Thread: gas returns??

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I have a Edelbrock 600. I wahe a mechanical fuel pump. After I shut the engine off.. I really have to pump it, and hold down on the gas pedal to start it. I have a Mr. Gasket clear filter. I can watch the gas head back to the fuel pump. Is this common??, and any idea why it would be so hard to start??

My first thought is that your accelerator pump must not be giving you a full shot, but then you say you have to hold down the gas pedal, which holds open the choke plate to provide more air, usually in a flooded situation. Those sound counter productive to me, pumping the pedal to get fuel, then holding the pedal down to get more air. If you have good spark, timing's right, etc then I would expect one pump to prime and set the choke, then crank and start. Your explanation is confusing to me - does not seem logical.

I'm confused over the same issues Roger mentioned. There should be sufficient gas in the bowl at all times to stab the pedal once and shoot some gas into the intake, regardless of what happens to the gas in the line. Then you say you have to hold the gas pedal down all the way which, again as Roger said, usually indicates a flooded condition, needing air to clean it out.

When the car is dead cold the next time, remove the air cleaner and have someone depress the gas pedal while you look into the carb throats with a flashlight. You should see two angled streams of gas shooting down each of the two front bores. If you have that you have something else going on, like timing, weak spark, vacuum leak, etc. If the motor is fairly healthy and has good spark, just a little gas into the carb throats is enough to fire it up.

Those Edelbrocks are about the most forgiving, troublefree carbs out there, so I am thinking you have something else going on.

Don

Oh, and after I run it for about 10 minutes, and put it in gear.. It runs real rough, and dies..

Your carb is gummed up and will need a thorough cleaning and rebuild.

All of this just happened this year after sitting over the Winter. Last year it all worked just fine. I never had to even touch the gas and it would fire up.. Could it be that I had bad gas in it?? I have good fresh 91 octane gas in it now. Still might be some of the old gas in the line, but not much..

Would Seafoam work??

Originally Posted by slantback37

Would Seafoam work??

It is highly unlikely that any product that you put in your gas tank is going to fix a gunked up carburetor. Taking a 4 barrel apart, cleaning it up and putting it all back together with the proper adjustments is really not that difficult, but you seem to not want to dive into that pool. If you're not comfortable with that level of complexity you need to find a good independent shop that you trust, take the car in to them and let them put a kit in the carb, but be ready to leave about $300 or more in their hands when you depart with your smooth running engine. Next year put Stabil in your gas before you shut down for the winter.

I put Stabil in it before I shut it down and put it up for the winter. I was using Regular gas in it. A guy from Church said he never runs Regular. Only Premium. There might be some of the Regular gas left in it. He came out and adjusted the screws in the front, but I don't think he quite got it right. I took off the air cleaner last night, and used the flash light and pulled back on the throttle. Shot gas in from both sides. If I pull off the vacuum line from the carb can I then adjust the two screws?? Both Low speed and High speed adjustment screws have to be adjusted as well. If none of that doesn't work.. Then I will pull it from the intake. Does Edelbrock have a blowup of how to do this?? Al

Originally Posted by slantback37

I put Stabil in it before I shut it down and put it up for the winter. I was using Regular gas in it. A guy from Church said he never runs Regular. Only Premium. There might be some of the Regular gas left in it. He came out and adjusted the screws in the front, but I don't think he quite got it right. I took off the air cleaner last night, and used the flash light and pulled back on the throttle. Shot gas in from both sides. If I pull off the vacuum line from the carb can I then adjust the two screws?? Both Low speed and High speed adjustment screws have to be adjusted as well. If none of that doesn't work.. Then I will pull it from the intake. Does Edelbrock have a blowup of how to do this?? Al

Al,
Don't let me push you into something you're not comfortable doing. There are a few small parts that have to go back together right, but if you're a "fix-it" guy and pay attention it's not rocket science. Every carb kit I have ever bought had a set of instructions that showed exploded views of all the critical parts & pieces. Do you have the information that came with the carb? If not Edelbrock's tech line says that they will send you the manual if you call them. You need to be following the directions for that carb when you adjust your metering jets, if you don't know the steps by heart.

Future ref is 2oz's for every 5 gallons of gas.Too much lowers the octane and too little won't cover the job.Two things you haven't said yet is if it has a in-line gas filter and if you have checked the fuel pressure.Just to have gas in the carb without know if you are getting the proper fuel pressure "can" cause issues.Have you sample read the plugs.......they can tell you a story about it that even while it was starting right you didn't know.( sample reading is a nice way of saying you should look at all of them)Did you say what color the spark is??.

I have been reading every thing I can on it. I have the trouble shooting section of the owners manual. Would I have to buy a kit if I just take the top off, and clean it out of any gunk?? If there was a way of cleaning it by adding something to the fuel?? I would be afraid kind of to pull it apart. I have comprehensive learning disorder. I can read something 1,000 times and not know what I have read. I can do it a few times, but also have to think real hard to remember what I did. I have to look at something very hard to remember what went where. Looking at pictures, or someone explaining it simply helps me get the job done. I'm not rich. I can't afford $300 for someone to rebuild. I may be going blind, and getting hard to hear, and arthritis is in both of my thumbs, but I am trying as hard as I can to build it myself. That is with the help of people online.
The adjustment screws must be off some.. If I start it up, and let it get warm. If I pull off the vacuum line. Can I then adjust those screws in the front??

Originally Posted by slantback37

I have been reading every thing I can on it. I have the trouble shooting section of the owners manual. Would I have to buy a kit if I just take the top off, and clean it out of any gunk?? If there was a way of cleaning it by adding something to the fuel?? I would be afraid kind of to pull it apart. I have comprehensive learning disorder. I can read something 1,000 times and not know what I have read. I can do it a few times, but also have to think real hard to remember what I did. I have to look at something very hard to remember what went where. Looking at pictures, or someone explaining it simply helps me get the job done. I'm not rich. I can't afford $300 for someone to rebuild. I may be going blind, and getting hard to hear, and arthritis is in both of my thumbs, but I am trying as hard as I can to build it myself. That is with the help of people online.
The adjustment screws must be off some.. If I start it up, and let it get warm. If I pull off the vacuum line. Can I then adjust those screws in the front??

Al,
With all due respect your post describing your ailments explains a lot about your problem. In several of your posts people have given you suggestions that seem to go by without any consideration (may not be the case, but it seems that way). If (and this is a BIG IF) your carburetor is "gunked up" it is likely not just sediment in the bowls that can be sucked out and make everything OK - the "gunk" is going to be deposits and plugging in internal passages that can only be removed by complete disassembly, thorough cleaning, and careful reassembly, which I would say you should not tackle alone based on what you've told us today. I still am not fully convinced that your problem is in the carburetor. If you're getting a strong shot of fuel from the accelerator pump then it makes sense that if you "really pump it" then you're going to have to hold the pedal down to clear that fuel - you're flooding the engine, and you may well have fouled the plugs if you've done this many times. It seems to me that the things you've described could be ignition related, but trying to pinpoint it in this venue is tough. This might be solved by simply taking the car out and "blowing the cobbs out of it" with some highway miles, and a few hard pulls to clear things out at temperature.

I believe you mentioned being part of a "car group" or having friends in the car hobby in your area. I think it is time for you to call on one or two of them to come help you assess exactly where your problem lies, and then tackle it in a logical, step by step process using solid troubleshooting. Best of luck to you - sincerely hope you get it running right. It's a nice looking car.

Ditto what Roger just said!
Take it out and give it a kick in the A** with a couple hard pulls.
Blow the crap outta it.

Originally Posted by rspears

Al,
With all due respect your post describing your ailments explains a lot about your problem. In several of your posts people have given you suggestions that seem to go by without any consideration (may not be the case, but it seems that way). If (and this is a BIG IF) your carburetor is "gunked up" it is likely not just sediment in the bowls that can be sucked out and make everything OK - the "gunk" is going to be deposits and plugging in internal passages that can only be removed by complete disassembly, thorough cleaning, and careful reassembly, which I would say you should not tackle alone based on what you've told us today. I still am not fully convinced that your problem is in the carburetor. If you're getting a strong shot of fuel from the accelerator pump then it makes sense that if you "really pump it" then you're going to have to hold the pedal down to clear that fuel - you're flooding the engine, and you may well have fouled the plugs if you've done this many times. It seems to me that the things you've described could be ignition related, but trying to pinpoint it in this venue is tough. This might be solved by simply taking the car out and "blowing the cobbs out of it" with some highway miles, and a few hard pulls to clear things out at temperature.

I believe you mentioned being part of a "car group" or having friends in the car hobby in your area. I think it is time for you to call on one or two of them to come help you assess exactly where your problem lies, and then tackle it in a logical, step by step process using solid troubleshooting. Best of luck to you - sincerely hope you get it running right. It's a nice looking car.

I had the exact same problem with my 600 elderbrock carb. Found out that my check valve was bad. Had some gunk in the chevk valve and after ckeaning it out, never had to pump the pedal more than once. Not saying this is your problem but could be.