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Edelbrock sells two different 4 barrel cabs, one a copy of the Carter AFB and one a copy of the Q-jet. The AFB type is usually chrome finished and is short from front to rear so it fit on twin 4 barrel manifolds. It’s very easy to rebuild. The Q-jet is not chrome finished.
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H[/url]ere’s a picture of the AFB type carb. A beginner can rebuild one.Some Edelbrock AFB type carbs are not “chrome finished”. They are either brown or or shiny, not actually chromed. Yours looks like it was shiny but it’s just dirty from off roading. The throat looks fairly clean.
I think your low voltage is from low idle speed. This is corrected by eliminating vacuum leaks, correcting ignition timing with a light, cleaning or replacing fouled spark plugs, replacing ignition components as needed (ignition wires, cap and rotor), and last but not least, adjusting idle speed/idle mixture.
There are different PCV valves for 350 Chevies. You have to make sure you have the right one. If the PCV system is operating correctly, you have a wee bit of vacuum at the hose that is supposed to go into the air cleaner. With that aftermarket air cleaner, it may routed under the air cleaner. Disconnect it and see if the vacuum will hold a piece of paper. If it will not, check the system for leaks. Check the system to see if it is sucking oil. Start with the line from manifold vacuum to the PVC. Is there a lot of oil inside?
Most vacuum leaks on your engine can be found without Carb cleaner or propane. Just disconnect the vac line from the carb and check for vac with your finger. (Manifold vac is present at idle. Vac lines connected above the throttles may have vac when you goose the throttle and not at idle). When you’ve verified vac at the source, reconnect the vac line and check for vac at the other end of the line. If vac is absent or less, the line is leaking.
You may have a leak between the carb and the intake manifold. That looks like an aftermarket aluminum manifold. Does it have a brand name on it? This is big problem area because the fellow who installed aftermarket parts may not have matched parts up correctly. Most aftermarket manifolds accept both kinds of carbs, “spread bore” carbs like the Q-jet as well as “square bore” carbs like the AFB type or Holley. If you have a manifold that accepts both types, it will have 8 bolt holes, for both bolt patterns and you need an Edelbrock adapter plate or you get a big vac leak. You can see if the 4 nuts holding the carb are tight (do not over torque them – the lock nuts should hold them in place).
I think the follow who sold you the Chevy must have had stuff like a power amp, a sub-woofer and maybe a security system hooked up to the switches and wires. I would remove all of that one piece at a time. If you want to install an amp or something later, it will be easier to run new wires and so on than to try to hook stuff up to the “rat’s nest”. In the course of taking that out, you may find something he’s loused up and fix it.
That MSD unit is probably working fine if it’s hooked up right.Production automobliles going back to the 1890s have made extensive use of cast iron. If you piled up every auto engine ever produced from the 19th century through today, you would be looking at cast iron mostly, some aluminum, steel and small amounts of brass, copper, plastic, and wee bits of magnesium.
Early auto engines made use of iron especially in massive parts like blocks, crankshafts and heads. Many of today’s larger auto and truck engines are still composed of iron primarily.
Use of lighter weight materials begins with aircraft and motorcycle engines. Motorcycles until recently lacked radiators, so their engines used three basic elements; cylinders with cooling fins, a crankcase and heads. The cylinders were frequently iron and the rest, aluminum. Some car engines follow motorcycles in this respect. The Volkswagen was intended as a car for “der volk”, (the folk, or the “working poor”) so German industrialists in the 1930s insisted on motorcycle like engines for der volk.
In the 1930s, aircraft engines began making greater use of aluminum in massive liquid cooled engines. Among the first was an Alfa Romeo aircraft Diesel in V8 and V16 configurations. These engines had aluminum blocks and heads, iron crankshafts and iron cylinders called liners (not sleeves).
Beginning in 1954, this configuration was used in cars by Alfa Romeo (their DOHC hemi 4 cylinder) and by Rolls Royce with their 1958 V8. This type of engine, mostly aluminum, derives from aircraft. Alfa, Rolls and other auto builders built piston aircraft engines.)
Today, most engines are built in this configuration. Some of today’s aluminum engines have aluminum cylinders and some have iron liners.
The Alfa Romeo in the avatar photo that I use is a 2 liter GTAm race car from 1971 or 2. It has 4 iron liners cast in one piece, so they’re joined at the top where they contact the cylinder head. My 2004 Acura has a 2 liter 4 cylinder with the same type of iron liners cast in one piece.
Yesterday’s auto engines were mostly iron, but today’s most advanced auto engines have replaced massive iron components with aluminum.
Maybe someone else has something to add.Production automobliles going back to the 1890s have made extensive use of cast iron. If you piled up every auto engine ever produced from the 19th century through today, you would be looking at cast iron mostly, some aluminum, steel and small amounts of brass, copper, plastic, and wee bits of magnesium.
Early auto engines made use of iron especially in massive parts like blocks, crankshafts and heads. Many of today’s larger auto and truck engines are still composed of iron primarily.
Use of lighter weight materials begins with aircraft and motorcycle engines. Motorcycles until recently lacked radiators, so their engines used three basic elements; cylinders with cooling fins, a crankcase and heads. The cylinders were frequently iron and the rest, aluminum. Some car engines follow motorcycles in this respect. The Volkswagen was intended as a car for “der volk”, (the folk, or the “working poor”) so German industrialists in the 1930s insisted on motorcycle like engines for der volk.
In the 1930s, aircraft engines began making greater use of aluminum in massive liquid cooled engines. Among the first was an Alfa Romeo aircraft Diesel in V8 and V16 configurations. These engines had aluminum blocks and heads, iron crankshafts and iron cylinders called liners (not sleeves).
Beginning in 1954, this configuration was used in cars by Alfa Romeo (their DOHC hemi 4 cylinder) and by Rolls Royce with their 1958 V8. This type of engine, mostly aluminum, derives from aircraft. Alfa, Rolls and other auto builders built piston aircraft engines.)
Today, most engines are built in this configuration. Some of today’s aluminum engines have aluminum cylinders and some have iron liners.
The Alfa Romeo in the avatar photo that I use is a 2 liter GTAm race car from 1971 or 2. It has 4 iron liners cast in one piece, so they’re joined at the top where they contact the cylinder head. My 2004 Acura has a 2 liter 4 cylinder with the same type of iron liners cast in one piece.
Yesterday’s auto engines were mostly iron, but today’s most advanced auto engines have replaced massive iron components with aluminum.
Maybe someone else has something to add.The Edelbrock accepts both the square bore and the Q-jet (spread bore) carbs. It’s a “universal” manifold with both bolt patterns, but you need an adaptor to run a square bore carb on the Edelbrock (about $8).
The Edelbrock manifolds are dual plane designs unlike V8 manifolds from the 1950s and early 60s. Dual plane manifolds have advantages over the older ones, but some of the stock GM dual planes are just as performance oriented as the Edelbrock. An Edelbrock manifold would have little and perhaps no performance advantage over your stock manifold. They are lighter than iron manifolds and they do accept both carb types and they are engineered to provide gains in conjunction with other modifications, but that would entail an overhaul of the engine, increased compression, balancing, head work and a high perf camshaft and valve train.
If you want one you can contact Edelbrock and ask them which of their manifolds work best on your engine or you could find the retailer with the best price (Jeg’s, Summit, P.A.W. ?) and call them with the same question. I’m almost certain their Oldsmobile manifold fits your engine and you can hook up everything in 49 states or Calif.
I’ve read about your recent experiences with repairs and I think you would find rebuilding your Q-jet easier than some of the jobs you have done already. The first time I was faced with your decision with a worn Q-jet, I was talked into going the Edelbrock Performer/ Holley 4 barrel route. I would never do that again or recommend it to anyone with basic automotive skills.You could check your manifold for vacuum leaks. Water works well on a v8 intake manifold.
If you’re doing the manifold, it’s a good time to replace old hydraulic lifters before they start clicking.[url=http://www.fcpeuro.com/products/bmw-exhaust-manifold-gasket-18301716888:3lqcc7jm]http://www.fcpeuro.com/products/bmw-exhaust-manifold-gasket-18301716888
T[/url]his type of gasket was common long ago. Looks like perforations.
The 2 spark plugs with the “cooper brown” tint… are they from adjacent cylinders? Is the copper brown tint rust color?
If your coolant looks good, you may still have rust in the block that would show up if the head gasket leaked. Given the age of the engine, there may be plenty of rust near the bottom of the waterjackets if someone was unwilling to perform the regular maintenance on the cooling system.If you can find one in a wrecking yard, it will probably last for years. Why do you need to rebuild a 2008 alternator? High miles?
Here’s the best advice you will get. If you have a problem with your engine, chances are you will not be able to repair it with an additive. If you do not have a problem, don’t mess with it. In other words, if you’re still getting the MPG you got when your vehicle was new, an additive will not improve that. If you’re getting peak MPG, your engine is running at peak efficiency
Tell us why you are considering an additive and someone will suggest a remedy.Hi Beefy, I had an MGB in the early 1970s and moved to southern CA. It seemed to run too hot. Some “expert” told me to take the T-stat out. It did run cooler for some weeks of short trips, then I drove it for some distance and it blew a head gasket.
I think Eric’s video mentions that propane is safer than carb cleaner. Others simply say that propane is safe.
In that very little carb cleaner or propane needs to be used, the danger of fire is small anyway.
As an experiment, create a small leak and spray a small amount of carb cleaner on it. You will see how little carb cleaner is necessary to change idle. I’ve seen a couple of fires that required a fire extinguisher and they were caused by several ounces of ATF or gasoline spilled on hot exhaust.I learned from a wood shop (long ago) that whenever you use a new tool or a new method, you should test your skill (or train) with something you can throw away. The same applies here, but you need to simulate a leak to see how your detection method works. This can also be applied to “fire fighting” skill.
The first thing to do would be to check the spark plugs.
I realize you may be using that T-stat as a band aid for something, but it can cause new problems. What is the stock T-stat? 195?
If you have a short commute, that T-stat could be a disaster and I think you would see evidence of a rich mixture on your plugs.
If you have actually achieved high flow with that water pump and 150 T-stat ( a big if) you have a condition that causes blown head gaskets in some engines.
I don’t know exactly what effects those mods would have in your vehicle, but there’s no substitute for a properly functioning cooling system.
I hope you do not take offense. I was a DIY wrench turner until I was 27 and know a lot about mistakes because I made them myself, usually because somebody older and with more experience gave me the wrong advice.