers and other Things Just my 3.5 cents :Live Learn & Die a Fool
You say it's definitely the exhaust, but how do you know that it isn't crankcase fumes. You only smell it when it's idling. Yeah, that's an indication. Change your oil, change the brand you normally use. See if that effects the smell. At work we've had customers that sometimes have complained about odors causing operators to get sick. I'll admit that there's something strange about those exceptionally clean plug insulators, but keep your mind open to other possible sources until you get this figured out, it might just be crankcase vapors.
Brand new oil since the start of “The Vapors”, so oil is ruled out. Maybe. It’s raw and drizzly here today so hopefully tomorrow I can take step #1 and fatten up the carb a bit to see what happens. Many thanks for the thoughts. Jeff
Not necessarily, just because it's new doesn't mean there isn't an ingredient, or a combination of ingredients, that are causing the odor, in your engine. This may not be the cause, but don't rule it out until you've solved the issue.
The only thing I’ve ruled out positively is my neighbor who was standing next to me when I first detected the “stank”. All options are on the table.
Any thing is possible so pull the Dip Stick out & Smell it and if you are Running a Automatic Do the Same.! and take 2 Asperin's & Call me in the AM And I will tell you what to do.! Dom. Just my 3.5 Cents Live Learn & Die a Fool
Dom If I can pull my dipstick out and smell it, taking care of that would be a priority over the car stank! Not an auto. 3speed top loader. Jeff
Try Autolite 124 plugs. They don't have that extended tip. I use them in all my Fords that use the big plug.
jnaki you talk of the swallows not returning to Capistrano (we have been to the Mission many times) and have noticed on our many miles we do on your Hwys, hundreds of swallows nesting under overhead road bridges,we always hope we do not hit any. At speed we do not smell them Noel
I read I most applications a tip that extends into the chamber is better for combustion; I’m sure the recommendations today are different than the mid 50’s when his engine was manufactured. For my high compression engines up to 14-1 I buy plugs with the most porcelain I can get. Since an engine is just an air pump what ever the smell is it must be a product of the combustion. There should only 4 items that COULD be part of it. Air, gasoline as a fuel, oil and additives passing the rings and valve seal, and a coolant which could be just water or a miriad of products and additives by the owner.
I’m ready to start with the carb setup but I have a question. When I initially set it up with a vacuum gauge, I used the port on the carb base. Now I am reading some info that I should only use a true manifold vacuum for this task. Differing schools of thought. Gimme the straight skinny! Holley 4160 Thanks Jeff
Manifold vacuum is manifold vacuum, it shouldn't make a difference where you measure it from, it should be equal at all points.
My "M-word" SBF would bring tears-to-your-eyes idling (especially in a garage). My remedy is what I preach all the time. Put all the advance in the timing it will stand! Don't worry about "what-da-book-say"...advance it until it starts pinging going up a hill (when warm)....and will spin the starter to crank when warm. Also......most new carbs are sent from the manufacture on the rich side. Lean it down with jet change or jet and metering rods (on an Eddy carb). Lean it out until it starts surging while idling along in gear (porpoising) then go back UP one jet size. Bet that will get it close. Hey....they both are FoMoCo products so they have a lot in common 6sally6
I kinda thought so, but I kept seeing references to, “can’t be a port vacuum, it must be manifold vacuum.” Thanks Blues
Thanks for the info 6sally6 The general consensus regarding my “stank”, seems that it is too lean. So I’m going to try a few things before I start rejetting. Jeff
That has to do with vacuum advance, not carb tuning. There are several threads and discussions on that topic around here. Some folks are adamant that 1 way is superior to the other. Reasonable folks say it depends on what the individual car prefers, which you can tell by trying it both ways. For adjusting the carb air idle mixture screws you want to use manifold vacuum for sure, ported vacuum won't even register any vacuum at idle.
When I set the mixture the first time, (only time), I used ported on the carb and I seem to recall a pretty good vacuum reading. I’m going to try again tomorrow and report.
Ported sees no vacuum at all until the throttle butterflies are opened in the carb, that is not supposed to occur when idling, and if it does it indicates a problem.
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